When can employers reject an application for voluntary redundancy? Can employers include 'organisational fit' in their redundancy selection criteria? And how can employers prove workplace conflict issues didn't influence their redundancy decisions?
A lot of recent litigation following redundancies has hinged on whether redeployment was a viable option, and HR professionals must consider a growing number of factors in deciding whether or not redeployment is a "reasonable" substitute, according to employment lawyer Murray Procter.
Whether making one role redundant or hundreds, HR professionals have a crucial part to play in ensuring organisations meet their extensive legal obligations and avoid claims from current and ex-employees.
Watch this webcast to:
ensure redundancies are 'genuine' under the Fair Work Act;
understand employees' entitlements if positions are made redundant;
develop sound redundancy criteria that minimise legal risks;
fulfil consultation and redeployment obligations;
manage a safe internal 'paper trail' about decision-making;
handle interactions with unions; and
add real value to the C-suite by informing decision-makers about their obligations.
HR professionals who 'educate up' to senior executive level about commonly confused redundancy obligations can help organisations avoid costly payouts and media fallout, according to employment lawyer Murray Procter.
A well planned and executed downsizing can result in change that is soon forgotten, but if things are managed badly, "people will talk about it for years", says Right Management's Bridget Beattie.
The end of any contracting arrangement heralds a heightened risk of employee entitlement claims, but those involving unpaid superannuation are particularly hard to defend and costly to address, according to PwC partner Rohan Geddes.
Nothing unsettles staff quite like the word "redundancy", but according to lawyer Natalie Spark, avoiding it and skirting around the issue can do more harm than good.
The Federal Court has warned employers against using redundancy "as a pretext for getting rid of an undesired employee" after a university failed to examine a head of school's true motives for proposing an academic's retrenchment.
Employers can significantly save on retrenchment costs - and reap other benefits - by setting up an internal redeployment function, but they're likely to encounter seven big obstacles, says Suncorp recruitment manager Davin D'Silva.
The most important aspect of a company restructure is the individual conversations managers have with the people who are losing their jobs, according to Lee Hecht Harrison managing director Bruce Anderson, who says organisations that do this well can actually strengthen their employer brand.
