44.— (1) (a) Subject to paragraph (b), every person who, immediately before the commencement of this Part is an employee of the Board shall, on such commencement, hold an unestablished position in the Civil Service.

(b) Every person who, immediately before the commencement of this Part, is a fixed-term employee of the Board shall, on such commencement, hold an unestablished position as a fixed-term employee of the Minister for the duration of his or her contract of employment.

(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, on the commencement of this Part, be brought to less beneficial conditions of remuneration than the conditions of remuneration to which he or she was subject immediately before the commencement of this Part.

(3) The previous service of a person referred to in subsection (1) shall be reckonable for the purposes of, but subject to any exceptions or exclusions in:

(a) the Redundancy Payments Acts 1967 to 2007;

(b) the Protection of Employees (Part-Time Work) Act 2001;

(c) the Protection of Employees (Fixed-Term Work) Act 2003;

(d) the Organisation of Working Time Act 1997;

(e) the Terms of Employment (Information) Acts 1994 and 2001;

(f) the Minimum Notice and Terms of Employment Acts 1973 to 2005;

(g) the Unfair Dismissals Acts 1977 to 2007;

(h) the Maternity Protection Acts 1994 and 2004;

(i) the Parental Leave Acts 1998 and 2006;

(j) the Adoptive Leave Acts 1995 and 2005;

(k) the Carer’s Leave Act 2001.

(4) Any superannuation benefits awarded to or in respect of a person referred to in subsection (1) and the terms relating to those benefits shall be no less favourable than those applicable to or in respect of that person immediately before the commencement of this Part.

(5) The pension payments and other superannuation liabilities of the Board in respect of its former employees become on the commencement of this Part the liabilities of the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform.

(6) A person referred to in subsection (1) shall undertake such duties as the Minister may from time to time direct.

(7) A person referred to in subsection (1) shall be subject to and employed in accordance with the Civil Service Regulation Acts 1956 to 2005 and the Ethics in Public Office Acts 1995 to 2001.

(8) In this section—

“Act of 2004” means the Public Service Management (Recruitment and Appointments) Act 2004;

“Civil Service” has the meaning assigned to it by the Act of 2004;

“contract of employment” has the meaning assigned to it by the Protection of Employees (Fixed-Term Work) Act 2003;

“fixed-term employee” has the meaning assigned to it by the Protection of Employees (Fixed-Term Work) Act 2003;

“recognised trade union or staff association” means a trade union or staff association recognised by the Minister for the purposes of negotiations which are concerned with the remuneration or conditions of employment, or the working conditions of employees;

“unestablished position” has the meaning assigned to it by the Act of 2004.