Redundancy: A self-help guide - Oxford Health
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Healthy Minds Redundancy Being made redundant Redundancy can be a worrying time, but support is available. If you are going to be made redundant from your job, you should be treated fairly by your employer. There are certain steps your employer is expected to follow. You may also be entitled to redundancy pay. You can use the online calculator to work out how much redundancy pay you are entitled to. Understand the redundancy process Take some time to find out about the redundancy process: What are your rights? What are your practical and financial considerations? What do you do if you feel you have been unfairly treated? How do you go about finding a new job? Once an organization has decided to make redundancies, it must inform you and the agreed notice period must be upheld. The law encourages employers to offer alternative work where possible. Any selection must be made on objective criteria such as length of service and experience, skills and qualifications, and performance records. The alternative post should provide similar earnings and status, be within the employee’s capability and not involve unreasonable additional inconvenience. A four week trial is recommended, longer if re-skilling or training is involved and of course equal opportunity must be respected. 2 Oxford Health NHS Foundation Trust | www.oxfordhealth.nhs.uk
Information leaflet
During your notice period you should be allowed time to job
search or attend training courses, but your employer need only
pay two fifths of your salary for those days. If you are not
satisfied with redundancy procedures, you can speak to your
employer, manager or human resource manager and to your
union representative, if you have one.
If these measures fail, or for more information about the
redundancy process, you could consult The Citizen’s Advice
Bureau:
www.citizensadvice.org.uk
For online advice and details of your nearest CAB go to:
www.adviceguide.org.uk
You could also consult the Advisory, Conciliation and
Arbitration Service (ACAS) - 08457 474747. ACAS specialise
in preventing and resolving employment disputes.
You can visit the Gov.uk website which has a lot of information
about redundancy, your rights, and how to calculate your
entitlement to redundancy pay:
http://www.gov.uk/en/employment/
redundancyandleavingyourjob/index.htm
www.oxfordhealth.nhs.uk | Oxford Health NHS Foundation Trust 3Healthy Minds Redundancy Your rights if made redundant Your employer has responsibilities to treat you fairly and follow the correct process if they are considering making redundancies. Rights of employees and representatives Employees and employee representatives have certain rights and protections. These allow them to fully take part in the consultation process. Your employer cannot dismiss you or subject you to a detriment (e.g. by not giving you a pay rise or cutting your hours) if you take part in an election to become a representative or for fulfilling your duties as a representative. If you are a representative, your employer is required to allow you appropriate access to the people you represent and to certain facilities, for example a telephone, to allow you to represent them effectively. You also have a right to reasonable paid time off for your representative duties. What is considered ‘reasonable’ will differ in each circumstance. If you are dismissed or suffer detriment for standing for election as a representative, or acting as a representative, then you may be able to make a claim to an Employment Tribunal. 4 Oxford Health NHS Foundation Trust | www.oxfordhealth.nhs.uk
Information leaflet
Redundancy selections and notice periods
Your employer should use a fair and objective way of selecting
people to make redundant. This means that it should be
evidence based rather than your employer just deciding who
they want to make redundant.
Normally your job must have disappeared for your employer
to make you redundant. However, it can still be a genuine
redundancy if someone moves into your job after their job
disappears, making you redundant (called bumping). This can
be difficult for your employer to justify as fair.
If your employer bases your redundancy selection on an unfair
reason your redundancy will automatically be unfair and you
may be able to make a claim to an Employment Tribunal for
unfair dismissal.
Redeployment by your employer
If your employer is making you redundant they should try to
offer you suitable alternative employment within their
organisation or an associated company. Your employer should
consider any alternatives to making you redundant.
You may also have the right to time off for job hunting.
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Redundancy: Your right to consultation
Employers should always consult with employees before
dismissing them on the grounds of redundancy. There are two
ways this might be done through individual or collective
consultation. Your employer should always consult with you
individually and may have to consult collectively.
Workplace consultation
Workplace consultation involves your employer talking to you
or your representatives about their plans and listening to your
ideas.
If your employer is thinking about making redundancies, they
should consult with any employees that could be affected by
their decision. The consultation should aim to provide
employees with a way to influence the redundancy process. It
should be carried out with the aim of coming to an agreement
about any action and should be conducted in a spirit of co-
operation.
Consultation with individuals
Your employer should always consult you individually. This will
normally involve:
speaking to you directly about why you have been
selected
looking at any alternatives to redundancy
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If this doesn't happen, your dismissal for redundancy may be
unfair.
