The ACAS guide gives a number of principles for best practice when implementing redundancies, and stresses that employers should endeavour to incorporate these principles into a formal written agreement with the recognised trade union or employee representatives.

The best practices which the ACAS guide promotes are that employers should:

• give plenty of warning
• enter into consultation with recognised trade unions or employee representatives to examine ways of avoiding the redundancies or of reducing the number of staff involved
• try to achieve the reduction in staff with as little hardship as possible and in a fair manner
• look at alternatives to dismissal
• enter into consultation with recognised trade unions or employee representatives about the selection criteria to be used and the way in which they will be applied
• make sure that the selection criteria to be used are both fair and objective.