When a business is considering embarking on making one or more members of staff redundant, clear and effective legal advice is crucial to ensure that this process runs smoothly. Peach Law’s redundancy lawsupport helps to ensure that your business does not fall foul of the law, or leave itself open to potentially costly and protracted litigation for unfair dismissal and/or workplace discrimination.
If your business is considering redundancies, you should be aware of the formal rules of redundancy law which must be followed including the need to inform and consult with employees and representatives of the workforce, or recognised Trade Unions where relevant.
Is it really a redundancy or could it be a company restructure? A restructure could avoid the need to make redundancy payments!
Join the hundreds of businesses that trust Peach for their unrivalled legal support.
Providing our clients with flexible specialist employment law expertise in Stockport and beyond.
Employees with 2 or more years’ service are entitled to a statutory redundancy payment. This payment is calculated based on age, length of service (subject to a maximum of 20 years) and pay (subject to the upper limit on a weeks’ pay).
Additionally, if you are considering making dismissals of 20 or more employees, within a 90-day period, there are specific rules which must be adhered to in order to avoid affected employees being eligible for a ‘Protective Award’, which can see compensation of up to 90 days’ gross pay being awarded to each affected employee – common and potentially costly mistakes for a business!Common pitfalls are;
• Confusing poor performance and a genuine redundancy situation.
• The pool for selection was too narrow.
• Making a decision on the outcome before consultations have been completed.
Our expert Employment Solicitors can advise you every step of the way, this can include initial advice and strategy, advising on selection pools and criteria and drafting the relevant letters and documents required for a fair a proper process to be carried out.
If it’s too daunting, the business could completely outsource this process and us our HR Consultants. They can act on your behalf and carry out the whole process for you, (further information can be found here). HR Services
Redundancy occurs when you either have a reduced need for work of a particular kind, or work at a particular location, and therefore make the business decision to dismiss employees in order to reduce the size of the workforce. Redundancy usually falls within one of the following categories:
• Business closure (closure of the business altogether).
• Workplace closure (closure of one of several sites, or relocation to a new site).
• Diminishing need for employees to do work of a particular kind. (we would discuss work of a particular kind with you, and what that means, to establish whether this is the case)
An employer may decide to make redundancies for a variety of reasons, including:
• Recession or other economic pressures making business closure or reduction in staff numbers necessary.
• Changes in the nature of products or services provided.
• Internal reorganisation to make more efficient use of roles and duties.
• Technological developments resulting in change to some or all job functions.
• Relocation of business.
It is worth noting that a Tribunal will not interfere with an employer's freedom to make such business decisions, and an employer is not required to justify its reason for making redundancies. As long as a Tribunal is satisfied that redundancy is the genuine reason for a dismissal, it will not look behind the facts of the matter to see how the redundancy situation arose.
You need to check each employee’s contract of employment, to determine whether there are any contractual redundancy payments an employee is entitled to.
With regards to statutory redundancy pay (SRP), employees require at least 2 years’ service to qualify for that payment. The same qualifying period is attached to any claim for unfair dismissal (save a few exceptions).
Yes, it is vital to ensure that you avoid any claims including unfair dismissal. You must be able to show the following:
• There is a genuine need for redundancies within your business.
• You have identified the correct pool for selection.
• You used fair and transparent selection criteria in choosing employees for redundancy.
• You undertook meaningful consultation including complying with your additional duties of collective consultation if you are making more than 20 employees redundant over a period of 90 days or less.
• The employees selected for redundancy receive their full statutory and/or contractual redundancy pay (subject to length of service, which we can discuss with you).
You need to consider the following:
• Planning;
• Voluntary redundancies;
• Selection Pools;
• Selection Criteria;
• Consultation;
• Possible alternative Employment (including suitable alternative employment);
• Trial Periods; and
• The appeal process.
You should discuss your situation with a qualified employment lawyer and undertake a risk analysis before commencing any redundancy procedure. A qualified employment lawyer can work with you to establish a plan, bearing in mind the law and your business objectives. Failure to seek legal advice can be extremely costly in the long run.
An employee who has 2 years’ service (or less if they fall within one of the exceptions) is entitled not to be unfairly dismissed. Redundancy is a potential fair reason for dismissal but even if a dismissal is genuinely on grounds of redundancy, whether it is fair or not normally depends on whether the business acted reasonably in all the circumstances. A redundancy dismissal is likely to be unfair unless the employer can show it adhered to the points mentioned above.
Further, failure to follow the correct collective consultation procedure can result in a “protective award” being given of up to 90 days' gross pay for each affected employee, which can add up to a substantial amount (these awards add up and therefore can be among the most significant financial awards an employment tribunal can make against a business).
It is important to note that, unlike with redundancy payments and unfair dismissal claims (save a few exceptions), your employees do not need to have been employed for two years to make a claim for a protective award.
It is crucial to consult with your employees in order to discuss the business’ proposals and to discuss any ways in which redundancies could be avoided or reduced. The business must collectively consult (if 20 or more employees are to be made redundant over a period of 90 days or less) or consult individually (if less than 20 employees are affected). Consultation should be meaningful, and you need to be able to show that you have genuinely considered any suggestions, or any points raised by each employee, even if you do not agree with them.
There is no set time limit for how long the consultation period should last, but the minimum duration is:
• Less than 20 redundancies: individual consultation only. There are no rules for how long individual consultation should last, but you should check whether you have a policy or agreement in place detailing any procedure you should follow as a business, for example in your Staff Handbook.
• 20 - 99 redundancies: the consultation has to start at least 30 days before any dismissals happen.
• 100 or more redundancies: the consultation has to start at least 45 days before any dismissals happen.
Where 20 or more employees are being made redundant, you must notify the Government using form HR1.
Failure to follow the correct collective consultation procedure can result in a “protective award” being given of up to 90 days' gross pay for each affected employee, which can add up to a substantial amount (these awards add up and therefore can be among the most significant financial awards an employment tribunal can make against a business).
It is important to note that, unlike with redundancy payments and unfair dismissal claims (save a few exceptions), your employees do not need to have been employed for two years make a claim for a protective award.
The main claims that employees may bring upon termination following redundancy are:
• unfair dismissal;
• discrimination (age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex, sexual orientation);
• protective award
• failure to make a redundancy payment; and
• breach of contract.
It is essential that you follow a fair process and that dismissals by way of redundancy are only made where there is a genuine redundancy situation. There are further factors to take into account where an employee placed in a pool is on maternity leave or on long-term sick, the process will need adapting to ensure you are legally compliant and not open to greater risk.
Peach Law has a team of qualified employment lawyers who can be on hand to answer any questions and help you with your business needs!
If you are planning redundancies within your business, or exploring it as an option, get in touch with us and one of our experts will be able to help you using the button below:
More than just an employment advice service for redundancy, we look at the full picture for our clients, meaning you have a one stop shop should you require it.
Informed, expert & reliable.
Smart, sharp and savvy - you’ll struggle to find a better team of experts than at Peach Law.
Hands on approach.
Our holistic attitude to HR and law is what sets us apart from the competition. We believe we get the best results through active personal involvement.
Save time & money.
Qualified experts on hand for a fixed rate, providing your business with certainty of cost and for complete peace of mind.
Deal with senior individuals.
Every member of the team has an extensive background and unrivalled experience within the sector.
No call centres, ever.
You’ll only ever speak to the senior individuals working on your account. You’ll get the information you need, when you need it.
Friendly & approachable.
We’re welcoming and receptive during what is undoubtedly a stressful time.
