Share on LinkedInShare on LinkedIn

ARTICLE · 27 APRIL 2006

TUPE is Dead. Long live TUPE

The Transfer of Undertakings (Protection of Employment) Regulations 1981 must be one of the most controversial pieces of legislation ever passed. They are controversial, not so much because of the intent behind them, but because of the difficulty in dealing with complicated concepts. The regulations, or "TUPE" as they have fondly become to be known, are now being revised and reissued and Robert O’Donovan had a look at some of the details.

United KingdomEmployment and HR
Robert O’Donovan
Robert O’Donovan

Originally published April 2006

The Transfer of Undertakings (Protection of Employment) Regulations 1981 must be one of the most controversial pieces of legislation ever passed. They are controversial, not so much because of the intent behind them, but because of the difficulty in dealing with complicated concepts. The regulations, or "TUPE" as they have fondly become to be known, are now being revised and reissued and Robert O’Donovan had a look at some of the details.

Why TUPE?

The intent behind TUPE is to protect employees on a transfer of a business or undertaking.

Why do employees need protection?

The answer lies in the way a business is sold. If a business is sold by way of a share sale, that is to say it is run by a company and the owners of shares in that company sell their shares, then, as far as employees are concerned, there is no fundamental change to their position. Their contracts of employment before the sale were with the company and, after the sale they are still

We operate a free-to-view policy, asking only that you register in order to read all of our content. Please login or register to view the rest of this article.

See more popular content from