Being absent from work because of a long-term health condition can already create uncertainty about income, recovery and returning to work. If your employer then announces redundancies, it is understandable to wonder whether being on sick leave puts your job at greater risk.
In the UK, an employee can be made redundant while on long-term sick leave, but sickness itself should not be used as a convenient reason to select someone for redundancy. A genuine redundancy normally arises because the employer needs fewer employees, a particular role is disappearing, a workplace is closing or the organisation is restructuring.
Employees who are absent because of illness should still be included fairly in the redundancy process. Where a long-term condition amounts to a disability under the Equality Act 2010, additional protections against disability discrimination and duties relating to reasonable adjustments may also apply.
Understanding the difference between redundancy, capability dismissal and sickness absence is therefore particularly important.
Can You Be Made Redundant While on Long-Term Sick Leave?
Yes. Being signed off work does not automatically prevent an employer from making your role redundant.
For example, a company might close a department containing ten positions. One employee happens to have been absent for several months because of illness. That employee’s absence does not necessarily prevent their position from being included in the restructuring.
However, the employer should be able to demonstrate that there is a genuine redundancy situation and that a fair process has been followed.
According to Acas guidance, employers considering redundancies should keep employees who are off sick updated during the process. Excluding someone from important information or stages of the process because they are absent could create legal problems, particularly where their absence relates to a disability or pregnancy.
The central question is therefore not simply whether an employee is sick. It is why the position is being removed and how the employee has been treated during the redundancy process.
What Is the Difference Between Redundancy and Ill-Health Dismissal?
Redundancy and dismissal because of capability are different employment situations.
| Issue | Redundancy | Ill-health capability |
|---|---|---|
| Main reason | The employer’s need for the role or workforce has reduced | The employee may no longer be capable of performing the role |
| Focus | The job or organisational requirement | The employee’s ability to work |
| Consultation | Normally required as part of a fair process | Employer should investigate and discuss the situation |
| Disability considerations | Selection must not discriminate | Reasonable adjustments may need to be considered |
| Redundancy payment | May be payable if eligibility conditions are met | Statutory redundancy pay does not automatically apply |
Long-term illness can sometimes eventually lead to dismissal on capability grounds if the employee cannot perform their job. But employers should first consider ways of supporting the employee, allow reasonable recovery time and consider their obligations towards disabled employees.
Calling a capability issue a “redundancy” does not automatically make it one. The circumstances and genuine reason for termination matter.
Does Long-Term Sickness Count as a Disability?
Some long-term health conditions may meet the legal definition of disability under the Equality Act 2010, although not every illness or period of sickness absence will qualify.
Where an employee is disabled, the employer must not discriminate against them because of their disability. Employers can also have a duty to make reasonable adjustments where a disabled employee would otherwise be substantially disadvantaged.
Depending on the circumstances, adjustments could include changing working hours, altering duties, modifying equipment, changing the workplace or arranging a phased return.
This becomes particularly important when redundancy selection criteria include attendance records.
An employer should consider whether sickness absence connected with a disability could unfairly disadvantage the employee and whether adjustments to the process or criteria are appropriate.
Can Sickness Absence Be Used to Select Someone for Redundancy?
Redundancy selection should be fair and objective. Employers may consider factors such as skills, qualifications, experience, performance or disciplinary records, depending on the circumstances.
Using attendance requires particular care.
If an employee has accumulated significant absence because of a disability, simply treating those absences in exactly the same way as ordinary absence could potentially create discrimination concerns.
Employees concerned that their health has influenced a redundancy decision should ask how the selection criteria were designed, how their score was calculated and whether disability-related absences were considered appropriately.
This is also where people sometimes encounter the phrase medical redundancy. It is important to establish whether the employer is genuinely proposing redundancy or is actually considering ending employment because the employee is unable to continue performing the job.
Should You Still Be Consulted While Off Sick?
Being absent from the workplace does not mean an employee should simply disappear from the redundancy process.
Consultation should be genuine and meaningful. It gives affected employees an opportunity to understand why redundancy is proposed, question the selection process, suggest alternatives and discuss other available roles.
An employer may need to adapt the way consultation takes place for someone on long-term sick leave.
How Can Consultation Take Place During Sickness?
Depending on the employee’s condition, communication might take place through telephone calls, video meetings, written correspondence or another suitable arrangement.
The approach should take account of the employee’s health and, where applicable, reasonable-adjustment requirements.