Collective consultation – 20 or more
redundancies
If your employer is thinking about making 20 or more
employees redundant at one establishment within a 90-day
period, they should consult with employee representatives.
Only employees are included when counting the number of
redundancies, not ‘workers’ without employment status.
Who your employer will consult with depends on whether you
are represented by a trade union. This process is known as
collective consultation.
Trade union representatives
If you are represented by a recognised trade union in your
workplace, then your employer should collectively consult with
the trade union representatives (reps). If your employer
consults with your trade union they are not required to consult
collectively with anybody else.
Employee representatives
If your employer does not recognise a trade union or you work
in a part of the company that isn’t represented by a recognised
trade union, then your employer should make arrangements to
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allow you to elect reps. These representatives will take part in
the consultation on your behalf.
The rep could be an existing rep, for example reps involved in
ongoing information and consultation arrangements, or they
could be specially elected for this consultation.
The reps must have the authority to represent you and must
be fit for the task.
For example, it would not be appropriate for a committee set
up to discuss the operation of a staff canteen to be consulted
about redundancies amongst sales staff.
If you need to elect representatives for the consultation your
employer must:
ensure that the elections are fair
ensure that, as far as is reasonably practical, votes can be
cast secretly and are accurately counted
allow for enough representatives to represent the
interests of all affected employees
set out how long the representatives will be in place for
Collective consultation process
The consultation must be meaningful. It must be genuine and
conducted with a view to reaching an agreement. It must
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cover:
ways to avoid redundancies
the reasons for redundancies
how to keep the number of dismissals to a minimum
how to limit the effects on those dismissed (e.g. by offering
retraining)
There may be special circumstances where it is not reasonably
practical for your employer to consult fully. In these
circumstances your employer must do everything they can to
ensure that the consultation is as full as possible.
Information during consultation
To enable reps to make constructive proposals your employer
must provide them with enough written information in good
time including:
reasons for the proposed redundancies
number of employees that are proposed to be made
redundant
different types of employees that are proposed to be
made redundant
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how any employees to be made redundant will be
selected
time period over which any redundancies may be carried
out
how any redundancy payments will be calculated
Consultation period and termination
notices
A termination notice tells you when the last day of your
employment will be, e.g. the day you will be made redundant.
Termination notices cannot be issued until after the
consultation has been completed, even if the consultation
needs to go beyond the minimum period.
If the consultation is genuinely completed within the minimum
period you may be issued with a termination notice. This
cannot take effect until after the minimum consultation period
ends unless you agree to leave early, for example by taking pay
in lieu of notice.
A consultation must begin ‘in good time’ and take as long as is
necessary. It should be conducted with a view to reaching
agreement, but can end before agreement is reached. Your
employer should give your reps a fair opportunity to comment
on the proposals and suggest alternatives, to which your
employer should give genuine consideration. The final decision
rests with your employer.
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There is no time limit to how long a consultation period may
last, but there is a minimum period between the start of the
consultation and actual dismissals. The length of the minimum
period depends on the number of redundancies that your
employer is proposing, if they are proposing:
20 - 99 redundancies, they must start the consultation at
least 30 days before any dismissals take effect
100 or more redundancies, the consultation must start at
least 90 days before any dismissals take effect
Failure to consult
You or your rep might be able to make a claim to an
Employment Tribunal for a ‘protective award’ if your employer:
does not begin consultation early enough
ends the consultation early
doesn’t consult properly
An Employment Tribunal could make a ‘protective award’ of up
to 90 days' pay for each affected employee. The amount will be
decided by the Employment Tribunal, based on the extent of
your employer’s failure and the circumstances.
www.oxfordhealth.nhs.uk | Oxford Health NHS Foundation Trust 11Healthy Minds Redundancy Your employer’s duty to notify the government If, within a 90 day period, 20 or more redundancies are proposed, your employer must notify the appropriate Redundancy Payments Office of the proposals before any termination notices are sent to employees. This notification must be at least 30 days before any dismissal takes effect, and if 100 or more redundancies are proposed, at least 90 days before any dismissal takes effect. This is to allow the government to prepare help for those made redundant by alerting the local Job Centre Plus so it can provide advice on retraining or reemployment to affected employees. Notifying is part of the consultation process. Your employer must also provide a copy of the notification to your reps. If your employer does not notify the government correctly then they can be fined. Coping with redundancy Find out about the range of support available to help you cope with redundancy. You can find out your rights, search for work and get practical help when applying for jobs. You can also use the online benefits adviser to find what benefits you and your family may be entitled to. 12 Oxford Health NHS Foundation Trust | www.oxfordhealth.nhs.uk
Information leaflet
Leaving your job
On your last day at work you should receive all the wages you
are entitled to, plus payment for any outstanding period of
notice that you have not worked. You should receive:
accrued holiday pay (payment for holiday owed which
has not been taken)
Income Tax form P45
redundancy pay
a letter stating the date of redundancy
Redundancy pay
If you’ve worked for this employer for at least 2 years you have
the right to receive redundancy pay. Up to £30,000 will be tax
free. Exactly how much redundancy pay you are due can be
calculated on the Direct Gov website:
http://www.gov.uk/en/Employment/
RedundancyAndLeavingYourJob/Redundancy/DG_174330
If you are entitled to statutory redundancy pay the calculation
is based on:
how long you have been continuously employed
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your age
your weekly pay, up to a certain limit (£430 in July 2012)
You should check your employment contract to see if your
employer offers a more generous redundancy package. More
information about redundancy pay is available on page 20.
