Can anyone offer some advice on TUPE please

[6eggumlaut]

I am soon to take over the lease of a catering business and am a bit concerned about TUPE implications. I thought I could make some staff redundant as my partner and I will be working full time in the business and so need fewer folk to work. We would make proper redundancy payments based on length of employment etc but the more I read, the less I am convinced we can do this. Keeping on all the staff would mean that the business could no longer function financially so does that constitute a legitimate reason? Also, we have not yet signed terms, but have been in discussions with the previous lease holder for several weeks, and she has just raised the salary of the main member of staff (who we would be keeping on ) by £2500, which means we are now obliged through TUPE to honour that wage increase which was unexpected. Does anyone have advice please?

[6eggumlaut]

Hopeful bump!

[Rangirl]

You do need proper legal advice on this Do you have a solicitor You say you are taking over the lease of a business Are you taking over the lease of the premises and/or taking over the business as a going concern

I would have thought that if it is the latter you would have to make the staff redundant and you should deduct the potential liability from the price
But ask your solicitor

[flowery]

You absolutely cannot be taking advice on this sort of thing on here, you really can't.

I would assume you have a solicitor advising you on the lease you are considering including the various implications for you of the various terms involved. If he/she is unable to accurately advise you about your employment liabilities, ask if they have a colleague or contact who can.

[dlwelly]

I've been on the other side of a TUPE arrangement and I think you can make the roles redundant (just as you would if you were the old employer and didn't need those roles anymore). Obviously if you and your partner are stepping into those positions it may not be legal for you to make those roles redundant.

quite normal re: the salary increase too, I'm sure a lot of them will come through with enhanced benefits than they previously had I.e sick pay, better salary etc.

Good luck, hope it all goes well.

[6eggumlaut]

Thanks both-yes, have a solicitor dealing with the lease and have managed to speak to him now about the TUPE aspects -redundancies will be fine as long as handled properly and proper payments made. They are staff who work a couple of days a week each and already know that we will most likely need to lose them-thankfully we are in a tourist area with plenty of vacancies so hopefully they will soon find something else!