Employment tribunal out of time - extension possible?

[lechatnoir]

Does anyone know whether an ET would grant an extension for breach of TUPE regulations purely because the employee (me & possibly 1 other) weren't aware it even existed or that our employer had breached any such regulation?
We obviously knew the company had shafted us, but didn't know that under TUPE we could have forced redundancy rather than accepting new roles on lesser pay (for longer hours!). Takeover was 9 months ago, job change 8 mths ago & 2nd salary drop last month. I consulted a solicitor about something else & this all came out & he's now urging me to persue a claim despite being way over the 3 month deadline. Anyone?

What grounds does your solicitor think you have for an extension? Presumably he thinks one would be granted if he is urging you to bring a claim?

What do you mean by 'under TUPE you could have forced redundancy'? Which part of TUPE did they breach?

I'm just curious. Extensions to tribunal time limits are for exceptional reasons only, and the employee not being aware of their rights at the time wouldn't normally be included in that.

It's not really clear what the situation is so what any claim would be so when the deadline may have been or could still be.

The time for submitting claims linked to TUPE don't necessary run from the date of the transfer. If they have changed your terms and conditions the change could potentially be void so you could potentially still rely on the old contract and if they pay you less now pursue a claim for unlawful deduction of wages now. It's not clear if that is the situation though or something different.

It's a complicated area and there are lots of ifs and maybes. Was the solicitor you saw on another matter who gave you initial advice on this an employment specialist? If not I'd find one who is or contact your union if your in one.