The first thing to do is assess the situation in cool and calm manner, by determining the following:
- What redundancy pay are you entitled to?
- What state benefits are you entitled to, if any?
- What is your monthly income and expenditure?
- How can you balance your books?
- What support is available to you?
The answer to the last question is “quite a lot”, which will help you to answer the previous two questions.
Useful Links:
www.dti.gov.uk/er/redundancy.htm
www.acas.co.uk
www.nacab.org.uk
www.inlandrevenue.gov.uk
Explanation of the Useful Links:
- DTI, is the Department of Trade and Industry. This is probably the best web site to inform you about redundancy generally including your rights and entitlements. The address is www.dti.gov.uk/er/redundancy.htm and the most useful document is shown at the top of the list which is presented to you on the home page, it is called “Redundancy entitlement – statutory rights: a guide for employees”, the Frequently Asked Questions document is also good.
- ACAS is the Advisory Conciliation and Arbitration Service, they can be contacted on 08457 474747 and they usually answer on the first ring. They have a web site www.acas.co.uk this is particularly useful if you want to check whether any of your rights have been infringed by your dismissal from your job. If you go to their home page and click on “Rights at Work”, this is an excellent section. Another very useful link on the home page is “Helpline Top 10”, which lists the most common topics that ACAS are asked about.
- The Citizens Advice Bureau (CAB) is a useful source of general information and they may have an office near you, however they are very busy and you may have to wait some time if you visit them in person. Their web address is www.nacab.org.uk and they have a very good al round site covering a number of areas, the site will also allow you to find your nearest CAB office.
- Inland Revenue, the taxman has a useful summary of what will be taxed and what you should get from your employer. This can be found at www.inlandrevenue.gov.uk by going to the search box and entering the word “Redundancy”, the best document usually appears at the top of the list and is pamphlet number IR413.