Great Northern Railway Act, 1958

Compensation for employees of Board and former employees of outgoing Board in cases of dismissal or transfer.

17.—(1) This section shall have effect in the following cases:

(a) where, as a consequence of the vesting on the transfer date of the part of the undertaking of the outgoing Board within the State, the Board, within five years after the passing of this Act, dispenses with the services of an officer or servant (including an officer or servant transferred or seconded under section 14) or transfers him to another position in its service;

(b) where, before the transfer date, the outgoing Board, as a consequence of ceasing to provide a service of trains, dispensed with the services of an officer or servant or transferred him to another position in its service, and the officer or servant was resident in the State at the time of his dismissal or transfer;

(c) where the Board ceases to provide or permanently reduces any transport service by rail or inland waterway or substitutes diesel for steam traction or where an order is made under section 9 of the Transport Act, 1958 , in relation to a specified level crossing and as a consequence thereof the Board, within five years after the passing of that Act, either dispenses with the services of an officer or servant (being an officer or servant transferred or seconded under section 14) or transfers him to another position in its service.

(2) This section applies only to an officer or servant who at the date of his dismissal or transfer was employed in a permanent capacity or who was, except for casual interruptions of employment, employed, whether by the outgoing Board or by the Board, during the whole of the preceding three years.

(3) A person to whom this section applies shall be entitled to compensation under section 14 of the Transport Act, 1958 , to the same extent and on the same conditions as a person to whom that section applies, but, in construing for the purposes of this subsection the Second Schedule to the Transport Act, 1958 , that Schedule shall be deemed to contain an additional paragraph as follows:

“8. (a) References in the Fourth Schedule to the Act of 1950 to a former transport company shall be construed as including references to the Great Northern Railway Board and the Great Northern Railway Company (Ireland).

(b) References in the said Fourth Schedule to a former road transport licensee shall be construed as including references to a person who was the holder of a passenger licence, within the meaning of the Road Transport Act, 1932 , or of a merchandise (existing carrier's) licence within the meaning of the Road Transport Act, 1933 , and whose said licence was transferred to the Great Northern Railway Board or the Great Northern Railway Company (Ireland).

(c) For the purpose of reckoning the pensionable service of a person under the said Fourth Schedule—

(i) the pensionable service shall include any service (having been with a former road transport licensee within the meaning of the said Fourth Schedule or of that Schedule as extended by subparagraph (b) of this paragraph) which is recognised for the purpose of an existing superannuation scheme as defined in section 15 of the Great Northern Railway Act, 1958 , and

(ii) if the person was taken into the employment of the Board as a specially qualified person at an age exceeding that at which transport service usually began, his pensionable service may be increased by the addition of such number of years as may seem just.”

(4) The references to the said section 14 in sections 15 and 17 of the Transport Act, 1958 , shall be construed as including references to this section.