The threat of mass redundancies is rearing its ugly head amidst the current cost of living crisis and the recent news of leading social media platforms implementing this austere strategy. Yet, for many companies this isn’t a like for like comparison, and you are not heading into the Metaverse.
For the thousands of employers out there re-evaluating their budgets with the overall survival of the company in mind, are redundancies the right way to offset outgoings and to navigate this storm?
What is Redundancy?
“Redundancy is when you dismiss an employee because you no longer need anyone to do their job.” (Gov.uk,2022)
If we put the human angle aside for a moment, the key point in this definition is, for it to be legal, you must show that the employee’s job will no longer exist. This evaporation of a job can be due to your business changing what it does (looking at these tech giants as an example), doing things in a different way (i.e., new technology) or changing/closing of a location.
Another point to keep in mind, is that even though you can hire after you make someone redundant – it cannot be the for the same job you just made redundant and changing the job title won’t cut it.
If the reason for the reduction in staffing can be fully justified in accordance with employment laws – as, again taking the human being out of this for the moment, unlawful dismissal can hurt in the long run with employment tribunals, awarded damages and overall harm to the company’s image – then this might be the correct answer, but there are other options you should consider first.
Alternatives to redundancies
With dramatic changes to the workplace post-pandemic there are many ways to avoid redundancies:
- Put a freeze on recruitment, casual/freelance work and overtime.
- Offer early retirement or voluntary redundancy – things change for people and giving them options might be just what they want.
- Flexible working – we all had to do it in some form during Covid, but offering current staff the option to reduce their hours, or even going part-time, might fit their work/life balance better.
- Move current employees to other roles – jobs change and employees start to do other tasks they weren’t actually hired for, so you can utilise what you currently have.
Where does that leave you?
No one wants to hear the word redundancy – especially your employees – but as an employer it’s not a pleasant situation to be faced with. In such a personal situation, it’s easy to focus on the legal technicalities and anonymity that arises from larger employee numbers, but try to keep in mind that these are real people you are dealing with, ones who may have supported you through other rough patches in your company’s history. To keep everything fair and above-board, ensure you follow the legal guidance set out by the Government and Acas, but also remember that open dialogue between you and your employees is the best way to weather the storm together.