can anyone offer advice please?

chester19760

will try to explain as best I can. My mum works for a large business but has learnt that they are selling up. The staff have been told that whoever buys the business has to promise to keep all staff for at least 2 years, to follow their contracts for 2 years with regard to pay, holidays etc after that it is up to the new business if they want to keep the staff or lower their wages etc. Sounds ok to me I told her by then she'll be looking at retirement and could accept a lower wage or even leave.
But then she told me that none of the staff actually have up to date contracts they were only given 6 monthly contracts ehen they started and they've never been renewed, my mam has been there 2 years without one, others have been promoted yet have had a pay increase but never a new contract.
Can anyone offer advice as to what position this puts her in? Surely when this new manager takes over and sees no one has a contract they'll be in a position to lower pay/ hours etc straight away/
thanks everyone for listening

getmore4less

Two issues ere.

1. The 2 years is not true unless they have made it a condition of the takeover(even then not sure) which is unlikely, changes can be made immediately, allthough there are some rules that need to be followed if TUPE applies which it may not with a full takeover of an existing business.

2. Contacts exist just that they may not be writen. Any changes need to be negotiated. Some employers are very good at doing this and others not so.

chester19760

thanks she seems to think it is a condition of the takeover but nobody really seems to know, their managers have now advised them all to join the union which doesnt sound positive

jazzyman01

They could ask for a contract or at least statement of terms - legal requirement.

The Company cannot make it a condition of the sale that they will change T & C after 2 years. If it looks like it is linked to the TUPE it is likely to fail.

chester19760

thanks so looks likely that her wage will be lowered and hours maybe hours may be cut as she's on quite a good wage atm but if a private firm buy then I imagine they'd want to make paycuts as her business has more outgoings than incomings hence the selling of business.

ceridwen

Well - if I were her - I would certainly join a Union. Everyone would be well advised to do so promptly.

jdturk

chester19760 wrote: »

thanks so looks likely that her wage will be lowered and hours maybe hours may be cut as she's on quite a good wage atm but if a private firm buy then I imagine they'd want to make paycuts as her business has more outgoings than incomings hence the selling of business.

Cuts look like a neccessity and likely to happen, as people have said join a union so you know where you stand to when they start doing these cuts