1 in 10 South West employers likely to make redundancies

The figures have come from an Acas survey

Author: Aaron HarperPublished 30th May 2023

13% of employers across the South West say they are likely to make redundancies over the next 12 months.

The stats come from an Acas survey conducted by YouGov, which found 1 in 10 businesses feel redundancies are on the horizon.

Acas Chief Executive, Susan Clews, said: “Some businesses are facing tough challenges and our poll reveals that one in ten employers in the South West are considering redundancies in the year ahead.

Acas are advising bosses to exhaust all alternatives to making staff redundant, but say that employers must follow the law in this area.

Where an employer finds no option but to make redundancies, but there are strict rules to follow on consulting staff.

Employers must discuss any planned changes and consult with each employee who could be affected, including staff who may not be losing their jobs but will be impacted.

Should employers wish to make more than 20 staff redundant over any three-month (90 day) period, they must consult a recognised trade union or elected employee representatives about the proposed changes.

For 20-99 redundancies, consultation must start at least 30 days before the first dismissal can take effect, and for 100 or more redundancies, it must start at least 45 days before.

For less than 20 redundancies, there is no set time period, but the length of consultation must be reasonable.

If employers fail to adhere to these requirements, employees can take their employer to an employment tribunal, where an employer may be told to pay up to 90 days full pay for all affected employees.

Hear all the latest news from across the UK on the hour, every hour, on Greatest Hits Radio on DAB, smartspeaker, at greatesthitsradio.co.uk, and on the Rayo app.