I have posted many redundancy blogs and articles – so much so that I assumed everyone had read them a million times and were tired of reading about redundancy consultations. However, after speaking to a client earlier today, I thought I would again post this guidance about redundancy and how to prepare for any redundancy consultation meeting. I understand that any process which threatens your livelihood and the financial wellbeing of your family is difficult, but there are things you can do to help yourself and, hopefully, prevent your being made redundant.
All redundancy processes will involve some type of redundancy consultation. Often this will take the form of a meeting with your employer. Always attend consultation meetings and use them to raise any concerns you have about the redundancy process. The types of questions you ask. or representations you make, will depend upon your personal situation. However, I set out below some of the more common types of queries raised:-
Is this a genuine redundancy?
This argument is used often (but by no means exclusively) when you are the only person at risk of redundancy. You may be of the view that there is no need for a reduction of staffing at all and you are being targeted for reasons wholly unrelated to any genuine restructure or redundancy. You should be ready to challenge your employer about the need for redundancies. Ask why, why now, what are they hoping the redundancy will achieve, what will happen to your duties and responsibilities, what alternatives have they considered etc. Make sure your concerns are known, make sure you obtain a response from your employer to your questions and that there is a record of any evidence you present contradicting their answers.
Is the pool of employees “at risk” of redundancy identified correctly?
Essentially, if your employer has identified a number of people from which they intend to select some employees to be made redundant, you want to be sure that the correct people are in the pool. Challenge your employer as to how they selected the employees involved. Identify those you believe should have been included but were not. Challenge your inclusion in the pool of employees at risk.
Is there an unfair procedure or selection criteria?
This argument is often used if there is a genuine redundancy situation and the pool of employees has been correctly identified, but there is a flaw in the procedure or selection process which would render any resulting redundancy unreasonable or unfair. Is the process discriminatory? Has too much weighting been given to some scores rather than others? Ask your employer why they have chosen the selection criteria they have.
Are you being unfairly selected for redundancy?
This argument is often used in situations where there is some scoring of employees within the selection process. You may feel unhappy about your scores or the person who will be doing the scoring
Has the selection criteria been applied fairly to you?
The above is not an exhaustive list and there may be other issues or concerns you may have about your proposed redundancy. It is important that you use the consultation meetings to set out those concerns and obtain a response from your employer. After all, if there is a genuine redundancy situation and they are following a fair procedure, they should have no difficulty in answering your questions.
Lincs Law Employment Solicitors Can Help You
If you are going through a redundancy process and are worried about being made redundant, please call us on 01522 440512 for a free initial consultation. If you would like more information about redundancy procedures, please visit our website at https://lincslaw.co.uk/services/employees/resignation-dismissal-and-redundancy/redundancy/
If you have been made redundant and your employer’s decision was unfair, you may have an Employment Tribunal claim. Click on the link to take our online questionnaire and find out: https://lincslaw.co.uk/have-you-been-made-redundant-do-you-have-an-unfair-dismissal-claim/
Sally Hubbard,
Specialist Employment Law Solicitor
LincsLaw Solicitors, Lincoln
Tags: employment solicitor employment solicitor lincoln redundancy redundancy consultation redundancy solicitor redundancy solicitor lincoln redundant
