Pensions Act, 1990

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PART VII

Equal Treatment for Men and Women in Occupational Benefit Schemes

Interpretation (Part VII).

65.—In this Part, unless the context otherwise requires—

“the Act of 1946” means the Industrial Relations Act, 1946 ;

“the Agency” means the Employment Equality Agency;

“the Court” means the Labour Court;

“employee” means a person who has entered into or works under (or, in the case of a contract which has been terminated, worked under) a contract of employment with an employer, whether the contract is (or was) for manual labour, clerical work or otherwise, is (or was) expressed or implied, oral or in writing, and whether it is (or was) a contract of service or apprenticeship or otherwise, and includes a civil servant of the State or of the Government and an officer or servant of a local authority within the meaning of the Local Government Act, 1941 , an officer or servant of a harbour authority, health board or vocational education committee and any reference to employment shall be construed accordingly;

“employer”, in relation to an employee, means the person by whom the employee is (or, in the case where the employment has ceased, was) employed under a contract of employment, and for the purposes of this definition a civil servant of the State or of the Government shall be deemed to be employed by the State or the Government (as the case may be) and an officer or servant of a local authority within the meaning of the Local Government Act, 1941 , or of a harbour authority, health board or vocational education committee shall be deemed to be employed by the local authority, harbour authority, health board or vocational educational committee (as the case may be);

“member” means any person who, having been admitted to membership under the rules of an occupational benefit scheme remains entitled to the benefits of such scheme;

“occupational benefit scheme” means any scheme or arrangement which is comprised in one or more instruments or agreements and which provides, or is capable of providing, occupational benefits to employed or self-employed persons but does not include—

(a) any individual contract made by or on behalf of an employed or a self-employed person, or

(b) any scheme which has only one member, or

(c) any scheme for the benefit of employees under which the benefits are provided in full by contributions paid by the employees;

“occupational benefits” means benefits, in the form of pensions or otherwise, payable in cash or in kind in respect of—

(a) termination of service,

(b) retirement, old age or death,

(c) interruptions of service by reason of sickness or invalidity,

(d) accidents, injuries or diseases arising out of or in the course of a person's employment,

(e) unemployment, or

(f) expenses incurred in connection with children or other dependants;

and, in the case of a member who is an employee, includes any other benefit corresponding to a benefit provided by virtue of the Social Welfare Acts, the Maternity (Protection of Employees) Act, 1981 , or the Health Acts, 1970 to 1987, which is payable to or in respect of the member as a consequence of his employment;

“the Social Welfare Acts” means the Social Welfare (Consolidation) Act, 1981 , and every enactment, whether passed before or after this Act, which is to be construed with it as one Act.