Redundancy - any informative people about? have a qq.

Would the job be one that if they stayed at their desk they could do harm to the company, pinch clients etc...?

Is a desk job, no direct client contact but possibility to 'mess' with previous projects.

Is this a factor? Surely every job has a level of something which could be done if you knew you were leaving.

Generally speaking, when they tell you "in the morning" that you have to go, you are not immediately being made redundant. They simply advise you that your job is in danger of disappearing and that you will be made redundant if you don't find alternative employment within a set period of time (i.e. 3 weeks). At the end of that period, they will formally advise you that your position is now redundant and will typically pay you your notice and release you, or expect you to work your notice. Either way, between the moment when they first tell you and the moment when you stop drawing a salary, there is an intermediate period of anything between 3 weeks and 6 months. Many employers these days pay you off rather than expect you to work your notice, and on top of that place you on "gardening leave" for the intermediate period before they pay you off. Gardening leave is where you get to stay at home, while you're being paid as if you were still working, so during this time you can't work for anyone else (hence you do the gardening at home, so to speak). You may think that being told in the morning and being sent home immediately is cruel, but in reality it's fab - you get paid to sit at home and watch TV (or mop, or cry, or whatever) which at first appears harsh, but it really is more like paid holiday! ?

If there's a possibility that you might "harm" the company in any way (by stealing clients, deleting data, bad mouthing it colleagues or whatever) you get to go on PAID gardening leave. In the past, only senior executives qualified for gardening leave, but these days almost everyone gets it, because companies have realised that people in danger of redundancy are bad for morale. So if they can possibly do without you, they will put you on gardening leave, which quite frankly is the best bit about being made redundant and should be welcomed with open arms.

I would have a look at the direct.gov website or similar for the exact rules around consultation and so on.

My mother once won her case of wrongful dismissal simply because the company had failed to follow procedure, not because she was unfairly selected or suchlike.

Paid gardening leave....I wish! I am currently 'at risk' and have told that I will know by xmas if I am redundant. Then the company 'does not intend' to release me until the end of April.

I am hanging on to the fact that they're saying there are jobs for everyone, just maybe not the job I would have wanted, but hell its still a job.

Thanks everyone, it really is a minefield.

Fingers crossed it dosnt come to redundancy.

No specific timescale but I would usually advise clients that for "meaningful" consultation there should be a consultation period of around 2 weeks followed by invitation to formal dismissal meetings thereafter. Unless circs are such that kind of consultation can't be carried out ie business on verge of going tits up.

Thanks.

Although I think consulancy periods are only necessary if company has over 20 employees being made redundant.

The quote in my first post is for less than 20 employees being made redundant so no time scales seem to be set down as they dont have to go through usual consultancy procedures, they just need to warn and consult.

is the the same as having to go through the over 20 employees procedure?

Getting myself confused now!

The statutory collective redundancy consultation procedures only apply if 20 or more are being made redundant at one establishment within 90 days

however as a redundancy is a dismissal it should be fair and as part of that process, even if there are less than 20 employees being made redundant, the employer has to still demonstrate that they have still consulted with the employees - even though there is no statutory timescale/procedure if less than 20