From time to time, businesses have to reflect on whether they have a continuing need for a role or if they have more people than is required.
I’ve had many a conversation with a worried nursery owner about whether they can cope with reduced demand for places between September and December as they have lost children to school. Under Section 139 of the Employment Rights Act 1996, redundancy arises when the employer ceases or intends to cease the business for which the employee was employed, or when the requirement for the employee to carry out work of a particular kind (or in a particular place) has or is likely to diminish.
This means a role can be redundant if the employer no longer needs work of a particular kind, or where the employer employs a pool of employees in a particular role and has a reduction in need moving forward.
In the latter case, the employer will use a ‘selection criteria’ to establish of the employees who is at high risk of redundancy and consult accordingly. With a pool of one, the role is placed at high risk due to the cessation or reduced requirement for the role, and the post-holder is consulted with.
All of this can be very daunting for managers and leaders when faced with the possibility of a redundancy programme for the first time. We would recommend that any employer contemplating redundancy seeks advice before they communicate their intentions.
If a setting is closing, one of the best ways in which an owner can support the employees who have been given notice of redundancy is to talk to local employers who may have vacancies and to act as an introducer.
Redundancy is one of five potentially fair reasons for dismissal, but every year we see employees who accuse their employer of unfair dismissal in a redundancy situation. While it is about the post not the person, redundancy, particularly in small businesses, can feel very personal.
