Usdaw was aware that Lockwoods Liverpool Limited was having some financial difficulties in 2018. However, the Union were not made aware that the business was about to close. On 14 November 2018 staff were asked to clean the site and equipment due to alleged high readings of listeria and a visit from Environmental Health. The site was cleaned as instructed and all staff were called to the canteen. At this point, all staff were told that the company was in administration and they would be made redundant without further notice. 27 employees were affected and had to claim their payments from the Redundancy Payments Office.
 
Paddy Lillis - Usdaw General Secretary says: “Yet again the taxpayer will have to pick up the bill for what is owed to sacked staff because the company deliberately flouted the law. It's absolutely disgraceful that workers can be treated in this way in the 21^st century.
 
“Usdaw was not informed or consulted about the redundancies. The company was clearly aware of its financial difficulties, but chose not to involve us, which is in breach of the legislation. Rather than sit down with the Union to discuss the situation, they instructed their staff to clean the factory, before closing the company gates.
 
“This area of law requires review because it is riddled with injustices for both workers and taxpayers as liability to pay the protective awards when companies are in administration falls to the Government’s insolvency fund. The Government needs to end the perverse financial incentive for employers not to comply with legal obligations on collective redundancy consultation.”
 
Notes for editors:
 
Usdaw (Union of Shop, Distributive and Allied Workers) is the UK's fifth biggest and the fastest growing trade union with over 410,000 members. Membership has increased by more than one-third over the last couple of decades. Most Usdaw members work in the retail sector, but the union also has many members in transport, distribution, food manufacturing, chemicals and other trades.
 
Lockwoods Liverpool Limited was a small meat processing factory based in Liverpool, Usdaw is the recognised trade union. On 14 November 2018, 27 employees were made redundant without the required meaningful consultation. Usdaw won a Protective Award claim at a hearing of the Liverpool Tribunal on 11 June 2019. All employees (other than the directors) who were made redundant on 14 November were awarded the full 90 days Protective Award. The Redundancy Payments Office will likely pay 8 weeks of the award. The remainder of the award may be payable by the company, if there is money left over following the administration process.
  
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