TUPE Legal Advice Solicitors

TUPE protects your continuity of employment and your contractual terms and conditions. This includes your salary, holiday entitlement, and other contractual benefits. Your new employer effectively steps into the shoes of your old employer.

An employer cannot make changes to your terms and conditions *because* of the TUPE transfer itself if the reason is detrimental to you. They can only make changes for a valid "economic, technical, or organisational" (ETO) reason, or if the changes are positive for you.

Yes, but any redundancy must be for a genuine ETO reason. For example, if the new business structure means your role is a duplicate. You cannot be dismissed simply because of the transfer. If you are, it is likely to be an automatically unfair dismissal.

Yes, you can object to the transfer. However, if you do, your employment legally ends on the date of the transfer. This is treated as a resignation, meaning you will not be entitled to claim redundancy or unfair dismissal.

Both the old employer (transferor) and the new employer (transferee) have a legal duty to inform and consult with representatives of the affected employees about the transfer. This includes providing specific information about when and why the transfer is happening and any proposed changes ('measures').

Failure to comply with these duties can lead to a significant penalty. An Employment Tribunal can award up to **13 weeks' gross pay** for each affected employee, a cost that can be financially devastating for a business.

This is a major legal risk. Harmonising terms (e.g., changing the transferred employees' contracts to match your existing staff) is generally unlawful if the sole reason is the transfer itself. Any such changes could be void. You must have a valid ETO reason to make changes.

The outgoing employer must provide the incoming employer with specific written information about the transferring employees, including their identity, age, employment particulars, and details of any disciplinary or grievance procedures. This must be provided at least 28 days before the transfer.