BIS has failed in its prosecution of three directors of City Link for failing to give notice of redundancies.  The directors were alleged to have failed to give sufficient notice for redundancy plans under section 194 of the Trade Union and Labour Relations (Consolidation) Act 1992.

City Link went into administration on Christmas Eve last year resulting in the loss of over 2,100 jobs.  BIS Prosecutors argued that the three directors became aware that redundancies were inevitable on 22^nd December 2014 but the Secretary of State was not notified until 26^th December 2014 when the form was lodged with the Secretary of State by the administrators.

A magistrate has ruled that the no proposal was made on 22^nd December 2014 as the three directors had the intention of saving the company by placing it into administration.  The three directors were acquitted of the charge.  You can read the press coverage here.

It is worth remembering that if you are proposing to dismiss more than 20 staff at one location a disclosure must be made to BIS at least 30/45 days before the first dismissal.  Failure to do so can result in an unlimited fine.  It is therefore worth considering your obligations in this regard as it can have greater ramifications that just in the employment arena.