Electricity Supply Board (Superannuation) Act , 1942

1 Definitions.

1.—In this Act—

the expression “the Minister” means the Minister for Industry and Commerce;

the expression “the Principal Act” means the Electricity (Supply) Act, 1927 (No. 27 of 1927);

the expression “the Board” means the Electricity Supply Board;

the expression “superannuation scheme” means a superannuation scheme which has the force of law by virtue of this Act and, where such scheme has been amended under this Act, means such scheme as so amended;

the expression “superannuation benefits”, when used in relation to a superannuation scheme, includes pensions, allowances, and gratuities;

the expression “manual worker”means a person in the employment of the Board who is a manual worker for the purposes of the superannuation schemes;

references to paying contributions shall be construed as including payment by deduction by the Board from salary or wages;

references to superannuation benefits payable to or receivable by a person or to which a person is entitled shall be construed as including superannuation benefits payable to the personal representative of such person.

2 Payment of superannuation benefits to members of the Board.

2.—(1) Where a member of the Board required by the Principal Act or the terms of his appointment to devote the whole of his time to his duties as such member ceases, after two or more periods (whether continuous or discontinuous) of whole-time membership of the Board which amount in the aggregate to not less than ten years and include at least one term of office of five years as a whole-time member of the Board, to be a member of the Board by expiration of his term of office without reappointment or by resignation during his term of office either after he has attained the age of sixty years or on account of ill-health before attaining that age, it shall be lawful for the Board to grant to such member a pension for life of an amount per annum calculated at the rate of one forty-eighth of the yearly salary of such member for every completed year of whole-time membership of the Board, but subject to a maximum of twenty forty-eighths of such yearly salary.

(2) Where a member of the Board dies during his term of office after a period of not less than five years continuous whole-time membership ending at his death, it shall be lawful for the Board to grant and pay to the personal representative of such member a gratuity of an amount equal to the yearly salary of such member.

(3) Where a person to whom a pension is granted under sub-section (1) of this section dies at such time after the cesser of his membership of the Board that the amount of such pension for the period from the date of such cesser to the date of his death is less than his yearly salary as a member of the Board, it shall be lawful for the Board to grant and pay to the personal representative of such person a gratuity of an amount equal to the sum by which the said amount of such pension for the said period falls short of the said yearly salary.

(4) For the purposes of this section—

(a) the yearly salary of a member of the Board shall be taken to be his average yearly salary as such member during the period of three years expiring on the date of the cesser of his membership or of his death, as the case may be, and

(b) the expiration of the term of office of a member of the Board followed by his reappointment (whether actually made before, on, or after such expiration) to membership of the Board for a term beginning on the date, or the day after the date, of such expiration shall not constitute a break in the continuity of his membership of the Board.

3 Provisions in respect of the pensions of members of the Board.

3.—(1) Whenever a person to whom a pension (in this sub-section referred to as the first-mentioned pension) has been granted under the next preceding section is in receipt of a pension (in this sub-section referred to as the second-mentioned pension) in respect of service in any situation in a public department or under a local authority (whether the second-mentioned pension was granted before or after the grant of the first-mentioned pension), whichever of the following provisions is applicable shall apply and have effect, that is to say:—

(a) if the second-mentioned pension equals or exceeds one-half of the salary by reference to which the amount of the first-mentioned pension was computed, the first-mentioned pension shall not be payable in respect of any period for which the second-mentioned pension is payable;

(b) if the second-mentioned pension is less than one-half of the salary by reference to which the amount of the first-mentioned pension was computed, so much only of the first-mentioned pension shall be payable for any period in respect of which the second-mentioned pension is payable as is equal to the amount by which the second-mentioned pension falls short of one-half of the said salary.

(2) Whenever a person to whom a pension has been granted under the next preceding section is employed in any situation in a public department or under a local authority and either of the following provisions is applicable, then whichever of those provisions is applicable shall apply and have effect, that is to say:—

(a) during any period for which the yearly rate of such person's remuneration in the said situation equals or exceeds the salary by reference to which the said pension was computed, the said pension shall not be payable;

(b) during any period for which the yearly rate of such remuneration is less than the said salary but is greater than the amount by which the said salary exceeds the said pension, so much only of the said pension shall be payable as is equal to the amount by which the yearly rate of such remuneration falls short of the said salary.

(3) In this section the expression “situation in a public department” includes—

(a) any situation which is remunerated wholly or partly out of moneys (other than a single grant or occasional grants not renewed from year to year) provided by the Oireachtas,

(b) any situation which is a public office within the meaning of the Superannuation Act, 1892, or any enactment amending that Act, and

(c) any situation in or under or as a paid member of a board or body established by or under any Act of the Oireachtas which the Minister for Finance by order declares to be a public department for the purposes of this section.

