ROBERTS Bakery started recruiting new workers at its Rudheath bread plant just a month after scores of workers were given their marching orders.
On Tuesday, October 14, Frank Roberts & Sons announced it had sold all its assets to Boparan Private Office (BPO), a division of 2 Sisters Food Group, for £21.6 million.
Immediately after, Frank Roberts & Son was liquidated by administrators, PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), and 86 staff, whose jobs were already being considered for redundancy, were let go on the spot.
They were also told there was no money to pay their statutory redundancy payments, accrued wages, and outstanding holiday pay, which totalled around £2.2 million.
However, less than a month after BPO’s takeover, a sign appeared outside the Rudheath plant on the A556 stating the business is now recruiting.
Roles currently advertised on its website include shift engineers, asset care engineers, food technologists, warehouse operatives, sales executives, bakery operatives, and dispatch operatives.
One former employee let go in October, a former driver who asked not to be named, described the move as ‘a kick in the teeth’.
This is made worse, he added, by the fact the job adverts on employment websites, such as Indeed, state the hirer to be Frank Roberts & Sons, the now defunct business which made the 86 workers redundant.
Under UK law, taking on staff soon after making others redundant can form the basis of an unfair dismissal claim, if workers can prove their roles were never truly redundant in the first place.
BPO has distanced itself from the redundancies, which it says were ‘carried out solely by the administrators of the previous company’ [Frank Roberts & Sons].
It added its takeover deal secured 433 jobs in Mid Cheshire across the Rudheath plant, and Roberts’ Little Treats factory in Winsford.
The move ‘safeguards four generations of family baking’ and ‘protects the much-loved Roberts Bakery brand for future generations’, it added.
It explained the new roles were created by ‘new business from its wider operations’, as well as ‘seasonal volumes’, and the fact some workers left their roles voluntarily due to uncertainty over the future.
A spokesperson for BPO said: “Our investment in Roberts Bakery in October demonstrated our commitment to securing the long-term success of the business, and our workforce remains central to that ambition.
“Our recovery plan saved many jobs, and the introduction of new business from our wider operations, combined with seasonal volumes, has now created the need to recruit additional colleagues.
“Since taking over, we have had to recruit key roles at the Rudheath site, as many people understandably left the business during the uncertainty surrounding its future.
“Prior to the appointment of PwC as administrators for the previous owners, a number of essential staff sought more secure employment elsewhere.
“As the new owners working to stabilise operations, we have replaced these critical positions to ensure continuity and to support the operational model required for immediate seasonal opportunities on the morning goods plant.
“The roles currently advertised on-site are particularly important during the busy Christmas period, and we are keen to fill them with candidates from the local community, including former employees.
“The redundancies referenced were carried out solely by the administrators acting on behalf of the previous company, and we cannot comment on their decisions or specific job details.
"These new roles are entirely separate from the administrator’s process.
“We remain committed to building a strong, stable workforce and welcome applications from local people as we continue to secure the future of the business.”
Following the takeover by BPO, it emerged Frank Roberts & Sons went bust owing a staggering £15.5 million pounds, with more than £140,000 owed to businesses in Mid Cheshire.
Administrator PwC warned these to expect no more than between one and four per cent of what they are owed.
Frank Roberts & Sons' defined benefit pensions scheme was also revealed to be in a funding deficit of between £14.2 million and £15.6 million.
While this is unlikely to be repaid in full, PwC forecasts between 89 and 98 per cent of the balance will be made good within nine to 12 months out of the £21.6 million paid for the company’s assets by BPO.
BPO, and 2 Sisters Food Group, are controlled solely by West Midlands-based billionaires, Ranjit Boparan, and his wife, Baljinder Boparan.
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