Redundancy

If you face the prospect of being made redundant in the UK or if you are a business looking to reduce your workforce, taking advice from a Redundancy Solicitor can be beneficial.

Our Redundancy lawyers specialise in employment law and can guide you throughout the redundancy process to make sure you are doing everything fairly.

The redundancy process must be fair, if there is discrimination during the process a claim could be made under the Equality Act.

Why choose our Redundancy Solicitors?
Our solicitors in the employment team offer extensive expertise in guiding both employees and employers through redundancy scenarios. Whether you're an employer undergoing restructuring or an employee confronting redundancy, we offer comprehensive support throughout.

We assist at every stage in managing the redundancy process, starting from the selection process, advice on conducting initial consultations, exploring suitable alternative employment options, evaluating whether additional protection should be extended to employees, managing the redundancy process itself, and handling subsequent appeals and Tribunal proceedings. Throughout the process, we can provide all necessary documentation to ensure you are protected.

Our experienced solicitors in the employment department can provide extensive support with collective redundancy situations. We will ensure that you are compliant with legal requirements and guide you through each step that you need to follow with employees, from the initial planning, to electing and consulting with employee representatives, to considering alternative measures such as retraining or redeployment to reduce the number of redundancies if possible and the final individual meetings with the employees. We can draft the necessary documentation, including the consultation letters and settlement agreements if needed. We can also offer you support and defend any claim that may be brought against you in the Employment Tribunal.

What is collective redundancy and when does it apply?
Collective redundancy is the term used when 20 or more employees are to be made redundant from a single employer within a ninety day period.

How long does the consultation process typically last?
The length of the consultation period depends on the number of employees that the employer proposes to make redundant. They are:

• If an employer is proposing to dismiss between 20 and 99 employees, the consultation process must begin at least 30 days before the first dismissal.
• If an employer proposes to dismiss 100 or more employees, the consultation process must begin at last 45 days before the first dismissal.

What are the potential legal implications if the collective redundancy process is not followed correctly?
If an employer fails to comply with the collective consultation requirements the employer is at risk of claims at the Employment Tribunal for claims of unfair dismissal and a protective award. The protective award can amount to 90 days' pay per employee and would be payable for each affected employee, having the potential to be a substantial cost to the employer. If such claims are filed against the employer, our employment solicitors have considerable experience in assisting employers defend them.