Diana Johnson – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Diana Johnson on 2014-04-10.
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what negotiations took place with trade unions prior to the decision to close the Hull Official Receiver’s office; and on what dates those negotiations took place.
Jenny Willott
Extensive discussions have taken place between the Insolvency Service and trade union officials in connection with the estates review of our 36 offices throughout the last 2 years, in the context of continued falling case numbers. As a result of this on-going consultation, changes have been made to our excess fares, home moves and flexible working policies, to support those affected by office closures. The trade unions were made aware on 25 February 2014 that the future of the Hull office was being considered, and were invited to provide any views they wished. Following the announcement of the office closure on 27 March 2014 a 90 day formal consultation period with employees and their trade unions representatives commenced. The purpose of the consultation is to ensure that the Insolvency Service explores what the decision means for each of its employees, as well as discussing and agreeing the support that it can provide.
