UK Employment Law

UK employment law questions answered by verified Experts

Connect one-on-one with {0} who will answer your question

This answer was rated:

★★★★★

My wife is under notice of redundancy effective 31/12/2010.

She has worked at the...

My wife is under notice of redundancy effective 31/12/2010. She has worked at the same company for the last 10 years. History as follows;

2000-2008 5 days full time - £50k salary prior to maternity leave
2009 - Maternity leave all year
2010 3 days part time £30k salary

Within her terms and conditions of employment dismissal pay is referenced as follows
"Any employee who has been with XXX for 6 months or more will be given dismissal pay at a rate of 2 weeks salary for each completed 6 months of service". The terms and conditions do not reference any further redundancy t's & c's.

My wife has been advised by her employer that the redundancy offer will be based on her current part time salary of £30k. This would mean an approximate payout of 10 months of a £30k salary (10/12*30k) = £25k.

I was under the impression that when maternity is involved a redundancy payment would be based on her pro rated salary. Eg 9 years at £50k salary and 1 year at the £30k salary. This would mean a calculation of (9/12*50k)+(1/12*30k) = £40k.

Can you confirm which calculation you agree with and if you think there are grounds to challenge my wifes employer.

Show Less

Ask Your Own UK Employment Law Question

Answered in 4 hours by:

9/24/2010

Solicitor: Ben Jones, Solicitor replied 12 years ago

Ben Jones, Solicitor

Category: UK Employment Law

Satisfied Customers: 81,104

Experience: Qualified Employment Solicitor

Verified

When redundancy pay is calculated, it is calculated based on the employee's terminal pay - i.e. their pay at the time of being made redundant. In your wife's case this would be her part-time figure of £30k. The only time her old pay would be taken into account is if she can show that moving to part-time work was only a temporary measure and not a contractual variation. However, if she moved to part time after a flexible working request, then that would amount to a permanent contractual variation.

the issue of redundancy pay and employees working less hours following maternity leave has been discussed in the courts, most notably in Barry v midland Bank. Unfortunately for you, the House of Lords found that paying a woman who has returned from maternity leave redundancy based on her current salary was not discriminatory even though it made no allowance for employees whose hours fluctuated. In particular they commented that the primary objective of redundancy payments was to compensate for lost income during the period following redundancy - not to remunerate for past service.

Please press the ACCEPT button. You would still be able to ask any follow-up questions if necessary. Many thanks

Ben Jones, Solicitor

Category: UK Employment Law

Satisfied Customers: 81,104

Experience: Qualified Employment Solicitor

Verified

Ben Jones and 87 other UK Employment Law Specialists are ready to help you

Ask your own question now

Was this answer helpful?

Yes

How JustAnswer works

Describe your issueThe assistant will guide you

Chat 1:1 with a solicitorLicensed Experts are available 24/7

100% satisfaction guaranteeGet all the answers you need

Related UK Employment Law Questions

hi - I was a director of a private company that became part

hi - I was a director of a private company that became part of a plc and at that point, against my will, I was de-registered at companies house (lost 288) in 2010 but remained a director on the compan… read more

Ben Jones

Solicitor

Legal Practice Course

81,104 satisfied customers

Hi, my wife went on maternity leave in November last year

Hi, my wife went on maternity leave in November last year and agreed with the employer to work from home part time from August until the end of the year on different tasks than what she was originally… read more

Ben Jones

Solicitor

Legal Practice Course

81,104 satisfied customers

I recently (15/6/12) accepted a voluntary redundancy package

I recently (15/6/12) accepted a voluntary redundancy package from my employers of 30 years, this comprised of £30K tax free lump sum and an immediate pension. They have now approached me with an offer… read more

UKSolicitorJA

Solicitor

Bachelor's Degree

406 satisfied customers

HI My wife is on the commitee of a charity that runs a Pre

HI My wife is on the commitee of a charity that runs a Pre school. As she understands it she is liable for any financila burden that the Pre School inherits in the form of bad debt etc. Due to circums… read more

Ben Jones

Solicitor

Legal Practice Course

81,104 satisfied customers

I am an Immigrant Who was Hired from an company in India, to

I am an Immigrant Who was Hired from an company in India, to visit the UK and work in the UK branch on a Tier 2 ICT. After 1 year of working here. In Which i was not given any Induction, Training or M… read more

Michael Holly

Bachelor's Degree

6,326 satisfied customers

I Was recently put on a PIP which was Closed and Immediately,

I Was recently put on a PIP which was Closed and Immediately, Afterwards targeted for Redundancy. Here is a timeline of events on what happened. My Questions are ... 1. Am I Eligible of Severance Pay … read more

Jenny McKenzie

Vocational, Technical or Trade Scho

1,945 satisfied customers

My partner is being made redundant from a national supermarket

My partner is being made redundant from a national supermarket retailer after many years service.The majority of colleges who work with her only had hours reduced.The reason given was that she was sel… read more

Ben Jones

Solicitor

Legal Practice Course

81,104 satisfied customers

All signs are that this small firm will be closing shortly. i.e. within say, six months at

All signs are that this small firm will be closing shortly. i.e. within say, six months at the most. Over the past 4 months there has been shortening of working hours, breaks formerly paid now unpaid … read more

Jenny McKenzie

Vocational, Technical or Trade Scho

1,945 satisfied customers

Hi I have worked for the same department in the same company

Hi I have worked for the same department in the same company (Leeds Met University) for 10 years. I worked full time until returning from Maternity leave in July 2010 when my hours were reduced to par… read more

Ben Jones

Solicitor

Legal Practice Course

81,104 satisfied customers

Hi My wife has informed her employer that she is pregnant

Hi My wife has informed her employer that she is pregnant and has now received a reply, to summarise, the letter states: - She will receive benefits and company maternity pay (which incl. SMP) until h… read more

Ben Jones

Solicitor

Legal Practice Course

81,104 satisfied customers

I worked for my firm for 15 years and then took an agreed career

I worked for my firm for 15 years and then took an agreed career break for 3 years. The company's career break scheme states that on return to work the period of employment with the company will be tr… read more

Ben Jones

Solicitor

Legal Practice Course

81,104 satisfied customers

Hello, in all probability I may be made redundant this week.