4 Preparation by the Board of schemes for the superannuation of its employees.

4.—(1) As soon as conveniently may be after the passing of this Act, the Board shall prepare in accordance with this section—

(a) a scheme (in this Act referred to as the general employees superannuation scheme) for the grant and payment of superannuation benefits to all persons (with the exceptions mentioned in this Act or the scheme itself) employed by the Board who are not manual workers, and

(b) a scheme (in this Act referred to as the manual workers superannuation scheme) for the grant and payment of superannuation benefits to all persons (with the exceptions mentioned in this Act or the scheme itself) employed by the Board who are manual workers.

(2) When the Board has prepared a scheme in pursuance of the foregoing sub-section of this section, the Board shall, before submitting such scheme to the Minister,—

(a) make a copy of such scheme available during a period of twenty-one days for inspection by the employees of the Board who would be entitled to receive superannuation benefits under such scheme as so prepared, and

(b) give notice to the said employees of such availability for inspection, and

(c) receive and consider all representations made to the Board during the said period by or on behalf of any of the said employees, and

(d) make such (if any) alterations in such scheme as the Board shall consider to be necessary or desirable having regard to representations so made to them.

5 Confirmation of schemes by the Minister.

5.—(1) Every scheme prepared by the Board in pursuance of the next preceding section shall be submitted by the Board to the Minister.

(2) When a scheme has been submitted to the Minister in pursuance of the foregoing sub-section of this section, the Minister shall either, as he shall think proper, refer such scheme back to the Board for reconsideration and fresh submission under the said sub-section or, by order made after consultation with the Minister for Finance, confirm such scheme either without modification or with such modifications (whether by way of addition, omission, or variation) as the Minister shall, after such consultation, think proper.

(3) When a scheme prepared by the Board has been confirmed by the Minister under this section, such scheme shall, as from the date of the order of the Minister confirming it, have the force of law in the form in which it was so confirmed.

6 Preparation and confirmation of amending schemes.

6.—(1) It shall be lawful for the Board whenever they think proper, to prepare a scheme (in this section referred to as an amending superannuation scheme) amending (whether by addition, omission, or variation) a superannuation scheme previously confirmed by the Minister or amending (whether as aforesaid) or revoking an amending superannuation scheme for the time being in force.

(2) The provisions of this Act requiring the Board, before submitting a scheme to the Minister, to make a copy of such scheme available to employees, to give notice of such availability, to receive and consider representations, and to make alterations in such scheme shall apply and have effect in relation to every amending superannuation scheme.

(3) Every amending superannuation scheme prepared by the Board under this section shall be submitted by the Board to the Minister, and the Minister shall have the like powers and duties in relation to the confirmation of such amending superannuation scheme as he has under this Act in relation to the confirmation of a scheme prepared and submitted by the Board under the foregoing provisions of this Act.

(4) No amending superannuation scheme shall operate so to amend a superannuation scheme as to cause such superannuation scheme to contravene in any manner the provisions of this Act in relation to the matters to be provided for by or the provisions to be contained in such superannuation scheme.

(5) When an amending superannuation scheme has been confirmed by the Minister under this section, such scheme shall, as from the date of the order of the Minister confirming it, have the force of law in the form in which it was so confirmed, and the superannuation scheme to which such amending superannuation scheme relates shall have effect subject to the provisions of such amending superannuation scheme as so confirmed.

7 General provisions in regard to the contents of superannuation schemes.

7.—(1) Every superannuation scheme shall—

(a) provide that a fund shall be set up out of which the superannuation benefits payable under the scheme shall be paid and that such fund shall be administered in accordance with this Act and the regulations made thereunder by the Minister, and

(b) provide (save as otherwise provided by this section) that every person entitled to superannuation benefits under the scheme shall pay contributions to the said fund and that the Board shall make to the said fund payments equal in the aggregate to the aggregate amount of the said contributions thereto, and

(c) provide that the Board shall defray the expenses of administering the scheme and managing the said fund, and

(d) indicate clearly the classes of persons in the employment of the Board who are to be entitled to take advantage of the scheme and pay contributions and receive superannuation benefits thereunder and, in particular, define the classes of persons who are to be deemed in relation to the scheme to be manual workers, and

(e) prescribe the contributions payable and the superannuation benefits receivable under the scheme and (subject to the provisions of this Act) the service which will qualify or be reckonable for such benefit, and

(f) prescribe (subject to the provisions of this section) the circumstances in which persons leaving the employment of the Board before they have become entitled to superannuation benefits under the scheme will be entitled to have contributions paid by them under the scheme repaid, whether with or without interest, and

(g) provide for the transfer of an employee of the Board from one superannuation scheme to the other such scheme where a change in the character of the employment of such employee renders such transfer appropriate, and

(h) provide for matters incidental or ancillary to all or any of the matters mentioned in the foregoing paragraphs of this sub-section.

