Companies will be told that they are focusing too much on
the deal during a merger or acquisition to the detriment of vital HR issues by legal
firm Eversheds, at its employers’ convention next week.
The lawyers claim that the long-term success of mergers and
acquisitions is threatened unless HR issues, such as changing terms and
conditions, TUPE, redundancy, relocation, trade unions and employee
communications, are adequately dealt with. There were 3,500 mergers and
acquisitions in the UK last year.
David Beswick, partner at Eversheds, said, “A merger or acquisition
obviously has a huge impact on a business and employers will undoubtedly be
aware that there are HR issues to consider.
“However, there has been an avalanche of employment
legislation over the past few years and, against a background of increased
employee litigation, employers need to invest considerable time covering all
the bases.”
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