Arcadia accused of breach of redundancy terms

Topshop-owner Arcadia has been accused of offering some of its staff redundancy pay based on the 80 percent pay they received while furloughed, rather than their regular pay.

The retailer confirmed in July it was to cut 500 jobs from its 2,500-strong head office workforce to help mitigate the impact of Covid-19.

While some of those 500 workers will receive full notice pay, furloughed staff who are contractually owed more than the government’s statutory minimum have been informed their payout will be based on the 80 percent pay they received while furloughed, The Guardian reports.

One group of Arcadia staff who are contractually owed more than 12 weeks of notice pay have been told that they will receive furlough rates of pay until 31 October and will then have to come back into the office to work the last weeks of their notice period.

In a letter to its employees seen by the Guardian, Arcadia acknowledged “differing views in the circumstances” but said it was confident it was acting legally, fairly and reasonably.

A spokesman told The Guardian: “The restructuring of our head office which we announced on 1 July is essential to ensure we can operate as efficiently as possible during these very challenging times. We remain in a consultation process with our head office staff and no decisions will be made until this process has concluded.

“Throughout this process we will be following all of the government guidelines and legislation. We are listening closely to all of their concerns throughout this process in what we know is a very difficult time.”

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