If a business is transferred from one owner to another, the employees of the business also transfer.

They do so on their existing terms of employment. Any dismissal by reason of the transfer is automatically unfair.

What happens if the new owner wishes to reduce the workforce or change their terms of employment?

Reducing the workforce may be possible but altering terms and conditions of employment generally is not.

The view has been that terms of employment can only be changed when enough time has passed for the changes no longer to be directly associated with the transfer of the business.

For the moment, the only safe advice remains that employers who wish to harmonise or change terms of employment after buying a business should wait for what could be quite a lengthy period until the changes are clearly caused by other factors and not by the transfer.

Richard Wilson is senior partner at Gordons Wright & Wright

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