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TERMS OF EMPLOYMENT - Employer's Duty to Inform
As a result of a management buy out, all employees, including Mr
Ibekwe, lost the right to continue to belong to the London Regional
Transport Pension Scheme. They were given three options about what
to do with their accrued pension benefits. These were explained to
them in a letter sent out with payslips. The employer also posted
notices on staff notice boards. During this period, however, Mr
Ibekwe was on sick leave though he did visit the workplace to
collect his pay slips. He did not exercise any of the three options
and therefore lost the benefit of an ill-health pension. He claimed
his employers were under a duty to inform him of his options, that
they had failed to do so and that as a result he was entitled to
compensation.
The Court of Appeal said that employers are under a duty to
inform employees of rights they may have but do not know about.
This was the situation here, so the employers were under a duty to
inform all employees of that option. However, the employers had
fulfilled this duty with the letter attached to the pay slips. Mr
Ibekwe complained that he had not received this information, but
the Court of Appeal held that the employer had taken reasonable
steps to notify him – they did not have to ensure that the
information was actually communicated.
Ibekwe – v – London General Transport Services [2003] IRLA
697