Analysis: Ordinary Ibrox employees may be safer than players

UNDERSTANDABLY much of the focus on Rangers entering administration has been on what the future holds for the players, but what of the large backroom staff at Ibrox?

Unlike the players, whose contracts are likely to be time-limited, the backroom staff will be on permanent contracts of employment and therefore are protected at least to some degree by government employment legislation, ie TUPE (the Transfer of Undertakings Protection of Employment Regulations 2006).

TUPE kicks in as soon as there is any possibility of a business changing hands – in this case because an administrator has been appointed.

Rangers staff would then transfer to the new owner.

Administration is not analogous to bankruptcy and therefore, by and large, employees should get to keep their jobs in the meantime.

It is, however, open to the administrators to seek to change employment terms to make the business more likely to attract a buyer.

This is permitted under the legislation where “the sole or principal reason for it is the transfer itself or a reason connected with the transfer that is not an economic, technical or organisational reason entailing changes in the workforce” and “it is designed to safeguard employment opportunities by ensuring the survival of the business”.

In other words, the administrators are entitled to look at the remuneration packages and other terms of any of the employees with a view to reducing them and reducing the financial burden.

This means that employees such as grounds and office staff should be protected from dismissal, although it would still be possible for the administrators to make staff redundant if they were able to show there was an economic, technical or organisational reason for this.

Where their jobs could be seriously under threat is if, as many are beginning to fear, Rangers is eventually declared insolvent – as happened to Airdrieonians. In that scenario, however, the employees would be entitled to a statutory redundancy payment.

Therefore, the ordinary men and women behind the scenes at Ibrox could be in a better position than the players. Unlike the players, however, they might find securing another job a lot more difficult.

l Dawn Robertson is head of employment at Murray Beith Murray