Redundancy

If your job is redundant and your employer is unable to offer you a suitable alternative post, you will be entitled to:

1. Notice (or pay in lieu of notice) – check your employment contract and bear in mind the statutory minimum notice:

• at least one week’s notice if you’ve been employed between one month and two years
• one week’s notice for each year of employment between two years and 12 years
• 12 weeks’ notice if you’ve been employed for 12 years or more.

2. A redundancy payment– you might have a contractual entitlement to a redundancy payment, but even if you don’t, if you are an employee with more than two years’ continuous service, you will be entitled to the statutory minimum redundancy payment. This is based on your age, salary and length of service, but it isn’t very much. For example, a 35 year-old with two years’ service who earns £600 a week who is made redundant between 5 April 2021 and 4 April 2022 would be entitled to £1,088, because there is a current cap of £544 (which is usually reviewed and increased each year).Here’s how it’s worked out:

• 0.5 week’s pay for each full year of service under the age of 22
• 1 week’s pay for each full year of service between the age of 22 and 41
• 1.5 week’s pay for each full year of service aged over 41.

The maximum number of years that can be taken into account is 20 years. If the company becomes insolvent, then you should be able to claim your redundancy entitlement from the National Insurance Fund.

3. A fair process– your employer should consult with you about the proposed redundancy and allow you the opportunity to suggest ways of avoiding the redundancy. If your employer is planning to make 20 or more people redundant, special rules apply. If you have been selected for redundancy in preference to your colleagues, your employer must be able to show they selected you fairly. They should also let you know about any potential alternative roles for you within the company.