TUPE changes are now in force

Changes to the process of transferring business ownership came into force on 31st January 2014.

According to the Government, the changes to the Transfer of Undertakings (Protection of Employment) Regulations (TUPE) are designed to make the regulations fairer and more effective for all involved.

The changes mean that:

• businesses will now be able to renegotiate terms and conditions in collective agreements one year after a transfer has taken place, provided that the overall change is no less favourable,
• micro businesses will be able to inform and consult employees directly when there are no existing appropriate representatives,
• the new employer will be able to engage in pre-redundancy consultation with employees, with the consent of the old employer, and
• contractual changes will be permitted for economic, technical or organisational reasons with the agreement of the employee and or where a contractual right of variation exists.

The regulations also clarify the existing law in a number of areas:

• in cases where employees’ terms and conditions are provided for in collective agreements, only the terms and conditions in the collective agreements that are in place before the date of transfer will apply; any future changes will not bind the new employer, unless it has taken part in the bargaining process that brought about the changes, and
• the test for service provision changes will make clear that activities carried out after the change in provider must be fundamentally the same as those carried out by the previous person who has ceased to carry them out; this means that if businesses radically change the way they provide services, that change is unlikely to be subject to the TUPE regulations.

Contact our Employment Lawyers in Glasgow

If you would like to find out more about our specialist employment law services, including advice on the TUPE Regulations, call us today on 0141 811 0224 or fill out our online enquiry form.