TOPE appeal is likely
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by Sally Nash • Suffolk-based Taylor Barnard says it may appeal against an industrial tribunal decision which ruled in Securicor Omega Logistics' favour over the thorny Transfer of Undertakings (TUPE) regulations.
The case, on the transfer of a Chivers Hartley distribution contract from Taylor Barnard to Securicor, was brought to court at Bury St Edmonds, Suffolk by some former Taylor Barnard drivers.
The tribunal decided a number of factors meant the transfer did not fall under the TUPE rules.
These included the fact that no assets were transferred; only eight out of 20 employees were taken on by Securicor; the number of vehicles in customers' livery was significantly reduced; Securicor was handling the picking of goods at a different location—Huntingdon, rather than Histon. Securicor is heralding this as a "test case". Commercial director Steve Cole points to another case last year in Germany tagged "Souzen" when the European Court of Justice ruled TUPE did not apply because no assets such as equipment were part of the transfer. "That muddied the waters somewhat," says Cole.
But Taylor Barnard argues that TUPE did apply when Securicor won the contract about a year ago—the Souzen case came later in the year.
Taylor Barnard managing director Peter Carter says he will be looking to see if there are grounds for appeal once he receives the written decision.
"It is a fiasco," says Carter. "The rules are far from clear-cut—the interpretation keeps changing with each court case."