Dear Denise – Your HR Agony Aunt | Edition 6: A Redundancy Dilemma

With rising costs and ongoing economic pressure, many employers are having to make difficult decisions about restructuring their teams. Redundancy can be a necessary step but if handled incorrectly, it can quickly lead to legal risk and damage to employee trust.

In BeyondHR’s latest edition of Dear Denise, we explore how to approach redundancy fairly, transparently, and in line with best practice.

Dear Denise,

My business has seen a downturn over the past six months, and I’m considering reducing headcount to cut costs.

There’s one employee in particular whose role I feel is no longer needed, but to be honest, they’ve also been underperforming for a while. I’m wondering if redundancy might be the simplest way to handle both issues at once.

I want to do the right thing, but I also need to protect the business. Can I make this role redundant, or could that cause problems?

Unsure Glasgow Employer

Dear Employer,

This is a situation where it’s really important to proceed carefully.

Redundancy should never be used as a way to manage performance concerns. It must be a genuine business decision based on the role no longer being required — not the individual in the role. If redundancy is used to avoid addressing underperformance, it could be challenged as an unfair dismissal.

Here’s how to approach it:

• Be clear on the business rationale
Ask yourself: is there a genuine need to reduce roles due to financial or structural changes? If so, you should be able to clearly evidence this.

• Focus on the role, not the person
Redundancy is about the job disappearing, not selecting someone because of performance concerns. If multiple employees do similar roles, a fair selection process will be required.

• Consider alternatives first
Before proceeding, look at other options such as reduced hours, redeployment, or voluntary redundancy.

• Follow a fair process
This includes consultation, clear communication, and giving employees the opportunity to ask questions and explore alternatives.

• Handle performance separately
If underperformance is an issue, it should be addressed through a capability or performance management process, not redundancy.

• Seek advice early
Redundancy carries legal obligations, and getting it wrong can be costly. Taking advice before you begin will help you stay compliant and confident in your approach.

Redundancy is never easy, but handling it transparently and fairly will protect both your business and your reputation. Mixing it with other issues, like performance, is where employers often run into difficulty.

Warm regards,
Denise
Your HR Agony Aunt at BeyondHR

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