TUPE - legal advice please

[Hayles]

Hi

The scenario...

A staff canteen - which was providing hot meals, snacks, drinks, etc. is closed down and the employees are made redundant. A new company comes in to provide sandwiches, salads and refreshments (from a delivery and collection point within the eating area of the canteen). It doesn't use any of the cooking facilities of the staff canteen kitchen and the shutters on the serving hatches are kept down.

After a period of time, lets say 6 months, the new company decide they want to open the canteen up again to offer hot meals (as the previous company was doing).

Would there be any iimplications with regard to the previous company having paid out redundancy payments? Would the six month gap be long enough or could the previous company argue that the new company should have taken on their employees?

At this stage keeping the canteen open is not an option due to the very low turnover. But the new company would like to know if it's an option of opening up again if they get the confidence and support of the staff in the six month 'trial' period.

Many thanks for any advice!

[Rob Holmes]

Hi Hayles,

My guess is that the staff were previously employed by the company and they made the positions redundant?

So there is (but I don't know it) a legal time-span before you can re-create the position.

But if it's now outside caterers coming in on a contract then thats not re-creating positions in the company so from my limited understanding it could legitimately be done.

Hopefully someone with more legal or employment knowledge will be able to shed more light.

Rob

[Antonia @limeone.com]

is not a quick item you can get advice on which you can rely on from a forum. It is the sort of subject which has brought a number of catering and cleaning companies to their knees financially. In fact the majority of recent and leading tribunal cases are catering and cleaning companies in this area of TUPE.

I suggest you get thorough legal advice taking into account the individuals length of service, the type of business previously done and the redundancy from the old company.

As usual we are happy to help, but this is a high risk question and one in which ALL of the background not just the edited highlights we all post on here needs to be looked at.

[Hayles]

Thank you!

I thought it would be more complicated than it needed to be.... :cry:

Hayles