How to decide which employees to include in a redundancy pool

By Lavina Daryanani

Creating a fair and legally compliant redundancy pool is one of the most important steps in any redundancy process, and a key responsibility for HR professionals.

Getting this stage right helps ensure objectivity, transparency, and defensible decision‑making, while mistakes can lead to discrimination claims, employee relations issues, and costly tribunal outcomes.

Identifying who should be included in the redundancy pool requires careful evaluation of roles, skills, organisational structure, and legitimate business needs. HR teams must balance operational requirements with statutory obligations, ensuring that every selection decision is evidence‑based, consistent, and aligned with employment law.

Our guide provides clear, practical advice to help HR professionals confidently determine the right employees for a redundancy pool, minimise legal risk, and maintain a fair and robust redundancy process from the outset.

In this guide, learn about:

• The requirement for a selection pool
• Which employees should be included in the pool?
• Associated employers
• Bumping redundancies
• Fixed-term and part-time employees
• Contractors and agency workers
• Conclusion

Want to see more?

For full access to How to decide which employees to include in a redundancy pool, sign up to a HR and Compliance Centre subscription today.