Redundancy and Disability

Redundancy and Disability: Your Rights at Work

Around one in five working age adults in the UK has a disability, according to recent figures. If you are disabled and facing redundancy, you have specific legal protections that your employer must follow. Understanding these rights can help you spot when something has gone wrong and know what steps to take.

Redundancy can be stressful for anyone. For disabled workers, there may be added concerns about finding new employment or whether a disability has unfairly influenced the decision. The law sets out clear rules about how employers should handle redundancy when disabled employees are involved.

Legal Protection Under the Equality Act 2010

The Equality Act 2010 makes it unlawful for employers to discriminate against employees because of a disability. This protection applies throughout employment, including during redundancy processes.

Your employer cannot use your disability as a reason to select you for redundancy. Doing so could amount to direct discrimination, though any claim would need to be supported by evidence and assessed through proper legal processes. The law also protects against indirect discrimination, where a policy or practice puts disabled employees at a disadvantage compared to others.

To qualify for protection under the Act, a disability must have a substantial and long term effect on your ability to carry out normal daily activities. Long term generally means lasting, or likely to last, 12 months or more. Many conditions are covered, including physical impairments, mental health conditions, learning disabilities and some long term illnesses.

Certain conditions are automatically treated as disabilities under the Act from the point of diagnosis. These include cancer, HIV and multiple sclerosis. Other conditions may also qualify, so check the Equality Act itself or seek professional advice for a full picture.

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Reasonable Adjustments During Redundancy

Employers must make reasonable adjustments for disabled employees throughout the redundancy process, not just during ordinary working life.

Reasonable adjustments might include:

• Holding consultation meetings in accessible locations
• Providing information in different formats, such as large print or audio
• Allowing extra time to consider proposals and respond
• Permitting a support worker or companion to attend meetings
• Adjusting the timing or format of meetings to accommodate health needs
• Making changes to selection criteria that would otherwise disadvantage disabled employees

What counts as reasonable will depend on the circumstances. Factors include the size of the employer, the cost of the adjustment, and how practical it would be to implement. A large company will generally be expected to do more than a small business.

Your employer should discuss potential adjustments with you. If you need specific support during the redundancy process, let them know as early as possible.

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Fair Selection Criteria

When selecting employees for redundancy, employers must use fair and objective criteria. These criteria should not put disabled employees at a disadvantage without good reason.

Using attendance records as a selection factor could disadvantage someone whose absences relate to their disability. In such cases, employers may need to discount disability related absences or adjust how they apply the criteria.

Similarly, performance based criteria might need adjustment if a disability has affected someone's output, particularly if reasonable adjustments were not in place during the assessment period.

Employers should review their selection criteria carefully to check for any unintended discrimination. If you believe the criteria used have unfairly counted against you because of your disability, this may be grounds for a claim.

What to Do If You Think You Have Been Treated Unfairly

If you believe your disability has influenced your selection for redundancy, or that your employer has failed to make reasonable adjustments, there are steps you can take.

Start by raising your concerns through your employer's internal grievance procedure. Consider seeking advice from a solicitor or trade union representative at this stage. Put your complaint in writing and keep copies of all correspondence. Sometimes issues can be resolved internally without further action.

If internal processes do not resolve the matter, you may be able to bring a claim to an employment tribunal. Claims for disability discrimination must usually be started within three months less one day from the act you are complaining about. Before making a tribunal claim, you must notify Acas and go through early conciliation. This service is free and can extend the time limit for making a claim if you start conciliation within the original deadline.

Free advice is available from several sources. Acas offers guidance on workplace disputes and can help with conciliation. Citizens Advice provides information on employment rights and discrimination. The Equality and Human Rights Commission website has detailed resources on disability discrimination law.

You can check current redundancy pay rates and rules on GOV.UK, which also has information on your rights if you are facing redundancy.

Legal aid may be available for some discrimination cases depending on your circumstances. If your case is complex or you are unsure of your position, getting advice from a qualified employment solicitor or a trade union representative can help you understand your options before deciding how to proceed.

The Next Step

Now that you have read through the advice above, you might want to put it into practice. Our Redundancy Rights Checker lets you answer a few questions about your situation and find out whether your redundancy is fair and legal. Get clear guidance on your rights in under two minutes. Try it now →