Redundancy - is there an alternative?

It's worth exploring what actions can be taken to avoid or cut down on potential redundancies

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Redundancy

The state or condition of being redundant or superfluous, esp superfluous in one's job.¹

Nobody likes to be made redundant - to be superfluous in one’s job. It sounds as if there’s no need for your services and you should be cast out! I suppose that’s more or less what it is in a nutshell though.

Businesses have differing reasons for considering redundancies. It may be due to the fact the current market for a particular product or service is falling, it may be as a consequence of a business takeover/transfer where roles are duplicated or it might be that a business has grown unwieldy and is looking to streamline the operation and maximise returns.

There are simple redundancies and there are extremely complicated redundancies. A simple redundancy may involve just one employee where their role is no longer required. It’s a straightforward process because the position is ‘self selecting’. Provided the redundancy is genuine and there is an element of consultation and warning it will undoubtedly be considered a fair dismissal.

Then there are the more complicated redundancies involving many employees chosen from a pool of many more. Workforce representatives are elected and unions can become involved. There’s significant consultation between the parties with meetings to draw up selection criteria and scoring matrixes. Throughout the process there are potential hurdles to overcome and getting it wrong can invariably result in lengthy appeals and potentially costly employment tribunal claims. It can all get very complicated!

That is why employers should always explore alternatives to redundancies, rather than diving head on into a redundancy selection exercise. Here’s a few to consider;