With the fallout of COVID 19 lockdown, we are now getting asked, ‘How to conduct a Redundancy Consultation meeting?’ You should meet with employees who are potentially at risk of redundancy for individual consultation meetings. These will usually take place after you have provided the affected employees with general information, such as the reason for the proposed redundancies, and information about the selection process.
At the individual meetings, it is recommended you ask the employee for any suggestions that they may have to avoid redundancies. It is important that as the employer, you do not prejudge the outcome of any consultation meeting. You should give serious consideration to any suggestions that the employee makes.
What if the Employee Objects?
You will need to give the employee the opportunity to raise any objections to the basis for their provisional selection. For example, by discussing the application of the selection criteria. It should discuss whether or not there is any suitable alternative employment for the employee. You will be expected to explain what support is on offer if redundancy is confirmed, such as a reasonable amount of paid time off to look for new employment. It will be essential to also explain the composition of any redundancy package and how the notice period will operate.
There is no set number of meetings that must be held during the individual consultation process, but it is likely that at least two meetings may be necessary to give the employee the opportunity to consider and respond to the information discussed. It may be necessary for you to hold further meetings, before redundancy is confirmed, to discuss any issues outstanding from the previous meetings. However, these only happen on a case by case scenario.
What do I do Once I’ve Completed the Consultation?
Once you have completed the consultation period, you will need to move into the selection process (if there is a pool of employees at risk and you do not need to make all post redundant). There are various ways to carry out a selection process, from interviewing employees, asking to take a knowledge or skills test, to show who is more suitable or using a score matrix to score each employee on things like skills, knowledge, attitude and aptitude.
Once the selection has been made and all other suggestions and alternative employment posts have been considered (if there are any), only then can you give notice that redundancy will take place.
Contact Us
If you would like more information on how to conduct a redundancy consultation meeting call 01706 565332 or email info@metishr.co.uk
Metis HR is a professional HR Consultancy based in the North West of England supporting clients across the country. We specialise in providing outsourced HR services to small and medium-sized businesses. Call us now on 01706 565332 to discuss how we may help you.
