Does my employer have to consult me before making me redundant?

Yes. Your employer must consult with you individually before making a final decision. This means a genuine discussion about why the redundancy is happening, whether it can be avoided, and what alternatives exist. A one-way announcement doesn't count.

What happens if my employer didn't consult me?

Failing to consult is a process failure that could make your redundancy unfair. This gives you grounds for an unfair dismissal claim, which in turn gives you leverage to negotiate a better package.

How long should redundancy consultation last?

There's no fixed minimum for individual consultation, but it must be meaningful. For collective redundancies of 20 to 99 people, consultation must start at least 30 days before dismissals. For 100 or more, it's 45 days.

My Employer Didn't Consult Me Before Redundancy. What Can I Do?

Nothing quite beats the feeling of being called into a meeting and told your job's gone before anyone bothered to ask your opinion. If that sounds familiar, read on.

If your employer told you that you were being made redundant without properly consulting you first, they've likely made a serious mistake. And that mistake is worth money to you.

Consultation isn't optional. It's a legal requirement. If your employer skipped it or just went through the motions, your redundancy may be unfair, and that gives you real leverage.

What consultation actually means

Consultation means your employer sits down with you and has a genuine two-way conversation before any final decision is made. It has to cover:

Why the redundancy is happening
Whether it can be avoided
What the selection criteria are and how they were applied to you
Whether there are alternative roles you could move into

The key word is "genuine." If your employer called you into a meeting, told you the decision had already been made, and handed you a letter, that's not consultation. That's an announcement. And it's not good enough.

The leading case on this is Polkey v AE Dayton Services [1987] UKHL 8, which established that even if the redundancy itself is genuine, failing to follow a fair process can make the dismissal unfair.

Individual vs collective consultation

There are two types of consultation and your employer may need to do both.

Individual consultation is between your employer and you personally. Every redundancy requires this, regardless of how many people are affected. Your employer needs to meet with you, explain the situation, listen to your input, and genuinely consider what you say before making a final decision.

Collective consultation kicks in when your employer is making 20 or more people redundant within 90 days. They must consult with employee representatives (or a trade union if there is one) and notify the government. The minimum timescales are:

20 to 99 redundancies: consultation must start at least 30 days before the first dismissal
100 or more redundancies: consultation must start at least 45 days before

These rules come from TULRCA 1992, s.188. If your employer didn't follow them, affected employees can claim a "protective award" of up to 90 days' pay each (increasing to 180 days from April 2026).

Signs that consultation wasn't genuine

Ask yourself these questions:

Were you told the decision had already been made?
Did the meeting feel like a formality rather than a real discussion?
Were your suggestions or objections ignored?
Was the whole thing done in a single meeting with no follow-up?
Were you given a deadline to accept before you'd had a chance to respond properly?

If the answer to any of these is yes, the consultation probably wasn't genuine.

What this means for you

A failure to consult properly is one of the strongest cards you can play in a redundancy negotiation. Here's why.

If you brought an unfair dismissal claim at a tribunal, your employer would need to show they followed a fair process. If they can't show genuine consultation, they're at risk of losing. That means compensation for you and legal costs for them.

Most employers would rather avoid that. So when you raise consultation failures in a negotiation, you're not bluffing. You're pointing to a real legal risk that has a real cost attached to it.

What to do now

Document everything. Write down what happened and when. What meetings took place? What was said? Were you given any chance to respond? Keep copies of any letters, emails, or notes.

Put it in writing. Send your employer a calm, factual email or letter setting out that you don't believe proper consultation took place and explaining why. This creates a record.

Don't sign anything yet. If you've been offered a settlement agreement, you have time. Use the consultation failure as part of your negotiation for a better package.

Consider getting advice. If your employer is making 20 or more people redundant and didn't follow the collective consultation rules, the potential protective award is significant. A solicitor can tell you whether it's worth pursuing. Remember, if you're offered a settlement agreement, it's only valid if you've had independent legal advice from a solicitor (ERA 1996, s.203). Your employer pays for this.

This article is general guidance about UK redundancy rights. It's not legal advice and shouldn't be treated as a substitute for advice from a qualified employment solicitor.