49.— (1) Each person who, immediately before the establishment day, was an employee of the Central Board or a regional board is, on that day, transferred to and becomes an employee of IFI.

(2) Except in accordance with a collective agreement negotiated with any recognised trade union or staff association concerned, a person transferred under this section will be subject to terms and conditions of employment no less favourable than those to which the person was subject immediately before the establishment day while in the employment of the Central Fisheries Board or a regional fisheries board.

(3) The previous service of a person transferred under this section is to be counted as service for the purposes of, but subject to any exceptions or exclusions in, the following Acts—

(a) the Redundancy Payments Acts 1967 to 2007,

(b) the Minimum Notice and Terms of Employment Acts 1973 to 2005,

(c) the Unfair Dismissals Acts 1977 to 2007,

(d) the Terms of Employment (Information) Acts 1994 and 2001,

(e) the Maternity Protection Acts 1994 and 2004,

(f) the Adoptive Leave Acts 1995 and 2005,

(g) the Organisation of Working Time Act 1997,

(h) the Parental Leave Acts 1998 and 2006,

(i) the Protection of Employees (Part-Time Work) Act 2001,

(j) the Carer’s Leave Act 2001, and

(k) the Protection of Employees (Fixed-Term Work) Act 2003.

(4) (a) IFI may, subject to subsection (2) and following consultation with any recognised trade union or staff association concerned—

(i) redistribute or rearrange the duties performed by members of the staff of IFI who are employed in a particular grade or class of employment and every such member or person shall be bound to perform the duties allotted to him or her in any distribution or rearrangement, and

(ii) require any member of the staff of IFI to transfer, in such manner as is specified by IFI, to a regional operation of IFI so specified, and every such member or person shall be bound to transfer in accordance with the requirement.

(b) A redistribution or rearrangement referred to in paragraph (a) shall not be taken to be a removal from or abolition of office for the purposes of any scheme or enactment relating to superannuation or compensation for loss of office.

(5) In this section—

“consultation” has the meaning assigned to it by section 1 of the Employees (Provision of Information and Consultation) Act 2006;

“previous service” means service before the applicable transfer day with or recognised for pensionable purposes by the Central Board or any regional board;

“terms and conditions of employment” includes terms and conditions in respect of tenure of office, remuneration and related matters.