Hundreds of former Debenhams staff win redundancy legal battle

Over 400 former Debenhams employees have won a legal battle against the department store chain after losing their jobs when the company fell into administration.

Once a cornerstone of the UK high street, Debenhams collapsed in 2020 after being impacted by various factors, including the pandemic and mounting competition from online rivals.

Following its collapse, employment law experts at Simpson Millar took legal action against the retailer on behalf of 800 affected employees.

The Employment Tribunal found in favour of the first 419 claimants, with a judge ruling that the company had “failed in its duty to consult with its staff”, TheIndustry.fashion reports.

Lawyers at Simpson Millar said the value of the claim is now being calculated and is expected to be in the region of 860,000 pounds, according to the news outlet.

Simpson Millar is also representing a further 475 clients, for whom a final judgement is yet to be made.

Fast fashion giant Boohoo Group acquired the intellectual property and website for Debenhams for 55 million pounds in January 2021, which resulted in the closure of all its branches.