If an employee refuses an offer of suitable alternative employment in a redundancy situation, and their employment comes to an end, this is a dismissal for redundancy, not a resignation. If the refusal of the offer of suitable alternative employment is unreasonable, the employee will not be entitled to a redundancy payment (s.141 of the Employment Rights Act 1996), but refusing the offer does not turn a redundancy dismissal into a resignation.
Employers should be cautious about withholding a redundancy payment in these circumstances because whether or not a refusal of an offer of alternative employment is unreasonable will depend on the particular circumstances, including the employee’s personal situation, and will ultimately be for a tribunal to decide.
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