A human resources expert specialising in all matters redundancy is urging Oxfordshire companies considering making layoffs to proceed with caution and ensure they are getting it right for both the company and its people.
With recent layoffs at several high-profile organisations making the news, redundancy expert Jill Aburrow is urging companies looking to follow suit to ensure they go about it the right way.
Jill Aburrow is the director of human resources consultancy Heartfelt HR, and author of the bestselling book “Redundancy With Love: Getting it right for your people and your business”. Her aim is to make the redundancy process easier and more positive for everyone involved: managers; HR support; redundant employees; and those who survive the process still in their roles.
Cost-cutting exercises and the rise of AI has seen a number of high-profile businesses announce redundancy plans in recent weeks and months. After mass redundancies in the tech industry over the past year, the trend has continued – and spread – with big names like BT projecting to axe up to 55,000 jobs by 2030 and Amazon unable to confirm whether the 9,000 expected redundancies at the company would affect staff at its Oxfordshire warehouse in Banbury. Eye-catching figures like these may well just the tip of the iceberg, though, with a staggering quarter of UK organisations expected to make redundancies in 2023.
Against this backdrop, Aburrow is concerned that many Oxfordshire business leaders could follow suit and embark on redundancies as a “quick-fix” to cutting costs, without properly accounting for the complexities it can present to both the business and the people within it.
Aburrow said: “Making redundancies has become a common part of the business climate, but it’s crucial not to ignore the human aspect. Layoffs can have a serious potential emotional toll for everyone involved, which almost inevitably affects how a business continues to perform.
“Over more than 30 years working in HR, I have discovered and developed ways to mitigate these risks, but it requires a genuine commitment to the process, from proper planning, through to delivery and post-redundancy support.
“I strongly urge any companies considering making redundancies to ensure they have taken the time to undertake the process in the best possible way.”
