Legislation
Employment Rights Act 1996
The principal UK statute on employment rights, including unfair dismissal, redundancy and continuity of employment.
Definition
The Employment Rights Act 1996 is the principal UK statute consolidating individual employment rights. It covers the right to written particulars of employment, protection from unfair dismissal, statutory redundancy payments, protection from unlawful deduction from wages, and continuity of employment. In public procurement it matters chiefly because service contracts change hands, and when they do the Act interacts with TUPE to determine what happens to the people delivering the service.
How it works in practice
When a public service transfers from one provider to another, TUPE generally preserves employment and terms, and continuity of employment under the Employment Rights Act carries across. That continuity determines qualifying periods for rights such as unfair dismissal protection and statutory redundancy pay, so employees do not lose accrued service simply because the contract changed hands. A dismissal for a reason connected with the transfer is automatically unfair unless it falls within the narrow economic, technical or organisational exception.
For bidders, the practical consequences appear at pricing and mobilisation. Employee liability information provided by the outgoing supplier drives the cost model: salaries, contractual terms, pension arrangements, accrued holiday, and any known claims. Underestimating this is one of the more common ways a service bid becomes unprofitable after award. Where restructuring is genuinely intended, the redundancy and consultation obligations under both regimes must be planned into the mobilisation timetable rather than discovered during it.
Wider workforce policy frequently sits alongside these statutory duties in public tenders. Scottish procurements commonly apply Fair Work First criteria, London buyers may reference the Good Work Standard, and many contracts ask about payment of the Real Living Wage. These are policy expectations layered on top of the legal baseline, and they are scored, so they need answering on their own terms rather than by pointing at statutory compliance.
Common questions
How does the Act interact with TUPE?
TUPE governs whether employment transfers and on what terms. The Employment Rights Act governs the underlying rights, including continuity of service, unfair dismissal and redundancy pay. In a service transfer both apply together: TUPE moves the employment, and continuity under the Act preserves accrued service for the purposes of those rights.
What is continuity of employment and why does it matter on a contract change?
Continuity is unbroken service counted for statutory purposes. It matters because qualifying periods for rights such as unfair dismissal protection and statutory redundancy pay depend on length of service. On a TUPE transfer continuity is preserved, so an incoming employer inherits accrued service rather than starting the clock again.
Can we change transferred employees' terms after taking over a contract?
Only within narrow limits. Changes for a reason connected with the transfer are generally void, even with employee agreement, unless justified by an economic, technical or organisational reason entailing changes in the workforce. Harmonising terms with existing staff is a common intention and a common source of legal difficulty.
What employee information should we expect before bidding?
Employee liability information, which the outgoing employer must provide, covering identities, ages, terms and conditions, disciplinary and grievance records within a defined period, and any claims. It should be requested and interrogated early, since it is the basis of the workforce cost in the bid.
