Do right by staff in transfers
It is not just expensive footballers who have employment problems when they transfer. Staff in pubs are often very much in the same position.
A new manager likes to make changes. But he ignores the rights of existing workers at his peril, as numerous employers have found to their cost.
It is called TUPE - the transfer of undertakings protection of employment regulations. If you sell a pub as a going concern, you must take account of staff. You cannot just line them up and say "I do not need you" without facing the legal consequences - in a recent case a small matter of £10,000!
This is not just confined to major pub takeovers. It applies to any business that is being sold and it should form a clear and unambiguous part of the instructions to solicitors and/or agents prior to exchange of contracts, or certainly prior to completion.
It is a two-way responsibility. The seller may need to make staff redundant, which he is entitled to do if he is giving up the business. But if he does enter into redundancy agreements, he must pay up, whatever the future situation is for those members of staff.
As for the incoming owner, unless there has been a clear agreement to the contrary he has to take on all the existing staff. If he then decides he does not need them, because of a change to the business, then it is he who needs to go through the proper processes - and he will owe all the accumulated rights from the previous employment.
You cannot turn Nelson's eye to this. Sure, some pub employees do not know their rights and may just turn away. But some will not, and that's when you will end up with an expensive bill for unfair dismissal.
Employment rights are being strengthened every year, and this year the TUPE regulations received another boost. It is quite foolhardy to ignore them, or think they only apply to certain workers. Most of the main obligations will affect your relationship with all staff, and that includes part-timers.
I hear too many stories, particularly about pregnancy and maternity, with female staff prevented from returning, even if they want to. You may well have filled the position, but that does not mean you can ignore the returning worker's clearly-established rights.
If you do fill a position during maternity leave, you are allowed to explain the situation to the person hired, so that they understand they must step aside if the employee returns to work.
