What legally counts as redundancy?

Section 139 ERA defines redundancy as the closure of the business, the closure of the workplace, or a reduced need for employees doing work of a particular kind. The reduction doesn't have to be permanent and doesn't have to be company-wide.

What's the statutory redundancy payment?

Half a week's pay for each full year aged 18–21, one week's pay for each full year aged 22–40, and 1.5 weeks' pay for each full year aged 41+. Capped at 20 years' service and a statutory weekly limit (£700/week from April 2024 — so the maximum statutory payment is currently £21,000). You need at least two years' continuous service.

When does collective consultation kick in?

When 20 or more redundancies are proposed at one establishment within 90 days, the employer must consult collectively under section 188 of the Trade Union and Labour Relations (Consolidation) Act 1992. Minimum consultation periods are 30 days (20–99 redundancies) or 45 days (100+). Failure can trigger a "protective award" of up to 90 days' pay per affected employee.

What's a fair redundancy selection process?

A fair pool, transparent and objective selection criteria, scoring applied consistently, a chance for the employee to challenge their scores, and meaningful consideration of suitable alternative employment. The leading case is Williams v Compair Maxam (1982), still cited 40 years on.

What is "suitable alternative employment"?

An offer of another role within the organisation that's broadly comparable in pay, status, and skills. Employees offered SAE who unreasonably refuse can lose their statutory redundancy payment. There's also a four-week trial period to try an alternative role without losing redundancy rights.

Redundancy

Redundancy is one of the five potentially fair reasons for dismissal under section 98 of the Employment Rights Act 1996. But "potentially fair" doesn't mean fair in practice — most redundancy claims that reach the tribunal turn on procedure (consultation, selection, alternative employment) rather than whether the redundancy itself was real.

Cases on file

331

Claimant win rate

65%

Cases reaching a determination

Median damages awarded

£9,378

Where compensation was awarded

How claims actually progress

Many unfair dismissal claims never reach a hearing on the merits — they're struck out, out of time, or fall outside the tribunal's jurisdiction. This is independent of why the dismissal happened.

Reached the merits

270

82% of all

Tribunal decided whether the dismissal was fair.

Struck out

6% of all

Claim ended early — usually for non-attendance, non-compliance, or no reasonable prospect.

Out of time

7% of all

Claim filed after the 3-month limit and not extended.

No jurisdiction (status / service / coverage)

5% of all

Claimant lacked two years’ service, the right employment status, or the tribunal had no power to hear it.

Withdrawn or settled

0% of all

Claim resolved without a hearing.

The fair-process pillars

Most successful redundancy claims hit at least one of these:

No genuine redundancy situation — the role was actually being filled by someone else, or the "redundancy" was a cover for a performance dismissal.
No or inadequate consultation — pre-decided outcomes, single-meeting "consultations," failure to give time to respond.
Unfair pool or selection criteria — picking a pool of one when there were comparable employees, using subjective criteria like "attitude" without objective measures.
Unfair scoring — applying the criteria inconsistently, not letting the employee see or challenge their scores.
Failure to consider suitable alternative employment — not telling the employee about vacancies, or rejecting them before they could apply.

Collective consultation and protective awards

When 20+ redundancies are proposed within a 90-day window:

30 days minimum consultation for 20–99 redundancies
45 days for 100 or more
Information requirements under section 188 TULRCA: reasons, numbers, selection method, etc.

Failure exposes the employer to a protective award under section 189 — up to 90 days' actual pay per affected employee. This is the largest single liability in UK employment law for procedural failures. Insolvency doesn't avoid it: the Secretary of State pays, then is subrogated to the workers' claims against the employer.

Statutory vs contractual redundancy

The statutory minimum is set out in s.135 and Schedule 14 ERA. Many employers offer contractual enhanced redundancy on top — common in unionised workplaces, the public sector, and large employers. Enhancements can be cash multiples (e.g. 2× statutory), additional weeks per year, or higher pay caps.

The four-week trial period

Section 138 ERA allows an employee who accepts an offer of alternative employment to try it for four weeks (extendable for retraining) without losing the right to claim a redundancy payment. If at the end of the trial either side considers it unsuitable, the original redundancy stands.

Why these cases matter

Redundancy makes up a substantial share of unfair dismissal claims — and the unique remedy of the protective award means collective consultation failures can drive eight-figure exposures even where no individual claimant has a strong substantive complaint.

Cases on Redundancy

Showing the 20 most recent of 331 cases

Case

Use the filters above to drill into specific outcomes, damages ranges, or years.

Frequently asked

What legally counts as redundancy?: Section 139 ERA defines redundancy as the closure of the business, the closure of the workplace, or a reduced need for employees doing work of a particular kind. The reduction doesn't have to be permanent and doesn't have to be company-wide.
What's the statutory redundancy payment?: Half a week's pay for each full year aged 18–21, one week's pay for each full year aged 22–40, and 1.5 weeks' pay for each full year aged 41+. Capped at 20 years' service and a statutory weekly limit (£700/week from April 2024 — so the maximum statutory payment is currently £21,000). You need at least two years' continuous service.
When does collective consultation kick in?: When 20 or more redundancies are proposed at one establishment within 90 days, the employer must consult collectively under section 188 of the Trade Union and Labour Relations (Consolidation) Act 1992. Minimum consultation periods are 30 days (20–99 redundancies) or 45 days (100+). Failure can trigger a "protective award" of up to 90 days' pay per affected employee.
What's a fair redundancy selection process?: A fair pool, transparent and objective selection criteria, scoring applied consistently, a chance for the employee to challenge their scores, and meaningful consideration of suitable alternative employment. The leading case is Williams v Compair Maxam (1982), still cited 40 years on.
What is "suitable alternative employment"?: An offer of another role within the organisation that's broadly comparable in pay, status, and skills. Employees offered SAE who unreasonably refuse can lose their statutory redundancy payment. There's also a four-week trial period to try an alternative role without losing redundancy rights.