Unison v Leicestershire County Council

Unison v Leicestershire County Council

The Employment Appeal Tribunal was correct to refuse to allow the council to argue a new statutory construction point as there were no exceptional circumstances and the issue would require further factual evaluation by the Employment Tribunal. The Employment Tribunal was entitled to disregard pre-dismissal discussions that did not address statutory consultation issues when determining the protective award for the downgraded group. The Employment Appeal Tribunal erred in reducing the protective award for the enhancement group, as the Employment Tribunal had properly exercised its discretion and followed the correct legal principles.

Parties
Claimant/respondent: Unison; Respondent/appellant: Leicestershire County Council
Jurisdiction
England and Wales
Judgment Date
29 June 2006
Procedural Posture
Appeal / Judgment on Appeal From Employment Appeal Tribunal
Outcome
Appeal dismissed; cross-appeal allowed
Legal Topics
Collective Redundancies, Protective Awards, Consultation Obligations, Dismissal and Re Engagement, Interpretation of Statutory Provisions
Employment Law Labour Law Collective Redundancies Protective Awards Consultation Obligations Dismissal and Re Engagement Interpretation of Statutory Provisions

Case Brief

Summary, issues, holding and outcome

More case intelligence is available

Unlock the full research layer for this judgment.

Full judgment text Downloadable case file Legal principles 3 Authorities cited 10 Party arguments 2 Amounts and remedies 2
Sign in to unlock

Parties

Unison

Claimant/respondent

Leicestershire County Council

Respondent/appellant

Procedural Posture

Appeal / Judgment on Appeal From Employment Appeal Tribunal

Legal Issues

  1. 1 Whether the Employment Appeal Tribunal erred in refusing to allow a new point of statutory construction to be argued regarding the timing of consultation under section 188(1A) of the Trade Union and Labour Relations (Consolidation) Act 1992.
  2. 2 Whether the Employment Tribunal erred in law in its approach to the calculation of the protective award for the downgraded group by not considering pre-dismissal discussions.
  3. 3 Whether the Employment Appeal Tribunal erred in reducing the protective award for the enhancement group from 20 to 10 days.

Ratio Decidendi

The Employment Appeal Tribunal was correct to refuse to allow the council to argue a new statutory construction point as there were no exceptional circumstances and the issue would require further factual evaluation by the Employment Tribunal. The Employment Tribunal was entitled to disregard pre-dismissal discussions that did not address statutory consultation issues when determining the protective award for the downgraded group. The Employment Appeal Tribunal erred in reducing the protective award for the enhancement group, as the Employment Tribunal had properly exercised its discretion and followed the correct legal principles.

Court Disposition

Appeal dismissed; cross-appeal allowed

Orders

  • The appeal by Leicestershire County Council is dismissed.
  • The cross-appeal by Unison is allowed.