Credit Crunch

Redundancy and how to deal with it

With so many of the biggest names in UK business going under there are going to be thousands of redundancies, so what do you do when you get the dreaded letter telling you you’re being made redundant?

First, try not to panic, which is easier said than done with bills to pay and Christmas around the corner, but there is help out there; you just need to know where to look.

For a start, make sure that your employer pays you everything you’re owed, and if you’re in any doubt, contact the Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service (Acas) who offer free, confidential and impartial advice on all employment rights issues. You can call the Acas helpline on 08457 47 47 47 from 8.00 am to 6.00 pm Monday to Friday.

Then you’ll probably need to claim benefits. Don’t put it off thinking you’ll get another job quickly because chances are, thousands of your fellow workers are thinking the same and now is not the best of times to be out of work. You can find details of benefits and how to apply for them at www.direct.gov.uk

Next, write to all your creditors explaining what’s happened and set up an arrangement – before you get into arrears if possible – to pay what you owe. The CCCS www.cccs.co.uk will help you with this or your local Citizen’s Advice will work out a repayment plan with you too. You can find your nearest office here www.citizensadvice.org.uk/index/getadvice#txt_getadvice_header-Anchor-search

Finally, even though jobs are scarce, they’re not non-existent and you can find lots of help and advice on job hunting here www.direct.gov.uk/en/Employment/Jobseekers/LookingForWork/index.htm