Mr P Atkinson v Nova Display Ltd (In creditors’ voluntary liquidation) — 2021

The tribunal held that Nova Display Ltd failed to comply with its statutory collective consultation obligations under section 188 of the Trade Union and Labour Relations (Consolidation) Act 1992 before proposed redundancy dismissals took effect at its establishment at Unit 1, Peckfield Business Park, Leeds, in respect of the whole workforce employed there. The claimant sought a protective award arising from his redundancy dismissal. No response was presented by the respondent, and its liquidators indicated they would not attend the hearing. The tribunal accepted the claimant's oral evidence in full.

On reconsideration, the tribunal corrected the dismissal date from 7 December 2020 to 4 December 2020, because the Redundancy Payment Service had been unable to pay the award while the judgment referred to the later date. The tribunal treated the claimant's application as a reconsideration request under Rules 70 to 72 of the Employment Tribunals Rules of Procedure 2013 and extended time for that purpose. Neither party objected to the matter being reconsidered on the papers.

The tribunal found that the respondent employed about 40 employees and that there was no trade union recognised for collective bargaining, consultation or negotiation, and no employee representatives had been elected or appointed for collective redundancy consultation. Although the claimant had been told on 1 December 2020 to call a meeting for 7 December 2020, the insolvency practitioners had already taken steps on 4 December 2020 to terminate all staff with immediate effect. When the meeting took place, termination letters were handed to staff in small groups. The tribunal found there had been no proper warning, notice, or consultation with the workforce.

The tribunal concluded that the respondent was in breach of section 188 and made a protective award under section 189 in the claimant's favour for the maximum protected period of 90 days beginning on 4 December 2020. The reasons also recorded that the Employment Protection (Recoupment of Jobseeker's Allowance and Income Support) Regulations 1996 applied to the award.