The employee should still receive important documents and information, including details of the proposed restructuring, selection criteria and alternative vacancies where relevant.
For larger redundancy exercises, additional collective consultation rules can apply. Where an employer proposes 20 or more redundancies at one establishment within 90 days, collective consultation requirements generally apply.
What Happens to Your Redundancy Pay?
Long-term sickness does not automatically remove an employee’s entitlement to statutory redundancy pay.
Employees will normally qualify for statutory redundancy pay if they have employee status and at least two years of continuous service.
The statutory calculation takes account of age, length of service and weekly pay, subject to legal limits.
For redundancies taking effect on or after 6 April 2026, the statutory weekly pay cap is £751, while no more than 20 years of service can be counted. This means the maximum statutory redundancy payment is £22,530.
Some employment contracts or workplace policies provide enhanced redundancy packages above the statutory minimum, so employees should check their contract and any redundancy policy rather than assuming the statutory amount is all they can receive.
What About Notice Pay and Holiday Pay?
Redundancy pay is only one part of the financial picture.
An employee may also have rights relating to contractual or statutory notice, accrued but unused holiday and other outstanding contractual payments.
Sickness during a notice period can make the calculation of notice pay more complicated because entitlement can depend on the employee’s contractual notice period and the reason employment is ending.
Employees should therefore request a clear written breakdown of their final payment rather than relying only on the headline redundancy figure.
Should Your Employer Look for Another Job for You?
Suitable alternative employment is another important part of redundancy.
If an appropriate vacancy exists within the organisation, the employer may offer it to an employee whose existing role is disappearing.
For somebody returning from long-term sickness, the suitability of an alternative position may need to be considered alongside their current capabilities and any reasonable adjustments required because of a disability.
A different working pattern, adjusted responsibilities or workplace changes could sometimes make an alternative role viable.
Employees should therefore review vacancies carefully rather than assuming that being on sick leave prevents them from being considered for another position.
What Should You Do If You Think the Redundancy Is Unfair?
Start by asking the employer to explain the business reason for the redundancy and the process used to select employees.
Keep copies of redundancy letters, consultation documents, selection scores, emails and relevant employment policies. It can also be useful to retain records showing when your employer became aware of your health condition and any adjustments previously discussed.
Questions worth raising include:
- Why is my role at risk?
- What selection criteria were used?
- How was sickness absence treated?
- Were disability-related absences adjusted or considered separately?
- What alternative roles were considered?
- Is there an appeal process?
If the explanation does not resolve your concerns, you may want to speak with your trade union, Acas, Citizens Advice or an employment-law professional.
Employment tribunal claims are subject to strict time limits, so employees considering formal action should seek advice promptly rather than waiting until a dispute has continued for months.
Can an Employer Dismiss Someone Because They Are Too Ill to Work?
Potentially, but this is not necessarily redundancy.
Government guidance states that persistent or long-term illness can potentially result in dismissal where it makes it impossible for an employee to perform their job. Before taking such action, however, an employer should consider ways of supporting the employee and allow reasonable time for recovery.
Where the condition is a disability, reasonable-adjustment duties may also apply.
The employer might consider changes to duties, workplace equipment, working arrangements, reduced hours, a phased return or another suitable role before concluding that employment cannot continue.
Whether dismissal is fair will depend on the individual facts and the process followed.
What Rights Should Employees Remember During Long-Term Sickness and Redundancy?
Long-term sickness does not provide complete protection against redundancy, but neither does it remove normal employment rights.
A genuinely redundant role can disappear while its holder is on sick leave. What matters is that the business reason is genuine, the selection process is fair, consultation is meaningful and the employee is not disadvantaged unlawfully because of disability or another protected characteristic.
Employees should pay particular attention to how sickness absence has been treated in selection scoring, whether they have been properly included in consultation, whether suitable alternative employment has been explored and whether reasonable adjustments have been considered.
Final Thoughts
Long-term sickness and redundancy can overlap, but they should not be confused.
An employer may have a legitimate business reason for removing a role even while its holder is absent through illness. At the same time, the employee retains important rights relating to fair selection, consultation, notice, potential redundancy pay and protection against unlawful discrimination.
Where a health condition could amount to a disability, the Equality Act 2010 can add another important layer of protection, including the employer’s duty to consider reasonable adjustments.
If you are facing redundancy while on long-term sick leave, ask for the reasons, selection criteria and calculations in writing. Understanding whether the issue is genuinely redundancy or is actually connected to your ability to work can make a significant difference when deciding what to do next.
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