Local Government Act, 1925

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Compensation to be granted for loss of office.

44.—(1) A local body shall with the consent of the Minister grant to a pensionable officer in their employment, who either—

(a) has attained the age of sixty-five years and has at least twenty-five years' service, or

(b) becomes incapable of discharging the duties of his office with efficiency by reason of permanent infirmity of mind or body, or of old age, and has not less than ten years' service,

upon his resigning or otherwise ceasing to hold his office an annual allowance for his life not greater than two-thirds of his yearly salary and emoluments.

(2) A local body shall, with the consent of the Minister, grant to a pensionable officer in their employment who has at least ten years' service, and

(a) who is removed from his office for a cause other than misconduct or incapacity, or

(b) whose office is abolished, or

(c) whose position has, in the opinion of the Minister, been materially altered to his detriment owing to changes in the conditions of his employment made without reasonable cause, and who resigns his office with the consent of the Minister,

an annual allowance for his life not greater than two-thirds of his yearly salary and emoluments.

(3) A local body shall, with the consent of the Minister, grant to a pensionable officer in their employment, whose service is less than ten years and who ceases to hold his office in such circumstances that if his service were not less than ten years an allowance could have been granted to him under the foregoing sub-section, a gratuity not greater than one-sixth of his yearly salary and emoluments for each completed year of his service.

(4) Where a female pensionable officer in the employment of a local body elects or is compelled by the terms of her appointment to retire on account of her marriage or intended marriage, such local body may with the consent of the Minister, grant to such officer on her retirement or, where her retirement takes place before her marriage, upon her marriage a gratuity not greater than either a sum calculated at the rate of one-twelfth of her yearly salary and emoluments for each completed year of her service or than a sum equal to her yearly salary and emoluments whichever of these sums is the lesser.

(5) Subject as hereinafter provided, in ascertaining for the purposes of this Part of this Act, the service of an officer at the date when he ceases to hold his office, the whole of the period during which on such date such officer has held a pensionable office or offices continuously under any local body or bodies shall be reckoned:

Provided that—

(a) no period of service shall be reckoned in respect of which the officer has received an allowance or gratuity under this or any other enactment, and

(b) in the case of an officer of a committee or joint committee appointed for the purposes of the Agriculture and Technical Instruction (Ireland) Act, 1899, who has become pensionable by reason of his having devoted the whole of his time to the service of one or more such committees or joint committees for a continuous period of not less than ten years, his service shall be deemed to have commenced at the beginning of such continuous period.

(6) If an officer of a local body is aggrieved by the neglect or refusal of the local body to grant him an allowance or gratuity under this section, or with the amount of any allowance or gratuity granted him by the local body, he may within six months of his ceasing to hold his office appeal to the Minister who may thereupon grant to such officer any allowance or gratuity which in his opinion should have been granted to such officer by the local body under this section and such officer shall thereupon be entitled to receive such allowance or gratuity from the local body.

(7) The provision of a gratuity by a local body under this section shall be a purpose for which such local body may borrow in accordance with the enactments relating to borrowing by such local body.