Redundancy Effects Claiming Benefits?

[rowenj]

There will be new owners taking over a buisiness I work for. The present owners have told us that likely we will be given a choice: take a redundancy package or stay on with reduced wages and a sweetner to stay. So my question is: If i take the redundancy payment will I have to use that up before I can claim benefits related to looking for new work? Will dss say that I could have stayed on and that I am out of a job by choice? I know leaving a job by choice means waiting six weeks before you can then claim but even then would they say, you need to live off that redundancy payment first? Please no guesses, I'd be very grateful to hear from people who know, this saves a lot of hassle in the future. Thanks in advance.

[ubasses]

If you have enough NIS contributions you will be able to claim job seekers allowance without being means tested.

[Gizmonster]

I'm sure (ish) that you're only allowed a certain amount of savings before your claim is affected.
The fact that you've're getting paid redundancy pay is irrelevent, it all depends how much savings you've got.

Take a look at:

https://www.gov.uk/jobseekers-allowance/overview

.... and click on part 3, eligibility.
It states:
"Your household income can affect how much you get too. This includes money from savings (if you have £6,000 or more), pensions and earnings. "

[buildersmate]

If you've been earning enough to be paying NI contributions whilst in work (at least £146 per week), DWP would permit you to claim Contribution-based JSA for 6 months, any savings you may have are irrelevant. Gizmonster is referring to Income-based JSA, which can be claimed only if one is disbarred from claiming the other type of JSA.

You need to ask your employer how it proposes to deal with the redundancies; when I have been involved in this, we have agreed with employees that it will be stated that the employer made them redundant: fact, without any elaboration about volunteers etc. As far as I know, this holds water with DWP. Unless the system has changed, on receipt of a new applicant who states his/her employment ended because of redundancy, DWP contacts the employer to seek confirmation that this is indeed the case and that is the end of the matter.

BTW if an employee resigns from a job (not redundancy or another form of dismissal) he/she is disbarred from claiming any type of JSA for 12 weeks, not 6, as you believe.

[THECORBYLOON]

BM the sanction period for the first transgression as it is called now is thirteen weeks or the period between the employment ending and the end of the contract if that is shorter. The sanction is reduced by the number of days between the employment ending and the date of claim. Under the new sanctions legislation introduced in October last year, under certain circumstances such as refusing a series of job offers, JSA can be sanctioned for up to 156 weeks. Good reason has to be shown to prevent a sanction being imposed for leaving voluntarily. Although a person may volunteer to accept redundancy, as long as they have received a statutory redundancy payment, it will not be treated as leaving voluntarily.

[buildersmate]

Thanks, CL. My knowledge of this is gradually becoming less current and I'm going to have to check details more often before any posting, to keep up-to-date with current legislation.

[THECORBYLOON]

Morning bm, when you do look up the Regulations you'll see references to "sanctionable failure" rather than transgression. Transgression is what we call it, not sure if that's because it's easier to understand or because it's shorter.

[buildersmate]

This clearly is one of your 'specialist subjects'

You said earlier "Although a person may volunteer to accept redundancy, as long as they have received a statutory redundancy payment, it will not be treated as leaving voluntarily". Is that the same as I implied then? - or could a volunteering employee be barred by DWP from claiming CB-JSA if the payment made was GREATER than the statutory amount. (Clearly a redundancy deal is structured as a 'statutory redundancy sum' and an 'ex-gratia' payment in the paperwork, if the employee is to receive more than the statutory sum).

[THECORBYLOON]

The Statutory Redundancy Payment confirms it is a genuine redundancy situation, if the employer pays more, that is up to them. The thinking behind it is that someone would have left so it is not fair to sanction the ones who volunteered.