// Over 500 Debenhams staff plan to take legal action against the retailer
// Law firm Simpson Millar has begun investigations and is seeking to secure a Protective Award on behalf of staff
Debenhams staff have reportedly called for action against the company after hundreds were made redundant earlier this week.
More than 500 staff who were made redundant are planning to take legal action against the retailer.
Law firm Simpson Millar has begun investigations and is seeking to secure a Protective Award on behalf of staff regarding Debenhams’ alleged failure to properly inform colleagues of the mass job cuts, Drapers reported.
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A Protective Award is a payment awarded by an Employment Tribunal for when an employer does not follow the correct procedure when making 20 or more redundancies.
On Tuesday, Debenhams confirmed plans to make 2500 redundancies in an effort to survive the coronavirus crisis.
The retailer said it had no plans to shut more stores as part of the latest restructure.
The department store chain told Retail Gazette that affected staff, who are still on furlough, have been informed of the decision and will exit the business by the end of this week.
The job cuts are on top of the 4000 head office redundancies announced at the retailer since April, which includes employees based in Ireland, Hong Kong and Bangladesh.
Simpson Millar said the the closure of stores and job cuts has left employees out of work with little or no notice, “at a time when it’s going to be very challenging to find alternative work”.
In April, Debenhams appointed advisory firm FRP Advisory as administrators.
It said it collapsed into administration to protect Debenhams in the UK from the threat of legal action that could push the business into liquidation.
In May, Debenhams announced 20 stores would remain permanently shut after lockdown restrictions were eased.
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