Acas guidance: How to manage collective redundancies
[ch 11: page 330]New Acas guidance directed at employers, How to manage collective redundancies, was published in April 2013. It includes a sample redundancy procedure suggesting the following areas for consultation:
• commitment to keep local trade unions/employee reps informed as fully as possible about staffing requirements and any need for redundancies;
• how long consultation is to last;
• who is to be consulted;
• what must be discussed;
• how the consultation should be conducted, focusing on the spirit of the consultation, with a view to reaching agreement, and including a commitment to consider alternative proposals;
• what statutory information must be provided;
• additional areas on which to consult, including:
• the effect on earnings, where a transfer or down-grading is accepted to avoid redundancy;
• arrangements for travel, removal and related expenses where a new role is on a different site;
• arrangements for reasonable time off with pay to look for jobs or arrange training;
• help with job hunting;
• arrangements to transfer apprenticeships.
• measures to avoid redundancy, including:
◊ natural wastage;
◊ restricting recruitment of permanent staff;
◊ reducing use of agency workers;
◊ filling vacancies from among existing staff;
◊ reducing overtime;
◊ reducing hours e.g. by short-time working;
◊ training, retraining and redeployment.
www.acas.org.uk/media/pdf/c/n/How-to-manage-collective-redundancies.pdf