An employment tribunal has ruled in favour of 82 former employees of SSB Group who were made redundant without prior consultation.
In a recent decision, Employment Judge Lancaster in Leeds awarded protective compensation to 82 former staff members of SSB Group. The ruling comes after the employees were made redundant, allegedly without the necessary consultation. This follows a prior decision, earlier in the summer, where nine other staff members were similarly compensated.
The tribunal determined that each affected employee would receive a protective award covering a span of 90 days, starting from 29 November 2023, the date when the first redundancy was executed. The SSB Group entered administration in January, with obligations amounting to £200 million owed to six litigation funders.
The protective award offers compensation ranging from 45 to 90 days’ pay when over 20 employees are made redundant from a single location without consultation within specified timeframes. In cases of employer insolvency, the National Insurance Fund covers these awards, albeit with an eight-week pay cap.
Judge Lancaster pointed out the absence of any representation from SSB and the lack of explanation for the failure to comply with consultation requirements, despite indications of financial issues as of September 2023. Due to these shortcomings, the full 90-day award was deemed justified, even though the Insolvency Service may restrict payment to a shorter duration.
Parallel to this case, similar awards were sanctioned for former Axiom Ince staff under Employment Judge Nicolle. These claims were consolidated purely concerning their entitlement to protective awards, ensuring that claimants could still pursue other compensation claims separately. While Axiom Ince was closed by the Solicitors Regulation Authority in October 2023, redundancy notifications were given without consultation, violating the Trade Union Labour Relations (Consolidation) Act 1992.
Judge Nicolle’s decision included granting the maximum 90-day protective compensation. This decision encompassed staff from several offices, although some had fewer than 20 employees, which complicates the applicability of group award conditions.
Notably, other related claims have seen significant compensations, including redundancy pay and unpaid wages, with some awards exceeding £20,000. In some instances, protective awards were not granted due to fewer than 20 staff affected at the Manchester office.
Alan Lewis of Pearson Solicitors, representing 154 staff members, confirmed that this judgement pertains to employees from larger office groups. Axiom Ince’s administrators did not contest the proceedings yet acknowledged that any resulting shortfalls from the National Insurance Fund would be treated as unsecured claims in the ongoing administration process.
These judgements underscore the severe implications of failing to adhere to mandatory consultation processes before making redundancies, highlighting the protective measures available to employees in such situations.
