Making nanny redundant and SSP

[loueytbg]

I've already posted on the nanny board about this and they suggested posting here too.

In short, our nanny is having an operation at the end of May and will be off for 8 weeks. I am pg and will be going on maternity leave at the end of August when we will no longer need the nanny and will be making her redundant.

Initially we gave the nanny the choice of

1. leaving at the May and getting 2 wks holiday pay (equivalent to what she will be owed at the end of August) and 2 weeks redundancy pay.
   
   
2. having the op, going on SSP for 8 weeks and then coming back for a month before we make her redundant (when she will get 2 weeks redundancy pay + any outstanding holiday paid).
   
   
3. cancelling the op (which she suggested initially) and working until the end of August.
   
   She has ruled out 3 and suggested last night she is going to take option 1. This is the worst case for us as DS's will be passed around 3 different types of childcare for the summer and then will have the additional disruption of DC3 arriving at the end of September. I wish we hadn't now given her that option.
   
   DH wants to make her redundant at the end of May but I'm concerned that now we have given her the choice (in an email), we can't go back on that. Any views from an employment law perspective???
   
   Also, can anyone tell me how SSP works in practice - do we pay her and then claim it back or would she be paid directly by the government?
   
   TIA

[RibenaBerry]

You can't make her redundant in May because she won't be redundant until August. Sorry.

If she leaves in May it is presumably a resignation? Either that or you'd have to argue it was a dismissal by mutual consent. It's not a redundancy.

Not sure about SSP, have you looked on Directgov and businesslink?

[loueytbg]

Sorry - didn't make it clear - I think we can make her redundant in May if we don't need a nanny any more.

By putting the DS's into a childminder, the nanny role is redundant. At least that was the feedback I got from the nannies on the other thread - but I need to know if this is correct.

[RibenaBerry]

Yes, if you decide to move to using a childminder you have a potential redundancy situation in respect of the nanny role.

[loueytbg]

The logic is that we need a CM in September for 2-3 afternoons a week, so it would make sense to find one who can take DS's from June rather than chopping and changing childcare all summer.

[RibenaBerry]

Er, actually I'd be a bit careful about that.

You are saying "the disruption of you being ill has made us decide to do a redundancy earlier than we would otherwise have done..." That's potentially unfair.

It's all unlikely to be a problem if done in agreement with your nany, but I wouldn't bring forward a decision about a childminder because of an illness.

[loueytbg]

See what you mean Ribena.

I've just worked out the difference in cost between a CM for 4 days and our current nanny for 4 days and we will be approx £700 better off a month . So another tack might be that we make her redundant on cost grounds. However, this has all come to a head because of her sick leave and having to look at alternative childcare.

[RibenaBerry]

No, no it hasn't. It has all come to a head because of having to review your finances whilst planning for no. 2

As long as the nanny is happy, you shouldn't have a problem, it's just about making sure your 'officially' right too.

[AxisofEvil]

Given the cost difference you could of course offer her some additional cash to go when you want her to.

[EColi]

Why would you pay her holiday pay if she comes back for the month post-op? Tell her she can take 2 of those weeks as her holiday. Then she leaves with redundancy pay.

[RibenaBerry]

E Coli - the nanny could choose to do that, but you can't make her take holiday instead of sick leave....

[EColi]

Not instead of sick leave, instead of having her work ( once fit after the op) for one month and then paying her holiday pay and redundancy pay. If she wants to come back to work after the op I would say that 2 weeks were holiday.

[EColi]

OP is she wanting option 1 (leave in may ) or 2 (come back for a month). From your other thread I thought she wanted to come back for the month.

[RibenaBerry]

Oh, I see, yes...

[loueytbg]

She wants option 2 (come back for a month). She is concerned about having a 2 month gap on her CV if she leaves at the end of May because she won't be able to start looking for a job until she has recovered from the op at the end of July.

EColi - you may have hit on a solution though - if we effectively employ her until the end of the first week of August, but she is on SSP for 8 weeks from the end of May and then has her 2 weeks holiday immediately after then she wouldn't have a large gap on her CV. Then we can find a childminder to cover the whole summer and save some money in the process. Does that make sense?

[EColi]

That makes sense - and also - she can start looking for a job from now surely - she has between now and the op to start looking for a job to start Aug/September (mums on maternity leave tend to start looking in plenty of time so there's a chance there are jobs out there).
And in response to your question on the other thread, I would have no issue employing a nanny who had recently had an operation as long as it wasn't for a recurring condition but I would be concerned about her history of being late for work and her total sick leave.