A British appeals court is today deliberating a county court ruling that could make it difficult for struggling car maker MG Rover to lay off workers.
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According to the Daily Telegraph, Rover has a historic “job for life” agreement which says those who want to work for the company will be able to stay there without the threat of compulsory redundancy. But after the car maker tried to make around 100 workers at its Longbridge plant redundant, one employee took it to court.
The paper said Kulvinder Kaur’s case was taken up by the Transport & General Workers’ Union. Kaur initially won her case at a county court in Birmingham but Rover subsequently appealed.
A spokesman for Rover told the Daily Telegraph: “There is a jobs for life agreement which is historic.” But he added: “The company views the ideal of no compulsory redundancy as an aspiration, rather than a contractual obligation. The directors believe they need to manage the business for today and tomorrow.”
The paper said the decision could see Rover having to exhaust all options, from relocating workers to offering early retirement, before looking at compulsory redundancies.
Reporting on a separate employee-related issue, the Daily Telegraph said Rover could also face further court action after it emerged several of its employees appeared to have contracted potentially fatal lung diseases. The T&G Union reportedly said it is aware of 15 cases at the Powertrain engine-making plant “of what appears to be allergic alveolitis, which is similar to occupational asthma”. It said “prolonged exposure to dusts” has been suggested as a possible cause.
Rover’s spokesman told the newspaper there are “no conclusive links between the illnesses and any materials that have been found in Powertrain” and added: “The number of cases reported to the company is quite small.” However, a spokesman for the T&G Union told the Daily Telegraph its solicitors were “compiling evidence to see what the basis of a case would be”, raising the possibility of civil action against the company.
A Health and Safety Executive investigation is now under way and Rover is awaiting the outcome, the paper said.
Rover’s spokesman told the Daily Telegraph: “The company undertakes regular monitoring of the factory environment to ensure a safe place of work and all monitoring is showing levels well within HSE guidance.”
