Personnel Today
  • Home
    • All PT content
  • Email sign-up
  • Topics
    • HR Practice
    • Employee relations
    • Learning & training
    • Pay & benefits
    • Wellbeing
    • Recruitment & retention
    • HR strategy
    • HR Tech
    • The HR profession
    • Global
    • All HR topics
  • Legal
    • Case law
    • Commentary
    • Flexible working
    • Legal timetable
    • Maternity & paternity
    • Shared parental leave
    • Redundancy
    • TUPE
    • Disciplinary and grievances
    • Employer’s guides
  • AWARDS
    • Personnel Today Awards
    • The RAD Awards
  • Jobs
    • Find a job
    • Jobs by email
    • Careers advice
    • Post a job
  • Brightmine
    • Learn more
    • Products
    • Free trial
    • Request a quote
  • Webinars
  • Advertise
  • OHW+

Personnel Today

Register
Log in
Personnel Today
  • Home
    • All PT content
  • Email sign-up
  • Topics
    • HR Practice
    • Employee relations
    • Learning & training
    • Pay & benefits
    • Wellbeing
    • Recruitment & retention
    • HR strategy
    • HR Tech
    • The HR profession
    • Global
    • All HR topics
  • Legal
    • Case law
    • Commentary
    • Flexible working
    • Legal timetable
    • Maternity & paternity
    • Shared parental leave
    • Redundancy
    • TUPE
    • Disciplinary and grievances
    • Employer’s guides
  • AWARDS
    • Personnel Today Awards
    • The RAD Awards
  • Jobs
    • Find a job
    • Jobs by email
    • Careers advice
    • Post a job
  • Brightmine
    • Learn more
    • Products
    • Free trial
    • Request a quote
  • Webinars
  • Advertise
  • OHW+

Employment lawRedundancy

Penna denies Barker redundancies takeover request

by Louisa Peacock 3 Jul 2009
by Louisa Peacock 3 Jul 2009

Penna has categorically denied it told Barkers to make at least 60 staff redundant just days before it purchased the company, as part of a “deal clincher” to avoid shelling out redundancy pay.

Barkers recruitment advertising firm went into administration and was bought out by HR consulting group Penna on Monday. The £8.6m deal covered the whole group, including recruitment firm TCS, which merged with Barkers in 2004. The deal saved 240 jobs, and the employees who transferred across did so under the same terms and conditions.

However, scores of posts on a recruitment website’s forum pages by people claiming to be former employees have alleged that Barkers made at least 60 staff redundant on 25 June, knowing that they would not receive the monies owed to them as the group went into administration and was bought out just days later.

One post on ri5.co.uk alleged: “The deal clincher here for [Penna] is to take on a business with no liabilities and no redundancy payments to make. So, they tell Barkers to make the staff redundant – then two days later, Barkers goes into administration and Penna buy the operational bit for a knock-down price.” Another post read: “To get rid of 60 people last week knowing that they wouldn’t receive any redundancy should be shocking.” Other posts claimed that redundant employees would not receive their pension.

However, several posts on the site defended Penna, stating the firm had nothing to do with the redundancies.

One said: “Many people at TCS and Barkers… will tell you that they’d rather Penna had bought the business and saved 240 jobs, rather than the whole thing go under. Penna is not to blame. BNB/Barkers was already in administration. The poor people who were made redundant last week were not made redundant because of Penna. In fact, Penna is trying to find out what can be done to help them, even though, technically, they are not responsible for their welfare.”

A spokesman for Penna told Personnel Today: “There is a clear line in the sand between the redundancies that took place and us taking over. We were not involved, and we cannot be held responsible for what was held before.

“I can absolutely categorically say that Penna was not involved in terms of talking about, being involved in or suggesting any redundancies prior to the deal taking place,” he added.

Penna became aware of the chance to buy Barkers on 14 June, and fought off other interested parties to become the best bidder.

Sign up to our weekly round-up of HR news and guidance

Receive the Personnel Today Direct e-newsletter every Wednesday

OptOut
This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Administrators Chantrey Vellacot were unavailable for comment this morning.

Have you been affected by the Penna/Barkers takeover? E-mail [email protected]
Join the debate on Personnel Today’s forum: www.hrspace.co.uk

Louisa Peacock

previous post
The Voucher Shop launches ‘Maintaining Momentum’
next post
Capita Learning & Development signs major contract with Volkswagen Group

You may also like

Fire and rehire: the relocation question

22 May 2025

Minister defends Employment Rights Bill at Acas conference

16 May 2025

CBI chair Soames accuses ministers of not listening...

16 May 2025

EHRC bows to pressure and extends gender consultation

15 May 2025

Tribunal finds need for degree in redundancy selection...

14 May 2025

Contract cleaner loses EAT race discrimination appeal

14 May 2025

Construction workers win compensation claim against defunct employer

9 May 2025

Zero-hours workers’ rights to be extended from beyond...

8 May 2025

Employment tribunal backlog up 23% in a year

7 May 2025

Ministers urged to outlaw misuse of NDAs

7 May 2025

  • 2025 Employee Communications Report PROMOTED | HR and leadership...Read more
  • The Majority of Employees Have Their Eyes on Their Next Move PROMOTED | A staggering 65%...Read more
  • Prioritising performance management: Strategies for success (webinar) WEBINAR | In today’s fast-paced...Read more
  • Self-Leadership: The Key to Successful Organisations PROMOTED | Eletive is helping businesses...Read more
  • Retaining Female Talent: Four Ways to Reduce Workplace Drop Out PROMOTED | International Women’s Day...Read more

Personnel Today Jobs
 

Search Jobs

PERSONNEL TODAY

About us
Contact us
Browse all HR topics
Email newsletters
Content feeds
Cookies policy
Privacy policy
Terms and conditions

JOBS

Personnel Today Jobs
Post a job
Why advertise with us?

EVENTS & PRODUCTS

The Personnel Today Awards
The RAD Awards
Employee Benefits
Forum for Expatriate Management
OHW+
Whatmedia

ADVERTISING & PR

Advertising opportunities
Features list 2025

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram
  • Linkedin


© 2011 - 2025 DVV Media International Ltd

Personnel Today
  • Home
    • All PT content
  • Email sign-up
  • Topics
    • HR Practice
    • Employee relations
    • Learning & training
    • Pay & benefits
    • Wellbeing
    • Recruitment & retention
    • HR strategy
    • HR Tech
    • The HR profession
    • Global
    • All HR topics
  • Legal
    • Case law
    • Commentary
    • Flexible working
    • Legal timetable
    • Maternity & paternity
    • Shared parental leave
    • Redundancy
    • TUPE
    • Disciplinary and grievances
    • Employer’s guides
  • AWARDS
    • Personnel Today Awards
    • The RAD Awards
  • Jobs
    • Find a job
    • Jobs by email
    • Careers advice
    • Post a job
  • Brightmine
    • Learn more
    • Products
    • Free trial
    • Request a quote
  • Webinars
  • Advertise
  • OHW+