The Advocate General has given a preliminary opinion in the case of USDAW & Wilson v Woolworths and others (“the Woolworths case”) on the question of whether there is a requirement to aggregate the number of employees across different locations to meet the thresholds for collective consultation obligations (in England and Wales, of 20 employees
collective consultation
It’s not quite “all change” for TUPE – service provision change provisions will not be repealed after all
By Laura H. Juillet on
Since 2011, the Government has been considering proposals to amend the Transfer of Undertakings (Protection of Employment) Regulations 2006 (“TUPE”). Following an initial call for evidence and subsequent consultation, the Government yesterday confirmed the amendments it intends to make to TUPE.Continue Reading It’s not quite “all change” for TUPE – service provision change provisions will not be repealed after all
Rewriting the law – UK collective redundancy consultation obligations change dramatically
By Laura H. Juillet & Thomas McLaughlin on
Employers are required to collectively consult when proposing to dismiss 20 or more employees at one establishment as redundant within a period of 90 days or less (section 188 Trade Union and Labour Relations (Consolidation) Act 1992 (“TULRCA”).Defining what is meant by “at one establishment” for this purpose has always been tricky, and has led to significant debate. The issue is of particular importance to employers with multiple sites, such as retailers.
But now it seems that such debate has been rendered obsolete, with the Employment Appeal Tribunal (the “EAT”) holding that the words “at one establishment” should be deleted from section 188. Although this makes the law easier to apply, employers should be aware that the price of such clarity is that they are now more likely to be subject to collective consultation obligations when making widespread redundancies.Continue Reading Rewriting the law – UK collective redundancy consultation obligations change dramatically
Changes to UK collective redundancy consultation rules come into force – ACAS publishes new guidance
By Laura H. Juillet on
On 6 April 2013, new consultation periods came into force for collective redundancies.
As before, the law does not specify a minimum period of collective consultation. Collective consultation must however be ‘meaningful’ and, importantly, must start at least a specified number of days before the redundancy dismissals take effect.