Unfair redundancy  - Law UK claims advice

We are a firm of solicitors that operates in all areas of employment law throughout the United Kingdom. We offer free redundancy payment law advice on whether you have a good case, how to start a claim and how much it will be worth.

We give clear advice on how we finance your claim which may include no win no fee arrangements in appropriate cases. If after talking to us you decide not to take matters further you are under no obligation to do so and you will not be charged for our initial advice session.

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In order to claim from your employer you must have been "dismissed", and this must have been "by reason of redundancy".

In the majority of cases this will be obvious, but sometimes disputes arise as to whether someone has been dismissed or left of their own accord, and if they have been dismissed what were the real reasons.

An employee is redundant if the whole business closes down, or if the business continues, but there is no longer a need at that particular place for workers of the employee's kind (note it is the class or type of worker, rather than the individual, who should no longer be required).

In order to qualify for compensation the dismissed employee must have been continuously employed by the employer for at least 2 years at the date of the dismissal. However there are some workers who are specifically excluded from making a claim. These are:-

People under 20, or past normal retiring age for the post (or, if there is no such age, 65)

Employee's dismissed for misconduct
 

Employees who refuse suitable alternative employment
 

Fixed term contract workers of more than 2 years, who have renounced their rights
 

Share fishermen, people ordinarily working abroad, employees of foreign governments, civil servants and certain public officials

The procedure for calculating the statutory amount of compensation is clearly laid down in law, and this is detailed below, but it should not be forgotten that many employers have their own private schemes which are often much more generous than the statutory scheme.

The statutory scheme calculation is made by reference to the number of completed years service by the employee. They will then receive:
One and a half week's pay for each year in which the employee was over 41 years of age
 

One week's pay for each year in which they were over 22, but under 41
 

Half a week's pay for each year over 18, but under 22

The maximum number of years, which may be counted is 20. If you earn more than £270 per week the law only allows up to a maximum of £270 per week. If you earn less the week's pay is your actual wage.

Both a statutory and a non-statutory redundancy payment up to £30,000 is exempt from income tax.
 

If you are in your last year of working with your employer, or 64 if there is no normal retirement age in your employment, at the time of the termination of employment then the amount of compensation is reduced by 1/12th for every month of that last year in which you have worked.
 

All employee's are entitled to a written statement showing how the amount has been calculated.
 

If you believe you are entitled to compensation you should make a claim in writing to your employer or to an Employment Tribunal within 6 months of your dismissal, or your claim may be lost. If you delay beyond this time limit, but make a claim within the next 6 months, the Employment Tribunal can consider your claim, but any award is at the Tribunal's discretion.
 

In order to overcome a compensation situation an employer would have to offer an employee "suitable alternative employment". If this is offered and is "unreasonably refused" by the employee then the employee cannot make a claim for a payment. The question of suitability will depend entirely on the job the employee did before and what is now on offer. Important questions relate to pay, prospects and location, as well as the type of job itself. Even if the alternative job is deemed to be suitable the employee may still refuse to accept it and claim their payment, if they can establish that their refusal was reasonable. This relates much more to their own personal circumstances eg health, family commitments, status of the new job. To help an unsure employee decide whether to accept the new job on offer there is a trial period of 4 weeks in the new job allowed, during which time they can leave and still claim.
 

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We work on a No win No fee basis

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Your claim will be handled by competent employment law professionals

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