Consultation and collective rights

Representatives of affected employees have a right to be informed about a proposed transfer and to be consulted about measures (i.e. actions or steps) that the original or future employer envisages taking concerning those employees.

Where a union is recognised, consultation must be with the union. Where there is no union, employee representatives must be elected, following a procedure set out in Regulation 14, TUPE.

Except in Northern Ireland, “micro-businesses” (businesses with less than ten employees) can consult directly with staff instead of through representatives, unless there is a recognised union (Regulation 13A, TUPE).

A union recognition agreement transfers as long as the group of employees it relates to retains a distinct identity after the transfer (Regulation 6, TUPE).

The outgoing employer must provide information about the employment particulars of the transferring workforce to the incoming employer before the transfer (Regulation 11). There is no obligation to share this information with unions.

TUPE information and consultation duties are explained in Chapter 5.