Work Issues

• Discrimination Respect@Work
• Discipline & Dismissal
• Health, Safety & Environment
• Maternity, Paternity & Other Leave
• Pay, Hours & Holidays
• Pensions & Retirement
• Redundancy
  • Most Asked Questions
    • Once I Am Redundant Am I Entitled To Benefits?
    • Who Pays My Redundancy Pay If My Employer Becomes Insolvent?
    • How Do I Qualify For A Redundancy Payment?
    • How Much Am I Entitled To When I Am Made Redundant?
    • How Much Notice Do I Get On Redundancy And Do I Have To Work It?
• Union Rights
• Right to Work in the EU
• Your Rights At Work

How Much Notice Do I Get On Redundancy And Do I Have To Work It?

The employer should give you at least the statutory notice of a week for each complete year of service, up to a maximum of 12 weeks.  So someone employed for 7 years gets 7 weeks’ notice.  However you might well be entitled to longer notice under your contract of employment – a monthly paid worker should get at least one months’ notice, even if they have been employed for less than four years.

 

Be careful not to confuse warnings and consultation, with notice of dismissal.  Notice only counts if it is clearly addressed to you, and specifies the date you will finish work and your employment will end.  If you leave because of a general warning that redundancies are coming, you may lose your redundancy pay.

 

Similarly, when your employer does give you notice, you must wait for it to run its course.  Do not leave your job as soon as you receive the notice of redundancy - you may lose your redundancy payment.

 

If you want to leave before your notice expires e.g. to take up another job, you can ask your employer to agree an earlier termination date, on the basis that you will still get your redundancy payment.  Alternatively, during the statutory notice period you can serve written counter-notice to leave early, and if your employer does not object you can go (with your redundancy pay) when your counter-notice expires.  However before your counter-notice ends your employer can object to it in writing, saying that if you leave early they will withhold your redundancy pay.  You then have the option of leaving when your counter-notice ends, and arguing in an Employment Tribunal that your employer’s objection was unreasonable and that you should get your redundancy pay – a risky strategy.

 

Your employer may give you pay in lieu of notice, providing your contract allows for this.

 

If you have two years’ continuous service at the time your notice from your employer expires, you are entitled to a reasonable period of paid time off during working hours to look for a new job.

 

An employer who proposes 20 or more redundancies within a period of 90 days or less should consult with the recognised union or (if there is none) with representatives elected by the workforce.  Consultation should begin at least 30 days before the first redundancy takes effect.  Where the proposal is for 100 or more redundancies, consultation should begin at least 90 days before the first one is due to take effect.