MORE than 600 ex-employees of a North Yorkshire modular house builder - which entered administration in June - are now taking legal action over the way they claim the redundancy process was managed.

And the lawyers representing the staff are urging others to come forward, saying the deadline to pursue a claim is just days away.

Some 1,150 people at Ilke Homes of Flaxby, between Knaresborough and York, lost their jobs when the once-thriving business folded.

The collapse followed a period of rapid growth of the company, founded in 2018, with hundreds of employees taken on last year.

Despite claiming an order book of £1bn of affordable homes, ilke faced difficulties saying that planning permissions for housing schemes weren’t happening fast enough.

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In June, the company announced an intention to enter administration, as it sought a buyer, claiming it was in talks with 15 potential investors.

Sadly, no buyer could be found and formal administration was announced by the end of the month by London-based Alix Partners.

The move led Manchester and Cheshire-based Aticus Law to call for former employees to come forward to see if the consultation process was followed properly.

An initial 80 approached the law firm to see about making a Protective Award claim against the company, a number they now say exceeds 600.

Aticus Law says if their clients are able to pursue a claim and are successful, those involved in the legal challenge will receive up to eight weeks’ worth of pay in compensation, with a cap of £643 per week.

However, the law firm has also cautioned other employees not currently involved in the case that they have just a few days left to add their name to the Schedule of Claimants, with applications for new submissions closing on Monday September 4.

This is because it needs to prepare the claims for submission to ACAS ahead of the deadline, and before being submitted to the Employment Tribunal.

Edward Judge from Aticus law said: “The Protective Award is a vital safety net for so many families in fast-paced redundancy situations that often leave them with no source of income and absolutely no notice.  

“However, many people don’t realise that you can only get a Protective Award payment if you are included as part of the claim and are listed as part of the Schedule of Claimants attached to the Tribunal Judgment. 

“We can’t stress this enough. You can’t simply watch from the side-lines while ex-colleagues take the legal challenge forward. It’s important to make sure your name and specific job title is included ahead of the 4th of September.

“After this unfortunately we won’t be able to accept new applicants, as we will be doing all of the necessary work needed to submit the claim to ACAS.”