Redundancy during Maternity Leave

Hi. I work in the techology sector of a financial organization. I have been on Maternity leave since December 2008 but now I have received call from HR saying my job is at risk of redundancy. There are overall 11 people in the pool who have been put at the risk.
The reason employer is citing is Cost cutting and re-organization of IT team because of which few roles have diminished.

My understanding is there are still roles within the IT which require my skill set. In addition the employer is paying me SMP 90% of which is paid by HMRC. In these circumstance I feel I have been unfairly targeted for redundancy because making me redundant would have no effect on cost and the roles still exist.

Can anyone advise on how to proceed with this issue ... any help would be great

You are in a strong position because your employer is legally bound to offer you any alterntive positions ahead of anyone else in the pool (because you are on maternity leave). The fact that HMRC are currently picking up most of the tab for your pay is not a big factor as your employer will soon pick up your salary costs once more - they are likely to argue their decisions are based on medium to long term factors, not short term cost issues.

HI,

i'm new to this forum but i hope i can help. i was also put in this situation yesterday and looked on the internet for advice. I have pasted something i found on the internet which may be of help to you. It will definately help me.

This purely relates to if you are still on Maternity Leave.


Redundancy

If you are being made redundant there are a number of things you should consider. Firstly, you should look at whether it is a genuine redundancy situation. Redundancy can happen when your place of work closes or moves, either temporarily or permanently, the type of work you do will no longer be done at your place of work, or fewer employees are needed to do the type of work that you do. If you have been made redundant but the person covering your maternity leave has not, this is not likely to be a genuine redundancy and you should seek legal advice straight away. Secondly, you should look at whether your employer’s selection criteria are fair. If you are selected for redundancy because of pregnancy or maternity leave you can claim unfair dismissal and sex discrimination.

If you are made redundant during maternity leave regulation 10 of the Maternity and Parental Leave etc Regulations 1999 says that you must be offered any suitable alternative vacancies. You do not have to apply or be interviewed for any suitable alternative vacancy but should be offered it in priority to your colleagues. If a suitable alternative vacancy exists and you are not offered it you may have a claim for automatic unfair dismissal. This protection is only available to women on maternity leave. As soon as you return to work you are no longer covered. However, selection criteria must still be fair and time off because of pregnancy or maternity leave must not be taken into account.


Suitable alternative vacancy

Suitability is looked at from the employee’s point of view, so if the job offered is on less favourable terms and conditions, including the location and hours of work, or is very different from what you were doing before, it is not likely to be regarded as suitable. If your employer

offers you a suitable alternative vacancy and you turn it down unreasonably you will lose your right to a redundancy payment.

Consultation

Employers must give employees as much warning as they can of impending redundancy, and must consult with employees. Failure to consult with an employee because she is on maternity leave may be sex discrimination.

Redundancy and Notice Pay

You must have been employed by your employer for at least 2 years to get statutory redundancy pay. You should check your contract to see if your employer offers any contractual redundancy pay. Statutory redundancy pay depends on how much you earn a week, how old you are and how many whole years you have worked for your employer:

if you are 21 or under you get half a week’s gross pay for every complete year of employment with the same employer.
If you are 22-40 you get one week’s gross pay for every complete year of employment with the same employer.
If you are 41 or over you get one and a half week’s gross pay for every complete year of employment with the same employer.
Your weekly pay should be based on the last week’s pay you got before you started maternity leave, not your maternity pay. There is a maximum limit of £290 for a week’s pay for a full time employee. If you work part time this will be pro rated, so if you work 2 days a week your weekly pay maximum limit will be 2/5 of £290. Even if you have been working part time for only a short length of time, your whole redundancy pay will be worked out on your part-time salary. Your maternity leave is counted as continuous employment.

You are entitled to paid notice if you have been in your job for at least a month. You should check your contract to see how much notice you are entitled to. If it does not say anything you are entitled to the statutory minimum of one week’s paid notice for each full year you have worked for your employer, up to a maximum of 12 weeks. Your contract cannot give you less than the legal minimum. If your redundancy happens during maternity leave and your contract gives you at least a week’s notice more than the statutory minimum, you are only entitled to paid notice during maternity leave if your contract says so.

You must also be paid any outstanding holiday up to the end of your notice period. See our factsheet entitled Rights During Maternity Leave for an explanation of how holiday accrues during maternity leave.

HOPE YOU FOUND IT HELPFUL

i fear that i may be at risk of redundancy before i am due to leave on maternity leave. should i take maternity leave early to make the most of my employer's contribution to maternity pay?