Tomlinsons Dairies collapse: Former Shropshire employees seeking legal action
Workers in Shropshire who lost their jobs when a dairy company went into administration last week have begun taking legal action amid allegations that the firm failed to consult staff properly when making redundancies.
More than 300 staff were left unemployed when Tomlinsons Dairies, which has sites in Shropshire, Chester and Wrexham, collapsed following "significant cash flow pressures".
It said all staff will be made redundant – except for a "small number who have been retained for a short period".
But following the announcement, law firm Simpson Millar said it has been contacted by a number of former employees.
This comes as Birmingham-based 2 Sisters Food Group, Britain's biggest chicken processor, has has come forward with more than 100 vacancies at its Deeside plant with plans to fast track former workers at Tomlinsons Dairies through the interview process.
Stephen Pinder, an employment law partner at Simpson Millar, said the firm has set up a Tomlinsons Dairies Eligibility Checker to allow employees to see whether they can claim.
Compensated
He said: "It’s extremely sad to hear news of the sudden collapse of another business, and those ex-employees who have contacted us to date are of course very upset.
“We have already received calls from several people who have been affected by the news, and who are looking to pursue a Protective Award which, if successful, will see them compensated by up to 90 days gross pay, albeit likely capped at £4,200 given the company’s administrative state."
He added: “Historically, people have assumed that if a business goes bust that’s it – the staff are out of a job, and there’s nothing that they can do about it.
“However, with so many large organisations entering administration, and high-profile cases such as Thomas Cook going into compulsory liquidation, there is an increased awareness amongst workers about what the correct, and indeed the incorrect, process is when making redundancies.
“Where business fail in their legal obligation staff do still have rights, and where an employment tribunal finds in the favour of the employees they will be able to access the funds via the Government Insolvency Service.”
