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An employee with two years’ service can bring a claim for unfair dismissal. Where an employee with a protected characteristic argues that their redundancy was discriminatory, they can bring a claim regardless of their length of employment.
Even if the need to make redundancies is obvious, employers still need to follow a fair procedure carefully. This will nearly always involve the following 5 key elements:
Read MoreAs businesses look at re-opening after lockdown and returning to some form of “new normal” we thought it would be a good idea to provide employers with guidance to returning to a safe environment as we continue to battle Covid-19.
Read MoreAs the lockdown continues, the Government has extended access to its coronavirus job retention scheme and employers are settling in to a new way of working. Business life may have drastically changed, but employment law still applies.
You should check the Government website for the latest guidance in conjunction with this article, as the guidelines on the coronavirus (COVID-19) are changing daily. The guidance and the Treasury direction are inconsistent in places. You should speak to your solicitor for specific advice for your business.
Read MoreEmployees on maternity leave have special legal rights and protections and so before making such employees redundant you must tread very carefully and be aware of the following five things. Otherwise you could risk facing a costly claim.
Read MoreConsultation On Extending Redundancy Protection For New Parents
A recent study by the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy found that one in nine returning to work after maternity leave were fired, made redundant, or treated in a manner which forced them to leave their job. The study also found that as many as 54,000 women per year are losing their jobs as a result of their pregnancy or maternity leave.
Read MoreUnfair Dismissal
Is it fair to dismiss an employee in the transport industry who fails a drugs test? Not always, said the employment tribunal (‘ET’) recently in Ball v First Essex Buses.
Read MoreFollowing on from our article ‘How to avoid compulsory redundancies’ a few months ago, unfortunately there can be instances where a business simply has no alternative but to consider cutting staff to reduce costs.
If that is the case then there are important rules that you must follow and if you fail to do so then any redundancies you may make could be unfair and you could be taken to a tribunal. You must identify which people you will make redundant and ensure you select people fairly.
Read MoreWith Samira on Maternity Leave from the end of today, we thought it was only fitting that our article this week covered this complex area of law. Family friendly rights, including leave and pay in relation to maternity are constantly evolving and growing as an area of employment law. In this article we aim to offer some clarity on this area and provide employers with some advice on the do’s and don’ts when dealing with staff taking maternity leave.
Read MoreWe wrote recently about how the liquidation of a large company can have potential indirect consequences for small and medium businesses. Through no fault of their own, a small or medium sized business can suddenly find that cash flow is drastically affected.
Often, in those circumstances, the knee jerk reaction is to look at ways to reduce outgoings and one of the simplest ways to do that is to reduce staff. Many small businesses are reporting that following the collapse of Carillion they may have no alternative but to look at making staff redundant.
It is however worth considering that there are ways to avoid making compulsory redundancies, which can sometimes be costly in the short term.
Before you conclude that redundancies are necessary, consider the following options –
Read MoreAs the Brexit negotiations start getting into full swing and the likes of JP Morgan start looking at moving their offices away from the UK this will mean redundancies are inevitable. While your business may not to the same scale of JP Morgan, if you lose contracts then it will mean, you will need fewer employees to deliver the service. Again, redundancies are inevitable, so here’s a quick guide to ensure that you remain within the right side of the law.
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