Claimant v Corporate Solutions (Logistics) Limited
Outcome
Individual claims
The respondent dismissed 20 or more employees on 17 October 2022 without any prior consultation or election of employee representatives, in breach of section 188 and 188A of TULRCA. The respondent conceded the failure and raised no special circumstances defence under section 189(6). The tribunal found the complaint well founded.
Facts
Corporate Solutions (Logistics) Limited employed more than 20 employees across 14 UK depots and went into administration on 17 October 2022. On that same day, all employees including the 30 claimants were dismissed by reason of redundancy without any prior warning or consultation. The respondent had been in financial difficulty since March 2021 and owed HMRC £1.9m, but made no attempt to elect employee representatives or consult about the redundancies as required by TULRCA section 188.
Decision
The tribunal found the respondent had completely failed to comply with its statutory duty to consult under section 188 TULRCA. The respondent's administrators conceded the breach and raised no special circumstances defence. Following the guidance in Susie Radin, the tribunal awarded the maximum protective award of 90 days to each claimant, finding no mitigating circumstances to justify any reduction.
Practical note
Even in insolvency situations, employers must comply with collective consultation obligations or face the maximum 90-day protective award unless special circumstances are proven.
Legal authorities cited
Statutes
Case details
- Case number
- 1301250/2023
- Decision date
- 14 February 2025
- Hearing type
- rule 21
- Hearing days
- —
- Classification
- default
Respondent
- Sector
- logistics
- Represented
- No
Claimant representation
- Represented
- Yes
- Rep type
- solicitor