Claiming benefits after redundancy
Do you qualify for benefits? This might either be ‘The
Contribution-based, Jobseeker’s Allowance’ for those who have
been credited with Class 1 National Insurance (NI)
contributions, or the ‘Income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance’.
You can claim online at:
http://www.gov.uk/prod_consum_dg/groups/dg_digitalassets/
@dg/@en/documents/digitalasset/dg_200090.html
Or ring the Benefits Claim Line on 0800 055 66 88
(8.00am -6.00pm Monday-Friday).
You may also qualify for Support for Mortgage Interest (SMI)
or Child Tax Credit. You can find out more about which
benefits you may be entitled to (and how to claim them) by
phoning the Benefits Enquiry Line on 0800 88 22 00, or
visiting your local JobCentre Plus.
As part of your benefit claim, you may be asked about any
redundancy payments you have had from your employer. Your
JobCentre Plus adviser will explain whether these payments will
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have any effect on your claim.
You or your partner may get a payment from your employer
when your job ends, e.g. final pay, wages if you worked a week
in hand, holiday pay. These payments are not taken into
account when considering your claim for Jobseeker’s
Allowance or Income Support.
You can use the online Benefits Adviser to help you find out
which benefits you are entitled to:
http://www.gov.uk/en/diol1/doitonline/doitonlinebycategory/
dg_172666
Use the benefits adviser to…
check which benefits you may be able to get
get an estimate of the benefits, tax credits or pension that
may be available
compare estimates if your situation changes
save your answers for up to seven days
download/print results for reference
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To answer all the questions you will need
information about…
savings
earnings e.g. pay slips
benefit/pension details
outgoings, e.g. Council Tax, rent/mortgage, childcare
payments
if you rent a property from a private landlord, your Local
Housing Allowance rate
How your retirement might be affected
If you are worried or have questions about how saving for your
retirement might be affected by redundancy, you can contact
the Pensions Advisory Service:
www.pensionsadvisoryservice.org.uk or call 0845 601 2923.
It is an independent not-for-profit organisation that provides
free information and guidance. The service can also help you if
you have a problem, complaint or dispute with your
occupational or private pension provider.
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Stay in touch
Another important consideration is reducing or changing the
terms of any regular financial commitments you have –
mortgages, direct debits, credit cards, loans, hire purchase, life
and/or health insurance, subscriptions and memberships for
example. It is important to stay in touch with your bank and all
utilities and service providers, especially if your ability to make
payments is going to be affected by your redundancy.
Where to get further help
Community Legal Advice can provide free help and advice on
what your rights are when you are made redundant. You can
contact them on 0845 345 4345, or visit the following address:
http://www.gov.uk/en/Dl1/Directories/
UsefulContactsByCategory/
Governmentcitizensandrightscontacts/DG_195356
Entitlement to redundancy pay
If you are made redundant you may be entitled to statutory
redundancy pay if you have worked for your employer for at
least two years. The amount you are entitled to will be based
on your weekly pay, age and continuous employment with
your employer.
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Statutory redundancy pay basics
You have the right to a statutory redundancy payment if you
are an employee who has worked continuously for your
employer for at least two years and you are being made
redundant.
Statutory redundancy pay is also due when a fixed-term
contract of two years or more expires and is not renewed
because of redundancy. You do not have to claim statutory
redundancy pay from your employer, they should
automatically pay it to you. If your employer does not give you
statutory redundancy pay when you are entitled to it you
should write to them asking for payment. If your employer still
refuses to pay you or cannot make the payment you could
make an appeal to an Employment Tribunal.
