40.— (1) Every person who is on the day immediately before the vesting day a member of the staff of the Air Navigation Services Office of the Department of Transport, Energy and Communications and is designated by the Minister for employment by the company shall, on the vesting day, be transferred to and become a member of the staff of the company.

(2) Save in accordance with a collective agreement negotiated with any recognised trade union or staff association concerned, a person referred to in subsection (1) shall not, while in the service of the company, be brought to less beneficial conditions of service (including conditions in relation to tenure of office) or of remuneration than the conditions of service (including conditions in relation to tenure of office) or remuneration to which he was subject immediately before the vesting day.

(3) In relation to persons transferred to the company under subsection (1), previous service in the civil service shall be reckonable for the purposes of, but subject to any exceptions or exclusions in, the Redundancy Payments Acts, 1967 to 1991, the Holidays (Employees) Acts, 1973 and 1991, the Minimum Notice and Terms of Employment Acts, 1973 to 1991, and the Unfair Dismissals Acts, 1977 to 1993.