How TUPE Works During a Change of Employer in the UK

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Миколаєнко Олена Василівна

Attorney

United Kingdom / England

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Publication date: 03.09.2025

The Transfer of Undertakings (Protection of Employment) Regulations 2006 (TUPE) is a key element of UK employment law that protects the employment rights of employees when there is a change of employer due to a transfer of business or change of service provider. The Consultant legal marketplace offers employment advice and employment law advice to help employees understand their rights, conduct a legal review of their employment contract, and develop an action plan to protect their interests. Our HR legal consulting services support employees of all types of employment in the UK, including contract work, fixed-term contracts and zero-hours contracts.

What is TUPE and When Does It Apply

TUPE applies during a business transfer or a service provision change, such as outsourcing, insourcing, or retendering of service contracts. Under UK labour law, TUPE ensures that your contract employment UK remains intact during such transitions. Legal review employment contract from Consultant verifies that your employer complies with TUPE requirements, protecting your employee rights UK.

Key scenarios where TUPE applies include:

• Sale or merger of a business, transferring employees to a new owner.
• Outsourcing services, like cleaning or IT, to a new contractor.
• Insourcing previously outsourced services back in-house.
• Retendering a service contract to a different provider.

UK labour law advice from Consultant helps determine if TUPE applies to your situation, particularly for those on fixed-term contract UK or zero-hours contract.

How TUPE Protects Employee Rights

TTUPE ensures that employees automatically transfer to the new employer while retaining the terms of their UK employment contract, including salary, holiday entitlement and other benefits. HR legal consulting from Consultant supports you from reviewing your working arrangements UK to preparing a tribunal claim. Employees of all types of employment in the UK, from contract work to zero-hours contracts, are protected from changes in working conditions if the reason for the changes is the transfer itself. For example, a new employer cannot change your fixed-term contract solely because of the transfer unless it is justified by economic, technical or organisational reasons (ETO).

Core protections under TUPE include:

1. Preservation of Contract Terms: Salary, working hours, and benefits remain unchanged.
2. Continuity of Service: Your length of service is preserved for calculating entitlements.
3. Protection from Dismissal: Dismissals due to the transfer are unfair unless justified by ETO reasons.

HR legal consulting from Consultant ensures your employer adheres to TUPE, and we assist with Employment Tribunal claims if your employee rights UK are breached.

Employer Obligations Under TUPE

Both outgoing and incoming employers have specific duties under UK labour law during a TUPE transfer. These include:

1. Informing and Consulting: Employers must inform and consult employees or their representatives about the transfer and any planned changes, such as restructuring.
2. Providing Employee Information: The outgoing employer must supply the new employer with employee liability information, including contract terms.
3. Maintaining Terms: The new employer cannot worsen terms without employee consent unless justified by ETO reasons.

Employment contract consultation from Consultant prepares you for these consultations and protects your employee rights UK. If your contract employment UK or fixed-term contract UK is breached, our legal review employment contract identifies grounds for a challenge.

What to Do If TUPE is Breached

If your employer does not comply with TUPE, for example, changes the terms of your zero-hours contract or dismisses you due to a transfer, you can file a complaint with the Employment Tribunal. The limitation period is 3 months from the date of transfer. HR legal consulting from Consultant supports you at all stages, from analysing your UK employment contract to preparing your claim. For example, if you were dismissed due to a transfer without ETO reasons, this may be considered unfair dismissal.

Steps to protect your rights:

• Contact ACAS: Engage in mandatory early conciliation through the Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service.
• Submit Form ET1: File a tribunal claim with details of the TUPE violation.
• Gather Evidence: Collect documents proving non-compliance with TUPE.

UK labour law advice from Consultant provides a clear action plan to safeguard your rights, especially for workers on contract employment UK or zero-hours contract.

Frequently Asked Questions About TUPE

How to Protect Your Rights During a TUPE Transfer

Review Your Contract: Order legal review employment contract from Consultant to verify terms.

Seek Expert Advice: Use employment contract consultation to protect your rights.

Challenge Breaches: File a tribunal claim with HR legal consulting support.