Redundancy after 19 years!

marky.fitz

Thanks all for the information (excellent as usual).

I've now received a revised offer as follows:
20.5 weeks redundancy @ £380
12 weeks notice
£500 incentive (on the basis I sign the compromise agreement)

In the compromise agreement it states company will pay £400 towards employment lawyer's costs but only if I sign the agreement otherwise I will have to pay out of my own pocket. Is this standard practice for a company to offer to pay costs's but only if you sign the agreement?

Would I have any grounds or would it be worth going to an unemployment tribunal on the following basis or should I just accept the offer and move on?
1.No consultation period just asked to come to the office last Friday and then called ino the office (I believe that over 20 people where made redundant last week on the same day).
2.I was not offered a witness to be present (it was purely one-to-one with new HR manager).
3.Given just 3 days to sign compromise agreement.

Thanks for any further help.

getmore4less

Assuming the 20.5 @ £380 is correct for your service/age/wage.

They are offering you £500 to shut you up.

Never accept the first offer immediately

Tell them you are taking independant legal advice and will let them know once that is done.

try
Acas
Do you have legal cover through your house insurance.

A protective award might apply due to lack of consultation and would most likely be more than the £500 if upheld, they may have broken statutory reporting with 20+ involved.

Do a search on protective awards.

jazzyman01

The £400 is towards your costs for the Compromise Agreement. The reason for doing that is so that you waive any rights you might have in the future in regard the the redundancy ie if you get told that the process is wrong and you could have claimed.
In most companies they do this so they do not have to hassle, not to try and hide something.
The £500 is because asking you to sign a compromise on your redundancy terms is laughable, you are only getting the statutory minimum so why would you sign a compromise and waive your rights?
If they have followed the right process then they may decide to risk not going through a compromise rather than offer more.
By the way, given the figures you have provided you must be just in your 40's.

marky.fitz

Right after seeking advice I went back to the company and refused to sign the agreement unless I was paid 14k (which works out to 6 months gross pay). Company have now come back and increased there original offer but only to £3k sign CA.
Seems to me they know they have gone about this all the wrong way!
I'm waiting on my employment lawyer coming back to me regarding my next response but anyone have any advice or been down a similar avenue?
Does the revised offer of 3k seem fair (still seems a bit on the low side to me)?
Obviously want to get the most I can out of them!

jazzyman01

It depends on whether they followed a fair redundancy process. By that I mean consulted regarding the post being redundant as well as you being the selected person.

If they have not followed a fair process then they can be forced to pay 90 days gross salary in compensation - but it has to be clear that there has been a failure of the process.

getmore4less

Whats the actual total current offer?
My guess from what you have said so far.
£6462 PILON 12weeks pay(£14K/26 * 12weeks)
£7790 20.5 @ £380
£3000 shut up (up from £500)

Now I am not clear what the claim is
Are you are looking for a £14k shutup ?

marky.fitz

No consultation period. Arrived in the office as normal and after an hour was called upstairs where I was told company had another bad month and looking at head-count and mine was one of the positions at risk (this despite the fact that our small team of 3 had hit targets for the last 3 months!)
Told I could leave straight away and would be paid for a week so didn't need to return to the office.

Current redundancy figure been offered -

£7790 – 20.5 weeks redundancy @ £380 (stautory redundancy payment)
£7764 – 12 weeks notice @ current salary (my notice period)
£3,000 – as incentive to sign compromise agreement



Which gives a total of £18,554 Net.

What I have a problem with is (a) the lack of consultation period, (b) the reason why I and not someone else has been made redundant and (c) I beleive they have made over 20 people redundant within 90 days (I've asked them out-right and had no response which makes me suspicous as they've also upped my figure to sign CA from £500 to £3,000).

Does £3,000 to sign the CA seem like a reasonable figure bearing in mind the above?

Kaz2904

I live in Weston- super- mare and worked with a couple of women who's hsbands were employed by clarks. Then Clarks decided to close and one of the husbands took redundancy there and then and got about £30k. The other one stayed. 18 months (or less- I don't remember) later, he was made redundant but he didn't get anything like as good a package as he'd have got originally.

You takes your chance I suppose?