How much statutory redundancy pay you will receive depends
on:
how long you have worked for your employer
your age
your pay
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Tax
Redundancy pay under £30,000 is not taxable. More
information on whether elements of the payment, such as Pay
in Lieu of Notice (PILON), is taxable is available from HM
Revenue and Customs on the following webpage:
http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/individuals/redundancy-ee.htm
Pay in lieu of notice is money paid to you by your employer as
an alternative to being given your full notice.
Company redundancy pay
Your employer may offer you additional redundancy pay under
your employment contract. For example, they may offer you a
higher pay rate, or reduce the qualifying criteria so more
people are entitled. You should check your employment
contract for details about your contractual redundancy pay.
Your employer cannot offer you lower than the statutory
redundancy pay scheme in your employment contract.
Alternative work
You are not entitled to a statutory redundancy payment if your
employer either:
offers to keep you on
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offers you suitable alternative work which you refuse
without good reason
If you leave your job for a new one before the end of your
notice period, your statutory payment might also be affected.
Short-term and temporary lay-off of
employees
Statutory redundancy pay can be claimed from your employer
if you have been temporarily laid off for either:
more than four weeks in a row
more than six non-consecutive weeks in a 13 week period
You should write to your employer telling them you intend to
claim statutory redundancy pay. This must be done within four
weeks of your last non-working day in the four or six week
period. Within seven days of receiving your letter, your
employer could send you a counter-notice if they believe that
your normal work is likely to start within four weeks and
continue for at least 13 weeks. If your employer does not reject
your claim within seven days of receiving it, then you should
write to your employer again giving them your notice.
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Notice pay
As well as a statutory redundancy payment, your employer
should pay you through your notice period, or pay you in lieu
of notice depending on your circumstances. Payment in lieu of
notice is money paid to you by your employer as an alternative
to being given your full notice. Details of the notice period will
be in your employment contract.
Written statement of statutory
redundancy pay
When you are paid a statutory redundancy payment your
employer must give you a written statement showing how your
payment has been calculated. If your employer fails to give you
a written statement you should write to them asking for one. If
they still do not provide one you should seek further advice
from ACAS (the Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service).
Insolvent employers
If your employer is declared insolvent or cannot pay your
statutory redundancy pay, you can apply for a direct payment
from the National Insurance Fund. To do this you must first
write to your employer asking for your statutory redundancy
pay. If they are still unable to pay you then you should fill out
an RP1 form available from the Insolvency Service:
call 0845 602 9848, or visit http://www.bis.gov.uk/insolvency
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Employees not entitled to statutory
redundancy payments
Some employees are not entitled to receive statutory
redundancy payments. In some specific situations employees
that should normally be entitled to statutory redundancy pay
might lose this right with their employer, as outlined below.
Finding a new job
If you have been selected for redundancy you may find a new
job elsewhere before your redundancy notice period has
finished. If you leave the job you are being made redundant
from before your notice period has finished, you may lose your
rights to a statutory redundancy payment.
Dismissal on the grounds of misconduct
You are not entitled to statutory redundancy pay if you are
dismissed for misconduct with either:
no notice
little notice
a statement from your employer saying they would have
been entitled to dismiss you without notice
However, your employer must still follow fair dismissal
procedures otherwise you might be able to make a claim to an
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Employment Tribunal. This situation is only likely to occur in
gross misconduct cases.
Strike action during your notice period
If you go on strike during your redundancy period then you
are still entitled to your redundancy rights. However, your
employer might ‘serve a notice of extension’ which is a request
that you work the days lost during the strike period at the end
of your notice.
If you do not agree to work the lost days, then your employer
may be able to refuse to make your statutory redundancy
payment.
Employees not entitled to redundancy
payment
If you fall into the following categories then you are not
entitled to receive statutory redundancy pay:
members of the armed forces
House of Lords and House of Commons staff
some apprentices - although you should check your
contract
some employees with fixed-term contracts before 1
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October 2002 – you should check your contract of
employment
domestic servants working in private homes who are
members of the employer’s immediate close family
share fishermen paid only by a share in the proceeds of
the catch
Crown servants or employees in a public office
employees of the government of an overseas territory
You should check your contract or speak to your employer to
see if you have any contractual redundancy entitlements.
Finding work: Find out what’s going on
It may be some time since you last looked for work so take
time to find out about your ‘travel-to-work area’:
What businesses have moved in or expanded?
What new opportunities exist?
Make sure you know about your own job or career: where
is the growth and what are the changes?
Which new skills should you learn to keep up?
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Read the local paper, or a professional journal or magazine.
Make sure you know where the relevant vacancies are
advertised.
