AN IRISH cinema company has snapped up five UK locations after a rival chain fell into administration.
Omniplex has taken on the sites from Empire Cinema, and will open them under new ownership within days.
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Ireland’s largest cinema chain has acquired sites in Birmingham, Ipswich, Sutton, High Wycombe and Clydebank, Scotland.
The Birmingham cinema will open on December 6, while the sites in Ipswich and Sutton will welcome in customers on December 8.
The Clydebank and High Wycombe locations will open their doors under the new brand on December 10.
Omniplex, which already operates 38 cinemas on the island of Ireland, said it will be make more announcements on cinema openings in 2024.
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The cinema company added its latest investment in the five Empire locations, worth £22.5million, will secure 150 existing jobs in a boost for workers.
Paul John Anderson, director of Omniplex Cinema Group, said the chain was “thrilled” to be expanding into British market.
It comes after Empire Cinemas plunged into administration in July this year, closing six sites with immediate effect.
Seven of the 14 sites remained open, of which five have now been snapped up by Omniplex.
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It is not clear at this stage what will happen to the Cheltenham and Bath sites.
However, in July, administrators, the BDO Group, said any remaining open sites would continue to trade while “we explore the sale of as much of the business as possible”.
Empire Cinemas isn’t the only chain to suffer in recent years.
Cineworld revealed it expected to come out of bankruptcy protection in July after receiving backing from lenders.
The chain filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in the US last year due to giant debts and low footfall to its venues.
Your rights in redundancy
If you are a worker who has been impacted by Empire Cinemas going into administration it helps to know your rights if faced with redundancy.
You are entitled to statutory redundancy pay, but only if you have worked at your job for two years or more.
The statutory rate is based on your age, weekly pay and number of years in the job.
You will get:
- Half a week’s pay for each full year you worked aged under 22
- One week’s pay for each full year you worked aged 22 or older, but under 41
- One and half week’s pay for each full year you worked while aged 41 or older.
But it’s capped at 20 years and the max redundancy pay you can get is currently £16,320.
Some companies may offer to pay more than the statutory amount. This will usually be in your contract.
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Plus, you are still entitled to any pay you are owed for untaken holiday days at the end of your notice period.
The government has a calculator on its website to help you work out how much you are owed.
You can also join our new Sun Money Facebook group to share stories and tips and engage with the consumer team and other group members.
