IRISH Life has warned that sales staff who fail to accept redeployment will face disciplinary action and possible dismissal.
Today, the first 20 of 430 personal finance advisers at the company will be called to meetings with their regional managers to be assigned positions in new sales teams.
Their union, Manufacturing Science Finance, has said they will insist on working to their existing contracts.
"The next move is up to the company. We are still available for talks," says MSF national secretary, Mr John Tierney.
The Labour Relations Commission is to call both sides to talks on Friday but the company will probably institute internal disciplinary proceedings tomorrow against PFAs who refuse to comply with new arrangements in the meantime.
Irish Life hopes "the individuals concerned will make themselves available to discuss the new situation and their roles within it. The company has indicated that it intends to proceed with the introduction of the new structures", a spokesman said.
People who fail to co-operate with management "will place themselves in a situation where serious consequences could arise, including possible dismissal", he added.
But Irish Life wanted to avoid confrontation and that was why it accepted the invitation to renewed talks at the LRC.
Both sides have attended nine meetings so far without resolving their differences. If the company institutes disciplinary proceedings against employees it will probably take at least another week before they would find themselves sacked.
The contracts of Irish Life sales staff make no provision for suspension and attempts by the company to suspend employees have been found illegal by the courts.