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When the economic and financial health of a company is at risk, it may sometimes be necessary to proceed with redundancies. These may occur to reduce salary and overhead costs, or because certain positions are no longer viable given the company’s situation.
To protect employees, various measures can (or must) be implemented, such as:
Who does it concern? What does it consist of? How does it support employees in practice? Here are the answers to these key questions.
A Redundancy Protection Plan is a set of measures designed to avoid as many redundancies as possible and to provide redeployment solutions for employees who are laid off.
It is a mandatory procedure for any company with 50 or more employees, when it plans to make at least 10 redundancies within a 30-day period.
The plan may be negotiated with trade unions (collective agreement) or drawn up unilaterally by the employer. In the latter case, the employer must submit the plan for consultation with the company’s Social and Economic Committee (CSE), which may request the support of a chartered accountant.
To be validated by the relevant authorities, a Redundancy Protection Plan must follow strict rules and include a set of mandatory measures.
These measures fall into two categories:
Examples of measures include:
Additional optional measures may also be added, such as:
Whether the company is legally required to introduce a plan or chooses to do so voluntarily, the steps are the same.
The employer must first analyze in depth the economic, technological, or organizational difficulties justifying redundancies.
Then, assess the impact on the company and staff:
Employee consultation is an essential step. This may involve trade unions, works councils, or other representative bodies, depending on local laws.
The aim is to identify alternatives to redundancy and to discuss measures that best support employees.
In some jurisdictions, redundancy plans must be reviewed and approved by labour authorities before implementation. Authorities may request changes to strengthen employee protection or ensure fairness.
Once approved, the company must roll out the measures (redeployment, training, financial assistance, etc.) and ensure they are properly followed. In many countries, a final report must confirm that commitments have been respected.
While sometimes seen as a legal burden, a well-prepared redundancy protection plan can have a profound impact on employee well-being.
Key benefits include:
In short, in what could otherwise be an anxious and conflictual process, a well-structured redundancy protection plan not only protects livelihoods but also safeguards mental health at work.
To go even further, you can complement such measures with individual support solutions for stress and mental health management—ensuring that well-being remains a pillar of your HR strategy even beyond restructuring phases.
