Railways (Existing Officers and Servants) Act, 1926

Amendments in respect of compensation by way of annual allowance.

4.—The said Third Schedule to the Principal Act shall be construed and have effect as if the paragraph thereof numbered “(5)” were amended as follows, that is to say:—

(a) by the deletion of the first clause thereof, which clause begins with the words “Every existing officer or servant” and ends with the words “that is to say,” and the deletion of sub-paragraph (a) thereof and the insertion of the following clause and four sub-paragraphs in lieu of the clause and sub-paragraph so deleted, that is to say:—

Every existing officer or servant who under paragraph (2) of this Schedule relinquishes his office or situation within seven years after the passing of the Principal Act and every existing officer or servant whose office or situation is abolished under the said paragraph (2) within such seven years on account of his office or situation having become unnecessary in consequence of changes of administration due directly to the amalgamation and absorption of companies effected by or under the Principal Act and not shown by the amalgamated company to have been caused by decrease of traffic, reduction of renewal or maintenance work, introduction of improved methods of working (other than methods which would not have been feasible for the amalgamating or absorbed company by which the officer or servant was formerly employed) or other economic cause or whose services are dispensed with within such seven years on account of such services having become unnecessary in consequence of such changes of administration as aforesaid, or whose remuneration or emoluments are reduced within such seven years on the ground that his duties have been diminished in consequence of such changes of administration as aforesaid or who otherwise suffers within such seven years any direct pecuniary loss by reason of such changes of administration as aforesaid (including any loss of prospective superannuation or other retiring or death allowances and allowances to his widow or orphan children whether obtaining legally or by customary practice of the amalgamating or absorbed company) shall be entitled to be paid compensation by the amalgamated company, the amount of such compensation to be determined and paid by the amalgamated company

(subject to appeal as hereinafter provided) in accordance with the following rules, that is to say:—

(aa) in the case of an existing officer or servant who relinquishes his office or situation or whose office or situation is abolished or whose services are dispensed with as aforesaid the compensation shall be an annual allowance to be paid to him during his life not exceeding in any case two-thirds of his remuneration and emoluments, and, subject to that limitation and to the provisions of sub-paragraph (d) hereof, to be calculated at the rate of one-sixtieth of his remuneration and emoluments for every completed year of his service with the amalgamated company or any amalgamating or absorbed company, with an addition thereto based on the number of completed years of his service and calculated according to the following scale:—

if he has twenty or more completed years of service, an addition of ten-sixtieths of his remuneration and emoluments,

if he has fifteen or more completed years of service and less than twenty such years, an addition of seven-sixtieths of his remuneration and emoluments,

if he has ten or more completed years of service and less than fifteen such years, an addition of five-sixtieths of his remuneration and emoluments,

if he has five or more completed years of service and less than ten such years, an addition of three-sixtieths of his remuneration and emoluments:

(ab) in any other case the compensation shall be a lump sum, but if an appeal is taken to the standing arbitrator or arbitrators such arbitrator or arbitrators may if he or they so think fit on the hearing of such appeal, award as compensation (in lieu of a lump sum) an annual allowance to be paid to the existing officer or servant during his life, not exceeding in any case two-thirds of his remuneration and emoluments and, subject to that over-riding limitation, not exceeding an annual sum calculated at the rate of one-sixtieth of his remuneration and emoluments for every completed year of his service with the amalgamated company or any amalgamating or absorbed company:

(ac) in fixing the nature and amount of compensation to be awarded in cases within the foregoing sub-paragraph (ab) all the circumstances of the case shall be taken into consideration and in particular due consideration shall be given to any such loss of prospective superannuation or other retiring or death allowance as aforesaid:

(ad) in the case of an existing officer or servant who has served as a trade apprentice with any amalgamating or absorbed company, the period of such apprenticeship shall not for the purpose of this paragraph be reckoned as service with such amalgamating or absorbed company:

and

(b) by the deletion of sub-paragraph (b) thereof and the insertion of the following sub-paragraph in lieu of the sub-paragraph so deleted, that is to say:—

(b) (i) where any existing officer or servant was temporarily absent from his employment as such officer or servant and during the whole of such absence was engaged in service in the National Forces of Saorstát Eireann, or any military forces serving under the authority of the First Dáil Eireann, the Second Dáil Eireann, or the Provisional Government of Ireland, or the British Army, Navy or Air Force, such temporary absence shall for the purposes of this Schedule be reckoned and included in his period of service as such officer or servant;

(ii) without prejudice to the provisions of the preceding clause numbered (b) (i) where any existing officer or servant was absent from his employment as such officer or servant for a period of less than one year on account of the closing or partial closing of a branch or department of any amalgamating or absorbed company in consequence of civil strife in the years 1922, or 1923, such absence shall not be deemed to have caused an interruption of his service if otherwise continuous as such officer or servant, but the period of such absence shall not be included in his service as such officer or servant unless he was engaged during such period of absence in service in the National Forces of Saorstát Eireann:

and

(c) by the deletion of sub-paragraph (d) thereof and the insertion of the following sub-paragraph in lieu of the sub-paragraph so deleted, that is to say:—

(d) whenever the compensation fixed by or under any of the foregoing sub-paragraphs is an annual allowance and the officer or servant is entitled to benefits by way of superannuation payable out of any contributory superannuation or benefit fund to which an amalgamating or absorbed company or the amalgamated company contributed or contributes, such annual allowance shall notwithstanding anything contained in any of the foregoing sub-paragraphs be the difference between the amount of the annual allowance which would be payable if the officer or servant was not entitled to any such benefits and the annual amount or annual value of such benefits and the officer or servant shall in addition be paid by the amalgamated company a lump sum equal to the total amount of the contributions paid at any time by the officer or servant to the Superannuation or Benefit Fund.