Hello, in all probability I may be made redundant this week. I have already had a couple of meetings with our MD and questioned whether the proposed PILON payment should be taxed. My employment contra… read more

Ben Jones

Solicitor

Legal Practice Course

81,104 satisfied customers

I am on maternity leave at the moment and my employer told

I am on maternity leave at the moment and my employer told me in a recent conversation that, in terms of the structure of my team, what works for the directors is a team where there is one manager and… read more

Ben Jones

Solicitor

Legal Practice Course

81,104 satisfied customers

Im on maternity leave - due back end of May 2010, and was told

Im on maternity leave - due back end of May 2010, and was told last week (by a new boss who has been in the role a month) that my role as a Category Manager has been made redundant (effective immediat… read more

Ben Jones

Solicitor

Legal Practice Course

81,104 satisfied customers

My wife is currently expecting our 1st baby in February. She

My wife is currently expecting our 1st baby in February. She is currently employed on a fixed term contract that ends in Audust 2011. She notified her employer about her maternity leave last week and … read more

Brevitatis Causa

Bachelor's Degree

637 satisfied customers

Some Advise please These are my Circumstances- I am one of the s

Some Advise please These are my Circumstances- I am one of the six people being made redundant from my organisation on 30th November 2010. I am 21 weeks pregnant at moment and my expected baby's due d… read more

Ben Jones

Solicitor

Legal Practice Course

81,104 satisfied customers

I am being made redundant from my job as an educational consultant.

I am being made redundant from my job as an educational consultant. My employer, a Local Authority, is offering a generous voluntary redundancy package but the conditions are that I can never work for… read more

Stuart J

Postgraduate diploma in law

13,813 satisfied customers

i was made redundant on the 4th January after 5 years service.

i was made redundant on the 4th January after 5 years service. I was on maternity leave at the time but had since found out I was pregnant again. I was due to go back to work after my maternity leave … read more

Ben Jones

Solicitor

Legal Practice Course

81,104 satisfied customers

DISCLAIMER: Answers from Experts on JustAnswer ar Show Less

DISCLAIMER: Answers from Experts on JustAnswer are not substitutes for the advice of an attorney. JustAnswer is a public forum and questions and responses are not private or confidential or protected by the attorney-client privilege. The Expert above is not your attorney, and the response above is not legal advice. You should not read this response to propose specific action or address specific circumstances, but only to give you a sense of general principles of law that might affect the situation you describe. Application of these general principles to particular circumstances must be done by a lawyer who has spoken with you in confidence, learned all relevant information, and explored various options. Before acting on these general principles, you should hire a lawyer licensed to practice law in the jurisdiction to which your question pertains.

The responses above are from individual Experts, not JustAnswer. The site and services are provided “as is”. To view the verified credential of an Expert, click on the “Verified” symbol in the Expert’s profile. This site is not for emergency questions which should be directed immediately by telephone or in-person to qualified professionals. Please carefully read the Terms of Service.

JustAnswer in the News:

What Customers are Saying:

A quick response, a succinct and helpful answer in simple English. I believe I can now confront the counter party with confidence -- worth the 30 bucks!
RickLeeds, UK

I did not know a French Law service existed and I was very impressed with the speed of reply --- very professional. Many thanks!
Ms. BakerAlfafar, Spain

Thank you so much for your help. Your answers were really useful and came back so quickly. Great!
MaggieUSA

Wonderful service, prompt, efficient, and accurate. Couldn't have asked for more. I cannot thank you enough for your help.
Mary C.Freshfield, Liverpool, UK

This expert is wonderful. They truly know what they are talking about, and they actually care about you. They really helped put my nerves at ease. Thank you so much!!!!
AlexLos Angeles, CA

Thank you for all your help. It is nice to know that this service is here for people like myself, who need answers fast and are not sure who to consult.
GPHesperia, CA

I couldn't be more satisfied! This is the site I will always come to when I need a second opinion.
JustinKernersville, NC

< Previous | Next >

Meet the Experts:

Jenny McKenzie

1,945 satisfied customers

10 Years of experience in Employment Law and HR

UKSolicitorJA

Solicitor

406 satisfied customers

solicitor

John Knox

Solicitor

72 satisfied customers

Solicitor and Advocate

Kasare

Solicitor

35 satisfied customers

LLB (Hons)

UK_Lawyer

Solicitor

34 satisfied customers

I am a qualified solicitor and an expert in UK law.

Buachaill

Barrister

30 satisfied customers

17 years experience

INC

Solicitor-Advocate

26 satisfied customers

LL.B, LPC, LL.M, Pg.Dip, Solicitor-Advocate. UK Practising Certificate issued by SRA., DIFC Courts Registered (Dubai)

< Previous | Next >

Show MoreShow Less

Search your question here