Claimant v Chiswell and others v Debenhams Retail Ltd (in Administration) — 2022

The claimants, all employed at Debenhams Retail Ltd’s Leicester, St Peters Lane store, were dismissed by reason of redundancy on or after 31 May 2020 after the respondent entered administration on 9 April 2020. They brought a complaint under s.189 of the Trade Union and Labour Relations (Consolidation) Act 1992 seeking a protective award for failure to consult in accordance with ss.188 and 188A.

The tribunal found that the claimants were assigned to an establishment where 20 or more redundancies were proposed within a 90-day period and that the respondent did not fully inform and consult with them as required. It held that the protected period should be 56 days from the date of the first dismissal, 31 May 2020. The judgment applies only to the listed claimants.

The tribunal recorded that any other claims intimated in the claim forms would stand dismissed automatically 14 days after the date of the order unless a claimant wrote in specifying an outstanding claim and providing administrator consent within that time. It also made no order for costs or fees, with each party to bear its own costs and fees.