Mr I Shilson v Bespoke Hotels Ltd — 2022

Mr Ian Shilson brought a protective award claim under section 189 of the Trade Union and Labour Relations (Consolidation) Act 1992 after the Respondent dismissed about 56 employees as redundant at The Duke of Cornwall Hotel in Plymouth on 2 February 2021. The Respondent did not attend or defend the claim. The tribunal heard evidence from Mr Shilson and considered the claim form, the Early Conciliation Certificate, a letter from employees dated 19 October 2021, and a pay slip.

The tribunal found that the Respondent was proposing to dismiss 20 or more employees at one establishment within 90 days, so section 188 applied. It found there was no evidence of any consultation at all and no evidence that the Company took any steps to provide information or consult affected employees. It also found that the Company did not recognise a trade union, had no elected or appointed employee representatives with authority for consultation, and made no arrangements to elect such representatives.

The tribunal held that the special circumstances defence did not arise because there had been no consultation. It concluded that the claim was well founded and that a protective award should be made. Applying section 189, the tribunal decided that a full protected period of 90 days' pay was just and equitable in all the circumstances because there were no mitigating circumstances.