Commentary on Sections Pension protection on transfer of employment Section 257: Conditions for pension protection
938.Sections 257 and 258 protect the pension position of employees who are involved in a business transfer to which the TUPE regulations apply. If, prior to the transfer, the transferred employee had access to an occupational pension scheme to which the employer contributed, or would have had access to such a scheme if he had been employed by the transferor for a longer period, then the new employer must secure at least a prescribed level of pension provision for the employee following the transfer. Section 257 sets out the conditions in which those employees are eligible for the pension protection provided by section 258.
939.Subsection (5) ensures that employees are still protected even if the transferor has withdrawn their occupational pension scheme by reason of the transfer.
940.References to transferor include any associate of the transferor and for the purposes of determining who is to be an associate of the transferor for the purposes of this section the criteria in section 435 of the Insolvency Act 1986 (meaning of “associate”) are to apply.