Officers injured or contracting diseases in the discharge of their duties

(1) This section shall apply to a teacher who, (a) is injured in the actual discharge of his duty by some injury specifically attributable to the nature of his duty which is not wholly or mainly due to, or seriously aggravated by, his own serious and culpable negligence or misconduct; or 22 (b) contracts a disease to which he is exposed by the nature of his duty, not being a disease wholly or mainly due to, or seriously aggravated by, his own serious and culpable negligence or misconduct. (2) In this section unless the contrary intention appears, references to a teacher being injured and to the date on which an injury is sustained shall respectively be construed as including references to him contracting such a disease as is mentioned in subsection (1) of this section and to the date on which such disease is contracted. (3) Where a teacher to whom this Act applies is holding a pensionable office in which he has been confirmed, he may, (a) if his retirement is necessitated or materially accelerated by his injury and he has been in the teaching service for less than ten years, be granted, in lieu of any gratuity under section 11 of this Act, a pension under section 8, as the case may be, as if the words “ten years or upwards” were omitted from the said section 8; (b) if he was injured while in the teaching service of Belize be granted on retirement an additional pension, at the annual rate of the proportion of his actual pensionable emoluments at the date of his injury appropriate to his case as shown in the following table, when his capacity to contribute to his own support is, Slightly impaired five sixtieths Impaired ten sixtieths Materially impaired fifteen sixtieths Totally destroyed twenty sixtieths 23 The amount of the additional pension may be reduced to such an extent as the Governor-General thinks reasonable where the injury is not the cause or the sole cause of retirement. (4) A teacher to whom this section applies who is injured while in the teaching service of Belize and who holds a non- pensionable office, or who holds a pensionable office in which he has not been confirmed, may be granted on retirement, a pension of the same amount as the additional pension which may be granted to him under subsection (3) of this section, if his office were a pensionable office and he had been confirmed therein. (5) If, for the purpose of assessing the amount of any additional pension or pension to be granted under subsection (3)(b) or under subsection (4) of this section, to any teacher to whom this section applies, the degree of permanent impairment of his capacity to contribute to his support is in doubt, he may be granted a provisional award to have effect until such time as his degree of permanent impairment can be determined. (6) If a teacher proceeding by a route approved by the Minister of Education to or from Belize, at the commencement or termination of his service in respect of the teaching service of Belize, or of a period of secondment, duty leave or leave there from is injured as a result of damage to the vessel, aircraft or vehicle in which he is travelling or of any act of violence directed against any such vessel, aircraft or vehicle, and the Governor-General is satisfied that such damage or act is attributable to circumstances arising out of any war in which Belize may be engaged, such teacher shall be deemed for the purpose of this subsection to have been injured in the circumstances described in subsection (1) of this section. (7) A teacher who is injured while travelling by air in pursuance of official instructions, and whose injury is not wholly or mainly due to, or seriously aggravated by, his own serious and culpable negligence or misconduct, shall be 24 deemed for the purpose of this regulation to have been injured in the circumstances described in subsection (1) of this section. (8) In such a case as described in subsection (7), the rates of pension prescribed in subsection (3)(b) of this section, shall be seven-and-a-half sixtieths, fifteen sixtieths, twenty-two and one half sixtieths and thirty sixtieths respectively. (9) Where compensation in consequence of the injury is payable under any law in force in Belize which provides for the payment of workmen’s compensation, or where benefits corresponding to an additional pension or pension under subsection (3) or subsection (4) of this section are payable, under the Overseas Superannuation Scheme or under the law in force in respect of any other public service, in consequence of the injury, the Governor-General may reduce or withhold any additional pension or pension payable under either subsection (3) or subsection (4) of this section in such manner as he may consider reasonable. (10) Where the Governor-General is satisfied that damages have been or will be recovered by a teacher in respect of an injury for which an additional pension or pension may be granted under subsection (3)(b) or under subsection (4) of this section, the Governor-General may take those damages into account against such additional pension or pension in such manner and to such extent as he may think fit and may withhold or reduce the additional pension accordingly. (11) For the purpose of subsection (10) of this section, a teacher shall be deemed to recover damages whether they are paid in pursuance of a judgment or order of the court or by way of settlement or compromise of his claim and whether or not proceedings are instituted to enforce that claim. 25