Continuous service

[egghead1]

HI,
I started work for my employer in 1989. I have never had a written contract. Originally he was a sole trader, at some point during the past 26 years the business became a partnership with his very long term live in partner/girlfriend (by which I mean they were taxing it as a partnership when declaring it to the inland revenue). Last year (April 2015) it became a limited company with my employer and his mrs went their separate ways. Now it is a limited company with just my boss as director.

I have worked continuously for the company in its various forms with no breaks what-so-ever

If I get made redundant where do I stand in terms of continuous service. Tupe doesn't seem to apply since my employer's identity hasn't changed.
The employement rights act 1996, section 218(3) says

If by or under an Act (whether public or local and whether passed before or after this Act) a contract of employment between any body corporate and an employee is modified and some other body corporate is substituted as the employer

(a)

the employee’s period of employment at the time when the modification takes effect counts as a period of employment with the second body corporate, and

(b)

the change of employer does not break the continuity of the period of employment.

Is this the relevant piece of legislation and does this mean as the business changed from sole trader to partnership to limited company my continuity of service is protected? Does "body corporate" mean the how the business is owned?

I hope I've made my problem clear, thanks for your help

David

[ostell]

Re: Continuous service

You could think of it that you have been TUPEd all the way up from the sole trader to the limited company. You have transferred across to the new format of company every time and keep your length of service.