Personnel Today
  • Home
    • All PT content
  • Email sign-up
  • Topics
    • HR Practice
    • Employee relations
    • Learning & training
    • Pay & benefits
    • Wellbeing
    • Recruitment & retention
    • HR strategy
    • HR Tech
    • The HR profession
    • Global
    • All HR topics
  • Legal
    • Case law
    • Commentary
    • Flexible working
    • Legal timetable
    • Maternity & paternity
    • Shared parental leave
    • Redundancy
    • TUPE
    • Disciplinary and grievances
    • Employer’s guides
  • AWARDS
    • Personnel Today Awards
    • The RAD Awards
  • Jobs
    • Find a job
    • Jobs by email
    • Careers advice
    • Post a job
  • Brightmine
    • Learn more
    • Products
    • Free trial
    • Request a quote
  • Webinars
  • Advertise
  • OHW+

Personnel Today

Register
Log in
Personnel Today
  • Home
    • All PT content
  • Email sign-up
  • Topics
    • HR Practice
    • Employee relations
    • Learning & training
    • Pay & benefits
    • Wellbeing
    • Recruitment & retention
    • HR strategy
    • HR Tech
    • The HR profession
    • Global
    • All HR topics
  • Legal
    • Case law
    • Commentary
    • Flexible working
    • Legal timetable
    • Maternity & paternity
    • Shared parental leave
    • Redundancy
    • TUPE
    • Disciplinary and grievances
    • Employer’s guides
  • AWARDS
    • Personnel Today Awards
    • The RAD Awards
  • Jobs
    • Find a job
    • Jobs by email
    • Careers advice
    • Post a job
  • Brightmine
    • Learn more
    • Products
    • Free trial
    • Request a quote
  • Webinars
  • Advertise
  • OHW+

Notice periodsRedundancyPayment in lieu of notice (PILON)

How do you calculate redundancy pay when making a payment in lieu of notice (PILON)?

by Susie Munro 11 Nov 2015
by Susie Munro 11 Nov 2015 Calculating redundancy pay can become more complex when there is a PILON
Calculating redundancy pay can become more complex when there is a PILON

Redundancy payments are calculated based on an employee’s length of service. But what happens if an employee who is paid in lieu of notice would have completed another year’s service if he or she had worked the notice period?

PILON and redundancy pay resources

Workflow: Conduct a redundancy process

How to make a payment in lieu of notice (PILON)

Task: Make a statutory redundancy payment

Redundancy pay and length of service

The Employment Rights Act 1996 sets out the rules for calculating a statutory redundancy payment. For each complete year of service with the employer, the employee is entitled to between half a week’s pay and one and a half weeks’ pay, depending on his or her age.

The “relevant date” and PILON

The employee’s length of service must be calculated as at the “relevant date”. If the employee is dismissed with notice, this is the date on which notice of termination expires and the employment comes to an end.

But the position is different if the employee is dismissed without notice, including the common scenario where a redundant employee is given a payment in lieu of notice (PILON).

Where an employee is dismissed without the statutory minimum notice, the relevant date for calculating length of service is the date on which the statutory minimum notice would have expired had it been given.

Adding on the statutory minimum notice period

Employees are entitled to statutory minimum notice of one week after one month’s service, two weeks after two years’ service, then an additional week for each year’s service, up to a maximum of 12 weeks’ notice.

PILON FAQ:

How should an employer calculate a redundant employee’s length of service for the purposes of redundancy pay if the employee is paid in lieu of notice?

So where an employee is dismissed without notice (but receives a payment in lieu of notice), the employer should add on the minimum statutory notice period to the employee’s service as at the date on which the employment ends.

Sign up to our weekly round-up of HR news and guidance

Receive the Personnel Today Direct e-newsletter every Wednesday

OptOut
This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

This might take the employee past an anniversary, entitling him or her to more redundancy pay. For example, an employee who is made redundant after seven years and 11 months’ service would be entitled to a minimum notice period of seven weeks.

If the employee is paid in lieu of notice, the employer should add on seven weeks to the employee’s length of service, which would take him or her past the eight-year anniversary. The employee would therefore be entitled to a higher redundancy payment.

Susie Munro

Susie Munro joined the XpertHR editorial team in 2009 having previously worked for Age Concern England where she developed a particular interest in age discrimination and mandatory retirement. She has advised on and written a wide variety of information materials on this developing area of law, as well as other aspects of the employment relationship. Susie qualified as a solicitor in 2004, specialising in employment law, and worked in private practice for a firm in Birmingham.

previous post
Is HR too focused on talent?
next post
VW whistleblowing: the cost of ineffective disclosure procedures

You may also like

Tribunal finds need for degree in redundancy selection...

14 May 2025

Construction workers win compensation claim against defunct employer

9 May 2025

British Steel puts brakes on redundancy process

23 Apr 2025

British Steel: MPs recalled to enable nationalisation

11 Apr 2025

Met Police cuts 1,700 officers and staff in...

3 Apr 2025

Top 10 HR questions March 2025: Carrying over...

2 Apr 2025

Sky to close call centres cutting 2,000 jobs

28 Mar 2025

Reasons behind Dundee University job losses to be...

28 Mar 2025

British Steel to shed 2,700 jobs at Scunthorpe...

27 Mar 2025

April 2025: What’s coming up for HR?

21 Mar 2025

  • 2025 Employee Communications Report PROMOTED | HR and leadership...Read more
  • The Majority of Employees Have Their Eyes on Their Next Move PROMOTED | A staggering 65%...Read more
  • Prioritising performance management: Strategies for success (webinar) WEBINAR | In today’s fast-paced...Read more
  • Self-Leadership: The Key to Successful Organisations PROMOTED | Eletive is helping businesses...Read more
  • Retaining Female Talent: Four Ways to Reduce Workplace Drop Out PROMOTED | International Women’s Day...Read more

Personnel Today Jobs
 

Search Jobs

PERSONNEL TODAY

About us
Contact us
Browse all HR topics
Email newsletters
Content feeds
Cookies policy
Privacy policy
Terms and conditions

JOBS

Personnel Today Jobs
Post a job
Why advertise with us?

EVENTS & PRODUCTS

The Personnel Today Awards
The RAD Awards
Employee Benefits
Forum for Expatriate Management
OHW+
Whatmedia

ADVERTISING & PR

Advertising opportunities
Features list 2025

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram
  • Linkedin


© 2011 - 2025 DVV Media International Ltd

Personnel Today
  • Home
    • All PT content
  • Email sign-up
  • Topics
    • HR Practice
    • Employee relations
    • Learning & training
    • Pay & benefits
    • Wellbeing
    • Recruitment & retention
    • HR strategy
    • HR Tech
    • The HR profession
    • Global
    • All HR topics
  • Legal
    • Case law
    • Commentary
    • Flexible working
    • Legal timetable
    • Maternity & paternity
    • Shared parental leave
    • Redundancy
    • TUPE
    • Disciplinary and grievances
    • Employer’s guides
  • AWARDS
    • Personnel Today Awards
    • The RAD Awards
  • Jobs
    • Find a job
    • Jobs by email
    • Careers advice
    • Post a job
  • Brightmine
    • Learn more
    • Products
    • Free trial
    • Request a quote
  • Webinars
  • Advertise
  • OHW+