asked the Minister for Finance whether his attention has been called to the dismissal of certain officials of the National Land Bank on the branches being closed, following the transfer to the Bank of Ireland, and the refusal of the bank to fulfil the promise made by the Minister in the Dáil on July 20th, 1926, viz., that any member of the permanent staff of the National Land Bank for whom the Bank of Ireland would be unable to find employment would receive compensation by way of superannuation allowance equivalent to two-thirds of their salary; whether he is aware that one of the dismissed officers in question was formally acknowledged on May 27th, 1925, to be a permanent official of the National Land Bank, and whether in these circumstances he will notify the Bank of Ireland of the necessity for fulfilment of the terms of the agreement that were communicated to the Dáil.
CEISTEANNA—QUESTIONS. ORAL ANSWERS. - NATIONAL LAND BANK OFFICIALS.
TOMAS MAC EOIN
My attention has been called to the fact that the services of two lady officials of the National Land Bank have been dispensed with, and I presume this is the matter to which the Deputy refers. The agreement with the Bank of Ireland in regard to staff matters provided, as I stated in the Dáil on 20th July last, that "the permanent staff of the National Land Bank shall be dealt with in accordance with the practice of banks in dealing with their permanent staffs." My statement as to "compensation by way of superannuation allowance equivalent to two-thirds of their salary" applied accordingly only to people who are reckoned as permanent bank officials for the purposes of superannuation. The compensation award regulating the practice of banks in the matter of superannuation does not apply to female clerks, and gives them no rights to compensation should their services be for any reason discontinued beyond the usual legal notice. In the present cases the legal notice would have been one month, during which the employees would be expected to work, but in pursuance of my agreement with the Bank of Ireland, a gratuity of one year's salary will be paid to each of the ladies in question.
Is the Minister aware of the fact that the manager of the National Land Bank did include the name of one of the ladies as a permanent member of the staff?
Yes, but there is no provision in the compensation award in regard to the female staff, whether permanent or otherwise, or to temporary male staff.
The Minister made no reference, in his first statement to the Dáil, to the fact that it only had reference to the male members of the permanent staff. Is the Minister prepared to put before the Dáil a copy of the agreement to which he refers?
If I could obtain it easily, I would have no objection. I do not think there is anything private in it. I will examine that matter.