Electricity Supply Board (Superannuation) Act, 1942

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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).

(5) Every superannuation scheme shall also contain provisions prescribing the manner in which and the time within which a person who enters the service of the Board after the date of the confirmation of the scheme and is entitled to take advantage of the scheme may indicate to the Board his intention to take advantage of the scheme, and providing that any such person who does not indicate such intention in the manner and within the time so prescribed shall not be entitled to pay contributions or receive superannuation benefits under the scheme.

(6) No superannuation scheme shall apply to or enable superannuation benefits thereunder to be received by any excepted person.

In this sub-section the expression “excepted person” means a person who was transferred to the service of the Board under either sub-section (9) of section 39 or sub-section (5) of section 105 of the Principal Act and has, by virtue of such transfer, a right to superannuation benefits payable by the Board, not being a person who—

(a) left the service of the Board before the passing of this Act, and

(b) was thereupon granted by the Board an allowance for life or a gratuity, and

(c) was, at any time after so leaving the service of the Board and before the passing of this Act, re-appointed to the service of the Board.