Furloughed Staff And Redundancy

Furloughed workers have the same redundancy rights as other employees, including protection from unfair dismissal and discrimination.

While it may be legitimate for employers to make furloughed staff or those who have returned from furlough redundant, they should ensure the usual redundancy requirements are satisfied. In short, the redundancy must be genuine and a fair redundancy process should be followed.

Government guidance is clear as far as statutory entitlements are concerned. An employee who is made redundant while on or returning from furlough will be entitled to a statutory redundancy payment if they have two years' continuous employment, as well as any contractual redundancy entitlement. That redundancy payment should be based on their normal wage, ie their pre-furlough salary.