(2) In addition to the matters mentioned in the next preceding sub-section, of this section, the general employees superannuation scheme shall provide that only continuous service in the employment of the Board ending on the date of retirement from that employment on account of age or ill-health shall qualify or be reckonable for superannuation benefits under that scheme, but the said scheme shall also provide that, in the reckoning of such continuous service of any employee, any period of service of such employee in the employment of the Board prior to a break after the passing of this Act in that service shall be included if, but only if, either the contributions paid to the said fund by such employee in respect of such period of service remain in the said fund or, where a sum in respect of such contributions or such contributions and interest thereon has been repaid to such employee, such sum is refunded to the said fund, whether with or without interest, but subject to the over-riding limitation that only service prior to such break which would have been so reckonable if such break had not occurred shall be included.

(3) In addition to the matters mentioned in sub-section (1) of this section, the manual workers superannuation scheme shall provide that only continuous service in the employment of the Board ending on the date of retirement, from that employment on account of age or ill-health shall qualify or be reckonable for superannuation benefits under the scheme, but the said scheme shall also provide—

(a) that in the reckoning of such continuous service as aforesaid of any manual worker, any period of service of such worker in the employment of the Board prior to a break after the passing of this Act in that service through wilful action on the part of such worker which caused, or might have caused, an interruption in the generation, transmission, or distribution of electricity by the Board or which impeded, or might have impeded, the due performance of any of the functions or duties of the Board shall be excluded, and

(b) that in the reckoning of such continuous service as aforesaid of any manual worker, any period of service of such worker in the employment of the Board prior to a break after the passing of this Act in that service shall be included if, but only if, such break was not due to such wilful action on the part of such worker as is mentioned in the next preceding paragraph of this sub-section and either the contributions paid to the said fund by such worker in respect of such period of service remain in the said fund or, where a sum in respect of such contributions or such contributions and interest thereon has been repaid to such worker, such sum is refunded to the said fund, whether with or without interest, but subject to the overriding limitations that no part of such prior service which is excluded by the said next preceding paragraph shall be so included and that only that service prior to such break which would have been so reckonable if such break had not occurred shall be included, and

(c) that where, in the reckoning of such continuous service as aforesaid of any manual worker, any period of service of such worker is excluded in pursuance of paragraph (a) of this sub-section, all contributions paid to the said fund by such person or by the Board on his behalf in respect of the period of service so excluded shall remain in the said fund and shall not be repayable, and

(d) that every dispute as to whether a break after the passing of this Act in the service of any manual worker in the employment of the Board was or was not due to such wilful action as is mentioned in paragraph (a) of this sub-section on the part of such worker shall be referable to the Tribunal to be established under this Act, and that the decision of the said Tribunal thereon shall be final and binding on all persons concerned.

(4) Every superannuation scheme shall also contain provisions enabling persons to whom the scheme applies who are in the employment of the Board at the date of the confirmation of the scheme to elect, in a specified manner and within a specified time after the said date, to take advantage of the scheme and pay contributions thereunder as on and from the date of such election and precluding any such persons who do not so elect from paying contributions or receiving superannuation benefits under the scheme, and also provisions to the following effect in respect of every person who does so elect and does so pay contributions (hereinafter referred to as a contributor), that is to say:—

(a) every contributor shall (save as is otherwise provided in whichever of the two next preceding sub-sections of this section is applicable to him) be entitled to reckon for superannuation benefits under the scheme his service (hereinafter referred to as subsequent service) in the employment of the Board on and subsequent to the date of his said election, and

(b) if a contributor pays to the fund set up for the purposes of the scheme appropriate contributions (with compound interest) in respect of his service (hereinafter referred to as prior service) in the employment of the Board prior to and ending on the day before the date of his said election, the Board shall also pay to the said fund appropriate contributions (with compound interest) in respect of such contributor's prior service and such contributor shall (save as is otherwise provided as aforesaid) be entitled to reckon for superannuation benefits under the scheme his prior service in full as well as so much (whether the whole or a part) of his subsequent service as is reckonable by virtue of the foregoing paragraph (a), and

(c) if any contributor does not pay to the said fund appropriate contributions in respect of his prior service, the Board shall pay to the said fund appropriate contributions (with compound interest) in respect of such contributor's prior service and such contributor shall (save as is otherwise provided as aforesaid) be entitled to reckon for superannuation benefits under the scheme one-half and no more of his prior service as well as so much (whether the whole or a part) of his subsequent service as is so reckonable by virtue of the foregoing paragraph (a).