When must an employer collectively consult on redundancies?

Full answer

UK law imposes stricter, formal collective consultation obligations on employers proposing larger-scale redundancies, on top of the individual consultation that should happen with each affected employee regardless of numbers. **The 20-employee trigger** Collective consultation duties are triggered when an employer proposes to dismiss 20 or more employees as redundant at one establishment within a period of 90 days or less. 'Establishment' generally means a distinct workplace or operational unit, not necessarily the whole organisation nationally -- so a large employer with multiple sites might trigger collective consultation at one site (if 20+ redundancies are proposed there) without it applying company-wide if other sites are unaffected. **Minimum consultation periods** - **20 to 99 proposed redundancies**: consultation must begin at least 30 days before the first dismissal takes effect - **100 or more proposed redundancies**: consultation must begin at least 45 days before the first dismissal takes effect (this was reduced from a previous 90-day minimum some years ago) These are minimum periods -- genuine, meaningful consultation may reasonably take longer depending on the complexity of the situation, and simply 'ticking the clock' without genuinely considering alternatives or employee representations can render the consultation inadequate even if the minimum days have technically passed. **Who must be consulted** The employer must consult with appropriate representatives -- either existing recognised trade union representatives, or, where there is no recognised union, elected employee representatives (elected specifically for this purpose if no other suitable representative structure exists). Consultation must cover ways of avoiding the redundancies, reducing the numbers of employees to be dismissed, and mitigating the consequences. **The HR1 form** Employers proposing collective redundancies must also notify the Secretary of State (via form HR1) before consultation begins, giving details of the proposed redundancies -- a separate obligation from the consultation with employee representatives itself, with penalties for non-compliance. **Worked example** A company operating a single distribution centre with 250 employees decides to close down a whole department, proposing 35 redundancies. Because 35 exceeds the 20-employee threshold within a single establishment, the employer must consult collectively for at least 30 days with elected employee representatives (or a recognised union, if one exists) before any dismissals take effect, in addition to submitting an HR1 notification to the Secretary of State, and separately consulting individually with each of the 35 affected employees about their own specific situation. **Protective award for non-compliance** If an employer fails to properly collectively consult when required, an employment tribunal can order a 'protective award' of up to 90 days' pay per affected employee -- a significant financial penalty, on top of any unfair dismissal claims that might separately arise from a poorly handled redundancy process, making proper compliance with collective consultation obligations commercially as well as legally important for employers undertaking larger restructurings.

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