Transfer of Undertakings (Protection of Employment) Regulations 1981. Applicable in the UK. The normal position when an employee stops working for one employer, and starts work for another, is that a completely new contract of employment comes into being. The effect of TUPE is to change this position where there is a "transfer of an undertaking". In those circumstances, the effect of the TUPE Regulations is that the employee is -- for most purposes -- treated as if the contract with his old employer continued with the new employer. This is important for a number of reasons. For example, certain employment law rights (e.g., against unfair dismissal or rights to redundancy payments) normally only apply if an employee has worked for an employer for a certain period of time. If TUPE applies, the time with the old employer counts when calculating for how long the employee has been employed. TUPE cannot be excluded by contract.