I have experience of TUPE in the Netherlands and Belgium. I transferred a number of telecomms staff to an outsourcer (BT) but specified over and above TUPE an additional 2-year cutoff (plus 1 for TUPE, makes 3 years).

In the laws applying in Benelux at the time (1994/5) the company could only bypass TUPE if they were officially a "company in distress", which is specified as a hair's breadth short of bankruptcy; it brings with it all sorts of adverse trading conditions, and no company would claim to be "in distress" just to get rid of some staff - it wouldn't be worth their while.

All of the staff I transferred to the outsourcer still work there, except for 5 that have retired since; and I still get Christmas cards from many of them.

I don't know the UK application of TUPE. My advice is the same as DMcG gave: talk to your union. Don't fight this alone.