How to consider offers of suitable alternative work for redundant employees

Author: Darren Newman

Summary

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• Understand the relevance of considering alternative work in relation to both unfair dismissal and entitlement to a redundancy payment.
• Start to consider what alternative work might be available as soon as it becomes clear that redundancies may be necessary.
• Allow employees to decide what alternative work they would be interested in. Do not withhold information about potential vacancies on the basis that the employee might not consider them to be suitable.
• Do not offer an alternative role to an employee who will be unable to perform it satisfactorily.
• Consider whether to require employees at risk of redundancy to compete for available vacancies, or to offer employees the vacancies to which they are most suited.
• Allow a suitable trial period for employees who accept an offer of alternative work.
• Where applicable, ensure that suitable alternative work is offered to employees who are pregnant or who are on or have recently returned from maternity leave, adoption leave or shared parental leave.
• Be cautious about withholding a redundancy payment from an employee who refuses an offer of suitable alternative work.
• If alternative work is not currently available, consider whether it is likely to become available soon after the projected date of the redundancies.