B of I hires language experts for immigrant customers

Bank of Ireland has begun hiring Polish, Mandarin and Russian speakers in a bid to assist immigrants in accessing the bank's services. The bank also plans to offer in-branch literature in the three languages in all of its 287 branches from the beginning of next month.

Bank of Ireland's retail strategy and marketing director, Brendan Nevin, said that there had been a very significant increase in the numbers of immigrant customers using the bank's services in recent years, particularly since the 10 new states joined the EU last year.

"We find that migrant workers have an above-average distribution of third-level qualifications and in many cases, are working below their qualification level.

"But over time, this will change as more people open up businesses of their own. They will be the business people of tomorrow, so potentially, it is a very lucrative market for us."

In some branches, immigrants account for 70 per cent of new account holders.

Mr Nevin said Bank of Ireland had already hired five staff who are fluent in one of Mandarin, Russian or Polish.

The new employees are assisting immigrants who do not speak English in opening bank accounts and accessing other services.

The need for similarly skilled staff will be assessed throughout Bank of Ireland's branch network and more foreign language speakers will be hired on a needs-driven basis.

Some of those recruited will come from the immigrant communities, while others will be Irish people proficient in foreign languages.

Bank of Ireland also plans to expand the range of products it offers to immigrant workers. Particular emphasis will be placed on making it easier to transfer funds overseas.

The Immigrant Council of Ireland has welcomed the new Bank of Ireland initiative, which is the first of its kind in the banking sector.

The council's chief executive, Denise Charlton, said the service now would reduce the stress associated with banking through a foreign language.

"While in many ways immigrants and the host population have generally similar needs when it comes to accessing services, there is no doubt that the language barrier is by far the biggest hurdle for most immigrant workers," she said.

Currently, there are about 230,000 immigrant workers in the State, representing around six per cent of the overall population.

This is expected to grow to about 10 per cent of the population in 2020, with many economists predicting the necessity for 45,000 immigrant workers per year to satisfy the needs of the growing economy.