Asda has been ordered to pay compensation to 68 staff members following the closure of its Croydon Asda@tHome depot in 2002.
The employees were told their jobs at the depot would be lost in January last year and they were given 90 days' pay.
But a tribunal ruled this week that Asda had not provided the 90-day consultation period the law demanded and ordered the company to back-date the offer.
It said Asda should have informed staff before Christmas, when it first decided to close the depot, and not delayed until January when it was a fait accompli.
At the time Asda paid staff between £430 and £2,500, but the tribunal ordered it to award a further 60 days pay, backdated to before Christmas, saying it was in "serious default" of legislation.
A statement issued by Asda said: "We felt that it was better for colleagues and customers to begin the process after the Christmas period, so colleagues were facing a job change in the spring rather than just after the costly Christmas holidays."
Asda also closed its Watford depot in spring 2002, as it moved Asda@Home fulfilment in the south-east from depots into stores, in line with its practice across the rest of the country.
All 197 staff affected by the closures of the two depots were offered jobs in local stores, it said.
Former Asda Croydon transport supervisor Betty Matthews, who represented the group at the tribunal, says she will continue to press for increased compensation for the staff to cover their loss of earnings.
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The employees were told their jobs at the depot would be lost in January last year and they were given 90 days' pay.
But a tribunal ruled this week that Asda had not provided the 90-day consultation period the law demanded and ordered the company to back-date the offer.
It said Asda should have informed staff before Christmas, when it first decided to close the depot, and not delayed until January when it was a fait accompli.
At the time Asda paid staff between £430 and £2,500, but the tribunal ordered it to award a further 60 days pay, backdated to before Christmas, saying it was in "serious default" of legislation.
A statement issued by Asda said: "We felt that it was better for colleagues and customers to begin the process after the Christmas period, so colleagues were facing a job change in the spring rather than just after the costly Christmas holidays."
Asda also closed its Watford depot in spring 2002, as it moved Asda@Home fulfilment in the south-east from depots into stores, in line with its practice across the rest of the country.
All 197 staff affected by the closures of the two depots were offered jobs in local stores, it said.
Former Asda Croydon transport supervisor Betty Matthews, who represented the group at the tribunal, says she will continue to press for increased compensation for the staff to cover their loss of earnings.
{{NEWS }}
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