Am I entitled to a redundancy payout after my civil service role is cut?

The situation

I have been working in a public office role within the UK civil service for the last twelve years. My position is tied to a specific government department, and my entire pension scheme is managed through the state superannuation system. Unfortunately, my manager sat me down yesterday, the 14th of May, to inform me that due to a massive departmental restructuring programme, my specific post is being made redundant effective at the end of next month. They mentioned that because of the nature of my public office appointment, I won't be receiving any statutory redundancy pay, even though I have over a decade of continuous service. I have already checked my initial employment contract from when I started in 2012, and it doesn't explicitly mention anything about losing redundancy rights, though it does note my status as a public official. I am quite distressed because I was counting on a lump sum to help cover my mortgage payments while I look for new work. I am unsure if this rule about public offices is actually enforceable in my specific case, or if I am being unfairly denied the redundancy money that a normal employee with my length of service would usually get.

Detailed Analysis

Based on the information you provided, your manager's statement appears to be legally correct under the Employment Rights Act 1996. Redundancy pay is a lump sum of money paid to an employee when their job is no longer needed. However, certain types of government work are exempt from this requirement.

The law states that "A person does not have any right to a redundancy payment in respect of any employment which— a is employment in a public office within the meaning of section 39 of the Superannuation Act 1965"^[1]. This means that if your specific position is classified as a 'public office' under that specific 1965 Act, you do not have a legal right to claim redundancy money^[1].

Furthermore, the law applies to roles that are "for the purposes of pensions and other superannuation benefits treated... as service in the civil service of the State"^[1]. Since you mentioned your entire pension is managed through the state superannuation system, your role likely falls into this category^[1]. This exclusion is designed to account for the specific way public officials are compensated and pensioned compared to standard employees^[1].

While the law for overseas territories also denies redundancy rights^[2], your situation is primarily governed by your status as a public official within the UK^[1]. Because your contract notes your status as a public official and your pension is state-managed, the statutory rules for regular employees do not apply to you.

Please note that state, provincial or local law may add further rules, and you should check your specific local government regulations.

Statutory Citations

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