Employment law issues rarely determine the strategy for a multi-jurisdictional business acquisition, but they can certainly give rise to significant avoidable costs and delay if issues are not spotted in advance. In the Herbert Smith Freehills 2016 global survey, 57%… Read more

The EAT has confirmed that, where a service being provided by a transferor is split along functional lines, with two separate activities carried out by two organised groupings of employees, it is possible for there to be a service provision… Read more

Case law has established that temporary absence from work, for example on sick leave or family-related leave, does not prevent an individual being 'assigned' to a grouping of employees and therefore transferring with that grouping where there is a service… Read more

Businesses that outsource services may wish to retain the right to oblige a service-provider to remove a particular employee from working on that contract. The recent case of Jakowlew v Nestor Primecare illustrates that an employee will remain assigned to… Read more

Where a disabled employee of the transferor will be redundant on transfer due to relocation, the transferee should indicate a willingness to make reasonable adjustments to any suitable alternative role offered pre transfer. If the transferee states that it will… Read more

We have recently updated our multi-jurisdictional guide discussing potential employee issues in business transfers (first published in October 2013). The second edition reflects the law as at February 2015. The guide is a quick reference tool covering the key legal… Read more

The EAT has ruled that there can theoretically be a change of service provider covered by TUPE even where the service is provided to more than one client under more than one contract, provided the clients are a group with… Read more

1.    Previous practice Previously, transferring French employees to another group company (whether in France or overseas) with their consent was a fairly simple process, involving a simple tri-partite agreement between the employee, the existing group company in France and the… Read more

A transferee may face claims for pre-transfer harassment lodged more than three months after the transfer where the perpetrator continues to harass post-transfer, even where the perpetrator does not transfer to the transferee (but continues to have a working relationship… Read more

Following our earlier post on the controversial Law of 31 July 2014, setting out an obligation for small and mid-size companies to inform employees in advance of an intention to sell 50% of the assets or shares (and to give… Read more

France has just passed legislation imposing a new obligation on smaller and mid-size employers to provide information to the employees directly at least two months before a proposed sale of 50% of more of the shares or business transfer. ... Read more

Acas guidance on TUPE (reflecting the January 2014 reforms) Acas guidance on dealing with World Cup-related employee issues TUC guidance for employers and staff on autism in the workplace TUC guidance for workplace representatives on the health and safety of older… Read more

From 6 May 2014 it became mandatory for claimants to submit to Acas an early conciliation form (or provide the details by telephone) before lodging an employment tribunal claim. For further details see here. Provided the potential claimant agrees, Acas… Read more

Employers should bear in mind the following changes which apply from 6 April 2014 (click on the links for summaries of the changes in previous ebulletins): ... Read more

A recent EAT ruling has clarified that a tribunal should start with the maximum potential award of 90 days' pay per affected employee for breach of information and consultation obligations on a TUPE transfer or collective redundancies only if no information… Read more

The Court of Appeal has upheld the EAT's ruling that dismissing employees who refused to accept harmonised employment terms following a TUPE transfer (and re-engaging them on the new terms) was not for a fair "ETO" reason despite taking place… Read more

Changes to TUPE came into force on 31 January 2014 and are summarised in our blog here. The Government has issued amended guidance on TUPE to reflect the changes, here.  Acas has also published guidance on the changes, available here.  ... Read more

Parliament has now approved the final regulations amending TUPE and collective redundancy law, with effect (in most part) from 31 January 2014;  a copy is available here.  The Government has also issued amended guidance on TUPE to reflect the changes.  The… Read more

On 27 December 2013 the French Government finally published the Decree setting out the minimum time limits for information and consultation with works councils in France in the absence of a collective agreement providing for a shorter period of consultation. … Read more

On 17 December 2013, BIS published its seventh statement of new regulation, which confirms that the new TUPE regulations (so far only published in draft - see here) will come into force on 31 January 2014.  The final regulations are… Read more

The service provision change clauses in TUPE exclude from its scope changes of contractor where the client intends the activities to be carried out in connection with 'a single specific event or task of short term duration'. The EAT in… Read more

On 31 October the Government published draft regulations to amend TUPE, available here. These are not yet finalised or agreed with Ministers. The Government intends to lay the regulations before Parliament in December 2013 and bring them into force in… Read more

A quick reference guide to law governing employee transfers in 32 key jurisdictions in EMEA, South and Central America and Asia-Pacific:  Australia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, France, Germany, Guinea , Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Malaysia,  Myanmar, Mexico, Netherlands, New… Read more

One of the key issues on any outsourcing is what happens to the employees involved in the service.  The answer will be determined largely by the Transfer of Undertakings (Protection of Employment) Regulations 2006 (TUPE).  Government plans to reform TUPE… Read more

The Government has just published its response to the consultation on proposed reforms to TUPE.  The original plans were to bring the reforms into force in October 2013, but as anticipated the timetable has slipped and the Government now intends… Read more

A TUPE transfer operates to transfer employees on their existing employment contracts.  However, where these contracts provide for pay or other terms to be set by collective agreements negotiated by the transferor employer and union, and the transferee has no… Read more

The Employment Minister, Jo Swinson, has announced that simplified TUPE regulations will be unveiled in September, rather than the beginning of July as originally indicated. This may suggest a delay to the original planned implementation date of October 2013. The… Read more

The EAT has reduced an award for failure to inform and consult on a TUPE transfer from seven weeks' pay to three weeks' pay, where the employer had attempted to comply with its obligations but had rushed the election of… Read more

Last week the French Parliament adopted a major employment law which will have a significant impact on companies with a workforce in France.  Key provisions of the new law for employers include: greater certainty in relation to the timing of collective… Read more

TUPE imposes an obligation on a transferor to inform and consult representatives for its own "affected" employees. Previous case law has established that transferor employees may be "affected" even if they do not transfer, for example if some of the… Read more