Redundancy – The Facts

Less work does not mean redundancy!

The statutory definition of redundancy is found in section 139 of the Employment Rights Act 1996 which states:

For the purposes of this Act an employee who is dismissed shall be taken to be dismissed by reason of redundancy if the dismissal is wholly or mainly attributable to-

(a) the fact that his employer has ceased or intends to cease-
(i) to carry on the business for the purposes of which the employee was employed by him, or
(ii) to carry on that business in the place where the employee was so employed, or

(b) the fact that the requirements of that business-
(i) for employees to carry out work of a particular kind, or
(ii) for employees to carry out work of a particular kind in the place where the employee was employed by the employer, have ceased or diminished or are expected to cease or diminish.”

The focus is not on whether there is less work, but whether the employer can demonstrate a need for fewer employees to carry out the work.