help with my employment rights

martinkerswell

Hi, could someone give me advice on my situation, my employer of 32 years has sold the company to the other 2 employees and I am no longer working there, I only found this out after it happened with no notice. The old employer won't pay me anything and the new employers don't want me, could someone give me advise on this, acas says write a letter to them both stating TUPE law but Im not sure what to write. Thanks Martin.

zzzLazyDaisy

martinkerswell wrote: »

Hi, could someone give me advice on my situation, my employer of 32 years has sold the company to the other 2 employees and I am no longer working there, I only found this out after it happened with no notice. The old employer won't pay me anything and the new employers don't want me, could someone give me advise on this, acas says write a letter to them both stating TUPE law but Im not sure what to write. Thanks Martin.

More information needed, as this may not be a TUPE scenario.

You say that your employer 'sold the company' to the other two employees. Was the company called "[name] co ltd"? (The name of your employer will be on your payslip, and your P60 / P45).

You can also do a google search against the former owner

Google: name of former owner, director, name of company, town.

You may have to try a few variations, but the object is to see if his name comes up as a director of the company.

You can also pay to do a company search, but I wouldn't suggest that at this stage.

Come back to us when you have this information as it is crucial to where we go from here.

Dx

martinkerswell

Hi, it is a limited company and I don't want to name them , I have not received a p45, the new employers have paid off the bank debt which is what they paid in total for the company but the bank has not released the charge on the business yet and so the old owner is still listed on companies house.

zzzLazyDaisy

Okay, in that case this is not a TUPE scenario as the identity of your employer has not changed. The company is a separate legal entity, and it is the company which is/was your employer, not the individual shareholders/directors.

So the situation is that you have been dismissed by your employer, which failed to follow proper procedures.

Have you been given a reason for your dismissal?
Have any other employees been dismissed (or was it a small company with just the three of you remaining after the former owner sold out?).
What do you want to happen? (It is probably unlikely that they will give you your job back as it hardly ever happens, but just so as we know).

You should be aware that you may have to go to a tribunal to get redress, but from what you say so far, you seem to have a good prospect of getting compensation for unfair dismissal and/or a redundancy payment (though I should give the disclaimer that this could change as more facts come out).

If you are not wanting your job back, or at least accept that it would be a waste of time trying, then my advice would be to sit tight and do nothing and give them the opportunity to pay any money due to you, issue your P45, and possibly even write and confirm the reason for your dismissal.

Once we get that far, we will have a better idea of what you are looking at, and we can help you write a letter to them, guide you through the next steps, etc.

You have three months less one day to make a claim to a tribunal, so you have a bit of time yet.

In the meantime,You may also want to head over to the benefits board and make sure you are claiming everything you are entitled to.

Dx

getmore4less

How did you find out, do you have anything in writing.

beware they don't try to say you just stoped turning up.

martinkerswell

Hi, my old boss and his accountant told me he sold the company and the new owners personally told me they are not responsible for me, looks like a solicitor is the only course of action, thanks for all your help.

zzzLazyDaisy

If you have been told verbally, you should drop them a line saying something like:

I refer to the telephone conversation on [date] when you informed me that you and [name] have taken over the company. You advised me that my job no longer exists and my employment was terminated with immediate effect. I am obviously very disappointed that there is no longer a position for me within the company, however since this is the case, I should be grateful if you would please let me know when I should expect my final payment and P45.

Yours etc.

This prevents them from being able to claim at a later date that you simply stopped coming into work and they presumed that you had resigned, and to set the record straight if there has been some misunderstanding.

patman99

Make sure you send the letter recorded delivery. Most MSEers suggest using 2 Post Offices and hand delivering a copy as well.

I'll presume you haven't tried simply turning-up & starting to work ?. This would prompt them to ask what you were up to, in which case your response could be "well, as I haven't been officially made redundant, I assumed I still have a job & will expect to be paid at the same rate under TUPE". With any luck this might well make them realise that they are indeed responsible for you after all.

Noticed that you have 32 years service with the firm, so that will be a fair pay-out for redundancy (they will follow the proper procedures regarding consultation periods won't they?). You could end-up with enough cash to set up in competition (depending on the sector they operate in) and nick all their customers. That would learn 'em (as they say in Suffolk).

getmore4less

If these guys have taken over ltd company then AIUI they also take on the employee liabilities.

You need to act quickly to find out what the true situation is, if you have a job or need to take it to an ET.

Thats 20 years service for redundancies and 12 weeks notice minimum.


Might be the 2 others got stitched up as well not knowing they may have liabilities other than the debt.

zzzLazyDaisy

OP, just so you know, you are entitled to make a claim to a tribunal for unfair dismissal. The compensation will be significant owing to your years of service. It seems that the company may have few assets (you refer to the new directors having bought the company for the price of paying off the debts). There is therefore a possibility that the Directors may wind up the company if you pursue a claim, and in that case at least some of some of the award will be paid by the government redundancy service (basic award, outstanding wages and holiday pay subject to limits). But you do need to establish that you have in fact been dismissed, fairly quickly -hence my suggestion, above, that you write to them - so they do not have the opportunity to try and claim that you resigned.

Dx

ohreally

You must protect yourself from an accusation that you simply abandoned your post.