TUC respond to consultation on clarification to TUPE and abolishing the European Works Councils’ legal Framework

The Trades Union Congress has this week published its response to the consultation on clarification to TUPE and abolishing the European Works Councils’ legal Framework. It introduces the paper thus:

“The TUC is the voice of Britain at work. We represent more than 5.5 million working people in 48 unions across the economy. We campaign for more and better jobs and a better working life for everyone, and we support trade unions to grow and thrive.

The Transfer of Undertakings (Protection of Employment) Regulations 2006 (TUPE) provide important protections for many workers when their employer is sold or changes, generally following transfer of a public contract to a different provider.

We are therefore deeply concerned that the proposals in this consultation paper are focused on weakening those protections and making short-term savings for employers, rather than ensuring the existing regime works as effectively as possible.

There are some key shortcomings with the current regime:

• Trade union recognition only transfers to the new employer if the transferring employees keep a separate identity within the new employer’s organisation. This weakens the collective voice of workers at a time when they are particularly vulnerable.
• The exemption of occupational pension rights from TUPE means that workers often have a vital benefit cut.
• The permissibility for an employee’s dismissal ahead of a transfer for economic, technical or organisational reasons provides a significant loophole for employers to evade TUPE protections.
• Employers often fail to carry out their consultation duties properly, which reduces the scope for unions to provide input so the process works for both employers and workers.
• The effect of the Alemo Herron case in denying outsourced workers the benefits of evolving collective agreements.
  We urge the Department for Business and Trade to consider these issues as a matter of priority.

The TUC and its affiliates wholeheartedly oppose the proposal that the statutory basis for European Works Councils is scrapped. These are crucial institutions for safeguarding workers’ interests and encouraging investment in the UK.”

You can read the full response here.