Finding work
Jobcentre Plus has Britain’s largest database of job vacancies.
You can use the jobs and skills search to find a job that is
suitable for you. You can also get tips on how to fill in
application forms and prepare for job interviews online.
You can use the Gov.uk website to do an online search:
www.jobseekersdirect.gov.uk/homepage
You can phone a JobcentrePlus adviser to discuss your
job search: 0845 6060 234
Use all your contacts to identify work opportunities
Find appropriate recruitment websites which also give
you help with writing your CV and interview skills, for
example:
www.agencycentral.co.uk, and
http://www.connexionsbucks.org.uk/cv-creator
The National Careers Service are available to give free
advice about employment:
www.nationalcareersservice.direct.gov.uk
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Including application forms, cover letters, CV writing, interview
skills, job searches, and education and training - over the
telephone or face-to-face. They can be contacted on 0800
100 900.
Have a look at the helpful advice and information sheets on
the Learning Opportunities website:
www.learning-opportunities.org.uk.
Redundancy: finding work and
redeployment
If you are facing redundancy, you may find new work with a
new employer or your employer may offer you a different job.
Find out about the different processes associated with each
and how you can get help.
Offers of alternative employment
If your employer is making you redundant, where possible they
should try to offer you 'suitable alternative employment' within
their organisation or an associated company.
Whether a job is 'suitable alternative employment' depends on
several things including:
how close the work is to your current job
the terms of the job being offered
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your skills, abilities and circumstances in relation to the
job
the pay (including benefits), status, hours and location of
the job
If you are being made redundant because there is not enough
work, it might be that work picks up again before your
redundancy. Your employer can offer you your own job back
as 'suitable alternative work'. Any offer for alternative
employment should be made before your old job ends. You
should be given enough information about what the new job
involves so you know how different it is from your old job.
During your redundancy period, you should be told about
available job vacancies within the company. If your employer
has suitable alternative employment, but does not offer it to
you, your redundancy could be an automatically unfair
dismissal.
Trial periods
If your employer offers you alternative employment you have
the right to a four week trial period. This period is to help you
decide if the job is suitable alternative employment, and for
your employer to decide if you are suitable. If you need
training for the new job, the four-week period can be extended
with written agreement.
If you decide the new job isn't suitable, you should tell your
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employer during the trial period. This will not affect your
employment rights, including your right to Statutory
Redundancy Pay.
If you haven't given notice by the end of the trial period, your
right to statutory redundancy pay ends.
If you refuse an offer
If your employer offers you suitable alternative employment
and you unreasonably refuse it, you may lose your right to
Statutory Redundancy Pay. Disputes about whether
employment is suitable, or whether your refusal is
unreasonable, can be decided by an Employment Tribunal.
They can decide whether you are entitled to redundancy pay.
Time off for job hunting
If you have been continuously employed for two years by the
date your notice expires, you are allowed a reasonable amount
of time off during your notice period to:
look for another job
arrange training to help you find another job
How long you can take will depend on your circumstances. If
you attend an interview or two and do not take excessive
amounts of travelling time, then this is likely to be reasonable.
Regardless of the amount of time you take off, your employer
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only has to pay you up to two-fifths of a week's pay for it. For
example, if you work five days a week and you take four days
off in total during the whole notice period, your employer only
has to pay you for the first two days.
Starting a new job before your notice has
expired
If your new job starts before your redundancy notice expires,
try to negotiate with your employer for early release without
losing your redundancy pay. Employers are often happy to
make these arrangements.
If your employer doesn't agree to let you go early you should
give them 'a written counter notice' stating when you would
like to finish. Your employer should write back to you and say
whether or not you can leave early.
If you leave early without your employer's permission you run
the risk of losing some or all of your redundancy pay. Normally
this only becomes an issue if your employer has given you a
longer redundancy notice period than the statutory minimum.
You can find a lot more information about searching for
jobs, writing a CV, and improving your interview skills in
the Healthy Minds self-help leaflet ‘Finding Work’. All the
contacts within this leaflet (and many more) are available
in the Useful Contacts leaflet.
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Information leaflet
Notes
www.oxfordhealth.nhs.uk | Oxford Health NHS Foundation Trust 31Healthy Minds Redundancy
Oxford Health NHS Foundation Trust
Trust Headquarters
4000 John Smith Drive
Oxford Business Park South
Oxford
OX4 2GX
Switchboard 01865 741717
Email enquiries@oxfordhealth.nhs.uk
Website www.oxfordhealth.nhs.uk
CF 037.13
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