Redundancy Isn't a Decision, It's a Process - HR perspective for employers across Sheffield and South Yorkshire

Most employers think of redundancy as a decision. The role is no longer needed, the person is told, they leave. That's the outcome. The process is everything in between — and it's where most employers come unstuck.

Redundancy is one of the most legally prescribed areas of employment law. Not because legislators wanted to make it difficult, but because the potential for unfairness is significant. Someone losing their job is a serious event. The law reflects that. Employers who treat it as an administrative exercise rather than a process with real legal weight tend to find out the hard way.

What redundancy actually means

Redundancy has a specific legal definition. It applies where a business closes, where a particular workplace closes, or where the requirement for employees to do work of a particular kind has diminished or ceased. That last category is the most common — and the most misunderstood.

Redundancy is about the role, not the person. If the decision to make someone redundant is actually about their performance, their conduct, or a personality conflict with their manager, redundancy is the wrong process — and using it as a convenient exit route creates significant legal risk. Tribunals are experienced at identifying sham redundancies.

The selection process

Where more than one person could potentially be at risk — which is more common than employers assume — there needs to be a fair selection process. That means identifying a pool of employees doing similar work, applying objective selection criteria consistently across that pool, and being able to demonstrate that the person selected was chosen on the basis of those criteria rather than on the basis of who the employer wanted to lose.

Selection criteria that appear neutral but disproportionately affect employees with protected characteristics — part-time workers, those who have taken maternity leave, older employees — create discrimination risk alongside the unfair dismissal risk.

The consultation requirement

Consultation is not telling someone they're being made redundant. It's a genuine process — before the decision is finalised — where the employee has the opportunity to understand the situation, ask questions, and propose alternatives. It has to be meaningful. A consultation meeting where the outcome is already decided is not consultation. It's notification with extra steps, and tribunals treat it as such.

For 20 or more redundancies within 90 days, collective consultation obligations apply — including notifying the Redundancy Payments Service and consulting with elected employee representatives. Missing those obligations carries a penalty of up to 90 days' pay per affected employee.

Where employers go wrong

Usually one of three places. The pool was too narrow — essentially constructed around the individual rather than genuinely reflecting who does similar work. The consultation was cursory — a meeting, an outcome letter, a P45. Or the selection criteria weren't applied consistently and the paper trail shows it.

Any of those is enough to make an otherwise defensible redundancy difficult to defend.

The human dimension

Beyond the legal risk, redundancy handled badly leaves a mark. On the person going through it, obviously. But also on the people who stay — who are watching how the organisation treats people when things get difficult. That matters for culture, for retention, and for the employer's reputation in a region like South Yorkshire where professional networks are tighter than people assume.

Redundancy done well — fairly, transparently, with genuine care for the people involved — is possible. It just requires more than most employers put into it.

Managing a redundancy situation in Sheffield or South Yorkshire? King HR Advisory supports employers with senior HR guidance through restructuring and redundancy processes.