LRD guides and handbook February 2014

TUPE - a guide to using the law for union reps

Chapter 1

TUPE in summary

[ch 1: pages 7-8]

Given the extent of change taking place, it is useful to begin by summarising some of the core features of TUPE:

• the basic aim of TUPE is to protect the employment terms and conditions of existing employees when the identity of their employer changes, for example as a result of a business sale or an outsourcing;

• TUPE protects only employees — not the self-employed or agency workers — unless they are directly employed by the employment agency which itself transfers;

• two years’ service is needed for a claim for unfair dismissal based on TUPE;

• TUPE is only triggered where there is a change in the legal identity of the employer, in other words, where one employer is replaced with another. This is why TUPE is not triggered by a share sale. Although ownership of the shares in the business changes, the identity of the employer does not;

• TUPE applies to both the public and the private sector, and regardless of whether the employer operates for profit;

• TUPE protection applies to all sizes of employer;

• TUPE can apply where jobs are transferred out of the UK, even to a non-EU country;

• where there is a relevant transfer, TUPE is triggered automatically by the law. TUPE protection does not depend on the agreement of the parties. Employers and employees are not allowed to agree between themselves to exclude TUPE protection where it applies.