Interpretation
1.—(1) In this Schedule—
“dismissal” means a dismissal within the meaning of Article 127 of the 1996 Order(1);
“employee” means a person to whom regulation 32 (exception for retirement) applies and references to “employer” shall be construed accordingly;
“intended retirement date” has the meaning given by sub-paragraph (2);
“operative date of termination” means (subject to paragraph 10(3))—
where the employer terminates the employee’s contract of employment by notice, the date on which the notice expires; or
where the employer terminates the contract of employment without notice, the date on which the termination takes effect;
“request” means a request made under paragraph 5; and
“worker” has the same meaning as in Article 3(3) of the 1996 Order.
(2) In this Schedule, “intended retirement date” means—
(a)where the employer notifies a date in accordance with paragraph 2, that date;
(b)where the employer notifies a date in accordance with paragraph 4 and either no request is made or a request is made after the notification, that date;
(c)where,
(i)the employer has not notified a date in accordance with paragraph 2,
(ii)a request is made before the employer has notified a date in accordance with paragraph 4 (including where no notification in accordance with that paragraph is given),
(iii)the request is made by an employee who has reasonable grounds for believing that the employer intends to retire him on a certain date,
(iv)the request identifies that date, and
the date so identified;
(d)in a case to which paragraph 3 has applied, any earlier or later date that has superseded the date mentioned in head (a), (b) or (c) as the intended date of retirement by virtue of paragraph 3(3);
(e)in a case to which paragraph 10 has applied, the later date that has superseded the date mentioned in head (a), (b) or (c) as the intended date of retirement by virtue of paragraph 10(3)(b).
S.I. 1996/1919 (N.I. 16); Article 127 was amended by Schedule 9 to the Employment Relations (Northern Ireland) Order 1999 (S.I. 1999/2790 (N.I. 9)) and regulation 11 of, and paragraph 2(7) of Schedule 2 to, S.R. 2002 No. 298