Received wisdom tells us that redundancy is a sad but necessary action. It's not always nice being made redundant, but it's ultimately fair and for the greater good of the organisation.

But is it always fair? Can redundancy cross that legal line and become unfair dismissal?

We'll answer these questions soon. But first, let's make sure we all understand the terms we're dealing with.

What is redundancy?

Redundancy is when a person is dismissed from their job because the job doesn't need to exist anymore.

It's not the same as getting fired. That happens when a person has done something wrong or hasn't met the required standards. Your workplace might look at things like your working performance and disciplinary record when deciding whether to make you redundant. However, these things shouldn't be the reason why you're being made redundant.

Here are some common reasons why businesses make people redundant:

• To cut costs: if a business is struggling financially, it might choose to save money by making certain workers redundant. In extreme cases, the company might cut back to a 'skeleton staff' – the minimum number of workers needed to keep the company running.
• To close down: is the business closing its doors? All staff will likely be made redundant, regardless of their rank or ability.
• To relocate: it might not be feasible for employees to follow a business if it's relocating somewhere far away. In a situation like this, the business might choose to make staff redundant.
• Because jobs are no longer needed: sometimes it's as simple as this. A business might take a long, hard look at its organisational structure and decide that certain roles are surplus to requirements.

What is unfair dismissal?

Unfair dismissal is when someone is let go from a job for an unfair reason. We'll look at some of these unfair reasons in the next section.

Some reasons are considered 'automatically fair'. These are:

• Conduct: this means the way you've behaved at work (or, potentially, outside of work). You might be fired on the grounds of unacceptable conduct if you have a poor attendance record, bully another staff member or post something on social media that damages the company's reputation.
• Performance: this means 'your ability to do your job'. You might just not be meeting the required standards or you could have a health condition that prevents you from working as quickly or capably as others.
• Statutory illegality: this might seem like legal jargon, but it's simple when you break it down. It means 'when it becomes illegal for you to do your job'. For instance, you might be working as a delivery driver and then lose your driving licence. In this situation, it would be considered fair to let you go.
• Some other substantial reason: this is basically a legal catch-all that means 'other reasons that make sense in context'.
• Redundancy: yes – you read that right. Redundancy is considered an automatically fair reason for dismissal.

So can redundancy be unfair dismissal?

In a word, yes.

"But," you might be thinking, "you just said that redundancy is an 'automatically fair' reason for letting someone go".

Yes. And this is true in most circumstances. But there are situations where redundancy is considered unfair.

Let's look at these situations in detail.

Situation one: when it wasn't a genuine redundancy

Redundancy is always supposed to be for a business-related reason, such as cutting costs or restructuring the workforce.

If you feel this wasn't the case, you might be able to claim that the redundancy wasn't genuine. In other words, the business was using redundancy as an excuse to get rid of you.

Signs that this might be the case include:

• The business has recently taken on more staff who do similar work to you.
• You're singled out or treated differently from other staff.
• You don't get on with your employer.

If you've worked for your employer for less than two years, you usually won't be able to challenge a non-genuine redundancy.

Situation two: your employer failed to follow the proper process

Businesses are supposed to follow a process to select people for redundancy. There are no set rules for what this process looks like, except that the employer has to meet you to discuss your redundancy if you're selected. Other than that, it's up to the employer to decide their process.

At your meeting, you should be told why the business needs to make people redundant. You should also be allowed to argue against being made redundant if you want to.

The redundancy might be considered unfair if:

• There was no process.
• There was no meeting.
• The process didn't give enough information.
• The meeting was only to tell you that you're being made redundant.

Again, you might be unable to claim unfair redundancy if you've been employed for less than two years.

Situation three: the reason for your redundancy was 'automatically unfair'

Just as there are automatically fair reasons for dismissal, so there are automatically unfair reasons too. If your redundancy was at least partly for one of these reasons, it could be classed as unfair dismissal:

• You asked for one of your working rights: these include minimum wage and annual leave.
• You made a health and safety complaint: you can't be dismissed for trying to ensure a safe working environment.
• You're a whistleblower: this is when you report your employer for an illegal activity.
• You've been on jury service: your employer isn't allowed to penalise you for taking time off to be part of a jury.
• You're a member of a trade union: you have a legal right to join a union and your employer can't discriminate against you for being a member.
• You've been on strike: again, it's your legal right to take industrial action.
• You're on a fixed-term or part-time contract: these types of contracts don't protect you against redundancy, but they can't be the reason you're made redundant.

You can make an unfair dismissal claim for these reasons even if you've been employed for less than two years.

Situation four: you were discriminated against

You might feel discriminated against if you've been made redundant. However, you can only claim unfair dismissal if you were discriminated against because of a 'protected characteristic'. These are:

• Age
• Sex
• Beliefs or religion
• Disability
• Race (your nationality, skin colour or ethnic origin)
• Gender reassignment
• Sexual orientation
• Being married
• Being in a civil partnership
• Having a disability

You're protected against discrimination for these reasons no matter how long you've worked for your employer.

Do you believe you've been made redundant unfairly? Our friendly, straight-talking employment solicitors can help you claim the compensation you deserve. Get in touch for a free, no-obligation legal consultation.