MORE than 24,000 former Woolworths staff will finally get compensation for the chain store's collapse thanks to a 68million court victory.
Unions won an exhausting battle for a payout THREE YEARS after administrators laid off the entire workforce without any negotiations.
The cash will come from taxpayers and not the banks, administrators, lawyers and PR advisers who shared more than 300million as they closed down the chain.
Shop union USDAW believe staff will each get 60 days pay, capped at 330 a week.
But the 6,000 who worked in Woolies stores with fewer than 20 staff at the time of the collapse will miss out completely.
That is because the settlement came under regulations which insist on collective consultation before dismissal but only apply to workplaces with 20 or more employees. USDAW plans to appeal that ruling.
National officer John Gorle said: "While the award is never going to fully compensate people for losing their jobs, I'm sure our members will appreciate the money. However I'm once again bitterly disappointed that a tribunal has limited the scope of the award.
"Nearly 30,000 employees were made redundant from Woolworths at the same time and for the same reason."
Woolworths collapsed in November 2008 when lenders called in Deloitte as administrators. The lenders made all their money back as Deloittes launched a huge sale of all the stock, fittings and even lighting before closing the stores down after Christmas.
A survey yesterday showed that more than 100 former Woolworths stores are still standing vacant.
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