Redundancy
Holding Redundancy Consultation Meetings
Redundancy Consultation meetings
It’s unfortunate when a business needs to hold redundancy consultation meetings, not only because the business may be facing difficulties it didn’t expect, but also because the employees may not have done anything wrong yet find themselves facing dismissal.
Before any dismissal occurs, you must consult with the affected staff to consider any alternatives to redundancy. It’s also an opportunity for staff to put forward any suggestions or proposals that could avoid the need to make redundancies.
The length of the consultation period depends on the number of potential redundancies the company is considering making.
Our role when conducting redundancy consultation meetings
Whether it’s an individual or a group of employees who are facing redundancy, we attend at your site to hold the meetings.
We will explain to the affected staff the reason for the redundancy and obtain from them any suggestions that could avoid making them redundant or that could reduce the number of redundancies.
The consultation meetings should be meaningful and not just a tick-box exercise. Any proposals put forward by them should be considered and a response provided to them.
We will continue to meet with the affected staff throughout the process to bring it to a conclusion before you provide them with an outcome.
It is important that no redundancies should be made until the consultation period has ended.
HR-Onsite also specialises in holding:
Need to hold a redundancy consultation meeting?
- Staff have the right to be accompanied at consultation meetings, which should be held in private.
- Inform staff of the reason for the redundancy situation and keep them updated on any changes, the potential number of redundancies, and when they are likely to occur.
- Allow staff to put forward any suggestions, proposals, or ideas that could avoid the need to make redundancies that the business may not have considered.
- Or, let us remove the stress on you holding such meetings and let us deal with the matter from start to finish.
FAQ's
If the company recognises a trade union, they must inform the representative of the company’s intention to make redundancies. The role of the trade union is to represent the interests of their members and to provide advice and support to the employees during the consultation period.
The company must provide affected employees with information about the proposed redundancies to include the reason for the redundancies and any alternative they have considered that would avoid them making staff compulsory redundant.
The company must meet with the affected employees to discuss the proposed redundancies and offer them the opportunity to put forward any thoughts, ideas, or suggestions that would avoid the need to make redundancies or to reduce the number of proposed redundancies.
Employees can refuse to participate in the redundancy process if they have a genuine reason for doing so. If an employee refuses to participate without good reason they could be liable to disciplinary action.
