Redundancy and change

Redundancy: at risk letter letter

Tells an employee their role is at risk of redundancy, why, and how the consultation will run.

You have a genuine business reason that means fewer people are needed to do a kind of work, and you have not yet decided who goes. This letter opens the process. It says "at risk", not "redundant"; the decision comes after consultation, not before it.

Before it goes

  • You can write the business reason down in two sentences and it is true.
  • You have defined the pool (the group of roles affected) and drafted objective selection criteria.
  • You have counted: 20 or more proposed at one site within 90 days triggers collective consultation and an HR1 form.
  • You have checked for anyone on maternity or other family leave, who has priority for suitable alternative vacancies.

The letter

[COMPANY NAME] [COMPANY ADDRESS] [DATE] [EMPLOYEE NAME] [EMPLOYEE ADDRESS] Dear [EMPLOYEE FIRST NAME], Your role is at risk of redundancy I am writing to confirm what I told you at our meeting today: the company is proposing changes that put your role of [JOB TITLE] at risk of redundancy. I want to explain why, what happens next, and how you can influence the outcome. The reason: [BUSINESS REASON, in two or three plain sentences, e.g. The [CONTRACT NAME] contract, which has accounted for around 40% of the work of the [TEAM], ends on [DATE] and has not been renewed. We have looked for replacement work and have not secured enough to keep the team at its current size. As a result we propose to reduce the number of [ROLE] positions from [NUMBER] to [NUMBER].] The pool: the roles we consider affected are [DESCRIPTION OF POOL, e.g. all [NUMBER] [JOB TITLE] positions based at [SITE]]. Your role is in that pool. No decision has been made about which roles, if any, will be made redundant. Before any decision, we will consult with you. Consultation means we will: 1. Meet you individually to explain the proposal, listen to your views and any alternatives you suggest, and answer your questions. The first meeting is on [DATE] at [TIME] at [LOCATION]. You may bring a work colleague or trade union representative. 2. Share the proposed selection criteria (enclosed in draft) and ask for your comments before they are finalised. 3. Look with you for any alternative role in the company that might be suitable. The vacancies currently open are listed on the enclosed sheet. 4. Consider any suggestion that would avoid or reduce redundancies, including [OPTIONS UNDER CONSIDERATION, e.g. reduced hours, voluntary redundancy, lay-off]. If, after consultation, your role is selected for redundancy, you would be entitled to notice of [NOTICE PERIOD] or pay in lieu, [statutory redundancy pay based on your age and [NUMBER] complete years of service,] payment for accrued holiday, and reasonable time off to look for work or arrange training. We would also offer you the right to appeal. I recognise this is unsettling news. Please ask me anything, at any time, during the process. [NAME] in [HR / the office] is also available on [PHONE]. Yours sincerely, [MANAGER NAME] [JOB TITLE] [COMPANY NAME]

Filling it in

The reason
Specific and true. "Restructuring" is not a reason; a lost contract, a closed site, a change in how the work is done is.
The pool
Who is in it and why. Too narrow a pool (one person, when three do the same job) is the commonest way a redundancy becomes unfair.
Selection criteria
Objective, measurable, applied by more than one scorer where you can: skills, qualifications, disciplinary record, attendance (excluding protected absence). Not "attitude".

What the law says

  • Employment Rights Act 1996 s.139: redundancy means the business or workplace closing, or the requirement for employees to do work of a particular kind ceasing or diminishing.
  • Employment Rights Act 1996 s.98(4) and the case law on fair redundancy: warn and consult, use fair selection criteria applied fairly, and look for alternative employment.
  • Trade Union and Labour Relations (Consolidation) Act 1992 s.188: where 20 or more redundancies are proposed at one establishment within 90 days, collective consultation with representatives must start at least 30 days before the first dismissal (45 days for 100 or more) and form HR1 must be sent to the Insolvency Service.
  • Protection from Redundancy (Pregnancy and Family Leave) Act 2023: employees who are pregnant, on maternity, adoption or shared parental leave, or within 18 months of birth, must be offered any suitable alternative vacancy in priority.
Guidance, not legal advice. Employment law moves; check the current position before relying on any of it, and take advice on anything that could end someone's employment.

What turns this letter into a claim

  • Do not name the people before the consultation. If you already know who, it is not consultation.
  • Do not use redundancy to remove a poor performer. If it is about the person, it is a capability process; if it is about the job, it is redundancy.
  • Do not forget the 20-or-more count across a 90-day window. Collective consultation failures carry a protective award of up to 90 days' pay per employee.

Questions people ask

How long does redundancy consultation have to last?

For fewer than 20 redundancies there is no fixed period; it has to be meaningful, which usually means two or more meetings over at least a couple of weeks. For 20 or more at one establishment within 90 days, collective consultation must begin at least 30 days before the first dismissal takes effect (45 days for 100 or more).

How much is statutory redundancy pay?

For employees with two or more years' service: half a week's pay for each complete year aged under 22, one week for each year aged 22 to 40, one and a half weeks for each year aged 41 or over, up to 20 years, with a week's pay capped at the statutory maximum that changes every April. Gov.uk has a calculator; Work-Lynx's leave and pay tools give you the service and pay figures to put in.

Do I have to offer voluntary redundancy first?

No, but asking for volunteers is good practice and often solves the problem. You can decline a volunteer whose skills you need; say so in the invitation.

The letter, with the names already in

Employ AI drafts letters like this one from the employee's record, so the dates, service and pay are already right, and the disciplinary module writes the invitation and outcome letters from the case itself. All 44 letter families, 49 UK policies, GPS clock-in, rotas, leave and timesheets: £2.50 a month plus £1 per employee. 14 days free, no card.

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