TRANSFER OF UNDERTAKINGS REGULATIONS - "TUPE"

This is a highly complex area of law. Basically these regulations govern situations where a business or undertaking is transferred from one company or individual to another. All contracts of employment for employees engaged in that business or undertaking immediately before the transfer will automatically pass to the incoming purchaser of the business or undertaking thereby obliging the purchaser to honour the existing terms and conditions of employment for the transferring employees. This is contrary to the common law position whereby any contract is in effect personal to the parties entering into it. If one of those parties was to change, then this would normally terminate the contract. The TUPE Regulations are an exception to this rule. Any dismissal that is connected with the transfer will be deemed to be automatically unfair unless the dismissing employer is able to plead a special “economic, technical or organisational reason” necessitating a change in the workforce. There are strict consultation and disclosure requirements and the observation of the regulations themselves are not voluntary.