Debenhams store staff sue firm over redundancy

DEBENHAMS staff who lost their jobs when the Birmingham Bullring store shut its doors for good are suing the retail giant amid claims redundancies were ‘mismanaged.’

Birmingham’s branch of the high street chain shut on May 15.

Debenhams, which employed more than 20,000 people before the pandemic, sold its brand and website to online giant Boohoo for £55 million in January, but confirmed its bricks and mortar business would close for good, leading to mass redundancies.

Now the last remaining Debenhams staff who lost their jobs when the Bullring store shut, are pursuing legal action against the retail giant over the way the redundancy process was managed.

They join around 700 of their former colleagues nationwide, who have already instructed a law firm to secure a Protective Award on their behalf, amid allegations that the business failed to properly consult staff when making mass redundancies.

Damian Kelly, head of employment law at Simpson Millar, said: “The current situation is making it difficult for many companies across most industries and it is no surprise that retail giants – and particularly those that are so reliant on High

Street or shopping centre footfall – are being significantly impacted by the coronavirus pandemic.

“Although the Debenhams brand was purchased by Boohoo, the decision was made to close the stores. As a result, the number of employees who were made redundant was really quite significant. Sadly, this now also includes those who were kept on to oversee the final stock clearance sales once the lockdown restrictions were eased.”

Mr Kelly went on to say that despite being in administration, Debenhams still ‘had a duty of care to their staff under employment law legislation’. “While some companies are struggling because of the pandemic, they still have a duty under current employment law legislation to carry out a proper consultation with staff at risk of redundancies. Where that does not happen, employees can bring a claim for a Protective Award,” he added.

A Protective Award is a payment awarded by an Employment Tribunal in cases where an employer fails to follow the correct procedure when making 20 or more redundancies.

Where an Employment Tribunal finds in the favour of the employees, they will be able to access the funds via the Government Insolvency Service.