Mr T Bethell v GBM Manufacturing Limited (In administration) Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy — 2022

Mr Bethell was employed by GBM Manufacturing Limited at one establishment. The tribunal found that all staff were dismissed as redundant on 4 August 2021, after the business entered administration on 3 August 2021. There was no recognised trade union, no existing employee representatives, and no attempt to consult or to begin the election of employee representatives before dismissal. Because more than 20 employees at one establishment were dismissed within 90 days, the duty under s.188 of the Trade Union and Labour Relations (Consolidation) Act 1992 was engaged.

The tribunal found there had been no meaningful compliance with the collective consultation duties and no material partial compliance to reduce the award. It rejected any suggestion that special circumstances had been shown. Applying GMB v Susie Radin Ltd [2004] EWCA Civ 180, it made a protective award for the maximum protected period of 90 days, with the recoupment provisions applying. On the weekly gross pay of £585 found at termination, that protective award equates to £7,521.43 gross.

On holiday pay, the tribunal found that for the 2021 leave year the claimant had 21 days' contractual leave, plus 5 days carried over from 2020 and bank holidays converted to 8 days, but one extra contractual day was not payable on termination. It found that 11.5 days, or 2.3 weeks, remained untaken at termination and awarded £1,345.50 gross under regulation 14 of the Working Time Regulations 1998. Claims for arrears of pay, notice pay and a statutory redundancy payment were met by the Secretary of State and were dismissed upon withdrawal.