HR advice from the Professionals

According to Croner, the UK’s leading workplace information and consultancy providers, have highlighted the potential cost of mismanagement of redundancies. Employers who are looking to cut costs by making redundancies run the risk of facing further costs as a result of employees raising tribunal claims against them. They recommend that businesses seek professional help to put the right plans in place and be able to implement those fairly and minimise the risk of claims. You can read the full article at Redundancy Not the end to employers’ problems.

Recently we have been advising clients on managing redundancy in their businesses. Our advice has been centred around the following principles:

1. Have a defined policy and procedure to follow that meets the current and future needs of your business.
2. Take every step to follow statutory process and best practice.
3. Consider the implications for those who are chosen for redundancy and for those who remain.
4. Offer support for all involved in the process - it can be very emotional especially in a small business where team members are close and have an emotional involvement with each other and the business.
5. Communicate clearly at every step and stick to the stated communication plan - be careful of casual asides.

It is not an easy process to manage and the emotional cost can be high, but it is really important to ensure that you do not add to the cost by incurring further financial exposure by getting it wrong and open yourself up to an employment tribunal claim. Seek independent advice early and follow the advice.

And this is not going away, over 50% of organisations are planning to make job cuts according to the KPMG National Business Confidence Survey - which you can read at KPMG - quarterly national survey.

Some recent employment case law affecting various areas of the employment relationship:

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