Alternatives to redundancy for the leisure, food and drink sector

Redundancy is a tried and tested method for reducing cost in a business. However, it can be expensive and risks losing valuable staff, not to mention the negative impact on staff morale and reputational issues.

As leisure, food and drink operators transform their businesses in response to the pandemic, there could also be opportunities for redeployment to support new growth areas.

In this presentation, Ed Cotton walks through the various alternatives to redundancy and explains why they might deliver a more favourable outcome, especially if you’re looking for a more short-term solution.

He explains how they work, his experiences and shares his advice. 

If you'd like to skip to certain sections, you can use the timestamps below: 

• 3:00 – reducing headcount (including early retirement, voluntary redundancy, withdrawing job offers, redeployment and secondments)
• 15:08 – temporary stoppages (including sabbaticals, unpaid leave and holidays)
• 20:22 – reducing hours (including job shares, flexible working, voluntary overtime ban, lay-offs and short-time working)
• 26:34 – reducing costs (including pay freezes, pay cuts, no bonuses, and changing terms of employment)
• 36:40 – government schemes