CIPD consultation response: Collective redundancy and fire and rehire

We respond to the Department for Business and Trade’s consultation on Strengthening remedies against abuse of rules on collective redundancy and fire and rehire.  

Broadly speaking, the UK’s enforcement system places a disproportionately heavy burden on employees to exercise their rights and we are in favour of a rebalancing of enforcement so that the state assumes more responsibility for boosting compliance and ensuring that individuals can seek redress. In terms of employers’ obligations to carry out a full and meaningful consultation exercise for collective redundancies, it’s very important there is compliance as this process is pivotal to exploring alternatives to redundancy and hopefully reducing their number.

However, the specific reforms on remedies put forward in this consultation cannot be considered in isolation. They need to be considered holistically, in conjunction with the government’s other statutory changes in relation to employers’ obligations for consultation on collective redundancies, in particular removal of the ‘at one establishment’ test through the Employment Rights Bill. 

On the below link, we respond to the collective consultation obligations questions, addressing the removal of the ‘at one establishment’ test, increasing the protective award cap, removing the protective award cap, and interim relief, as well as answering the applicable fire and rehire questions.