The UK Redundancy Report | Utility Bidder

Redundancy Report

The places and industries where you’re

most likely to get made redundant

Large swathes of the economy have faced increasing uncertainty over the last 18 months due to the coronavirus pandemic.

But despite government support through the furlough scheme, bounce back loans and business rates relief, businesses across all sectors have had to make difficult decisions regarding job losses, which has led to an increasing number of people being made redundant.

By examining the latest data, we’ve found out the sectors and regions that are making the most people redundant, as well as the ages people are most likely to be made redundant.

The top 3 industries with the most redundancies in 2021

Manufacturing

Total redundancies:

15,117

Redundancies per 100,000 people:

5.91

Manufacturing centres on creating finished products from raw materials or components with the aid of tools, labour or chemical processes. These goods may be sold to other industries to use in production or distributed to retailers.

In April-June 2021, companies in the manufacturing industry made a total of 15,117 people redundant.

Wholesale retail and repair of motor vehicles

Total redundancies:

14,113

Redundancies per 100,000 people:

4.15

Wholesale retail is a form of business to business trade such as the process of selling goods such as motor vehicles and their parts and accessories to retailers for resale.

Wholesale businesses assemble goods in large quantities, sort and break down these goods into smaller quantities and redistribute them.

Repair of motor vehicles encompasses all activities related to their maintenance and repair, such as mechanical and electrical repair, tyre and tube replacement and installation of parts and accessories not installed as part of the manufacturing process. In April-June of 2021 14,133 were made redundant in this sector.

Professional, scientific and technical activities

Total redundancies:

9,356

Redundancies per 100,000 people:

4.50

Professional, scientific and technical activities include accounting bookkeeping and payroll; architectural, engineering and specialised design and computer services among others.

This sector performs specialised services for clients requiring a high level of training and expertise. In April-June of 2021, 9,356 people in this industry were made redundant.

The top industries where redundancies have increased the most

Agriculture, fishing, energy & water

79.97%

Increase

Agriculture, fishing, energy and water had the largest proportional increase in redundancies over 10 years, at 79.97%, rising from 1,807 in 2011 to 3,252 in 2021, potentially due to economic complications caused by Brexit.

Information & communication

7.08%

Increase

The only other industry to see redundancies increase on the same period ten years ago was information and communication, with a slight increase of 7.08%.

The top 3 industries where redundancies have decreased the most

Public admin & defence; social security

-86.26%

Decrease

Comparing the most recent redundancy data to that of 2011, the industry with the biggest decrease in redundancies over a ten year period is public admin and defence including social security, with redundancy rates declining by 86.25% from 11,611 in 2011 to 1,597 in 2021.

Accommodation and Food Services

-72.72%

Decrease

This is followed by accommodation and food services with a 72.72% decrease, which is interesting given that these businesses were hit so hard by the pandemic, although as this data was taken from April-June 2021, it suggests that businesses were starting to recover.

Construction

-67.11%

Decrease

Construction had the third-biggest decrease in redundancies, with 67.11% which suggests employers in this industry are keen to keep workers on rather than spend money to train new staff.

The industries with the most redundancies in 2021 ranked

KEY: Redundancies Redundancies per 1,000 people 10 Year Difference

		2011		2021
Rank	Industry

The regions with the most redundancies in 2021

London

Total redundancies:

19,095

Redundancies per 100,000 people:

4.81

London is the financial and business centre of the UK with over 27 million square metres of office space.

Over half of the UK’s top 100 FTSE listed companies and over 100 of Europe’s largest companies are headquartered here.

With a population of 9.4 million which accounts for 13.4% of the UK population, the capital is the region with the most redundancies (19,095) in April-June 2021.

The pandemic has caused many of these companies to restructure in line with new work-from-home policies, resulting in redundancies.

South East

Total redundancies:

13,201

Redundancies per 100,000 people:

3.40

The South East is the most populous region in England, with over 8.5 million residents as well as being the third-largest region by area.

Being in close proximity to London, it is the region with the second-largest economy in the UK and had the second-highest redundancy rate in the UK, at 13,201 in April-June 2021, with the South East being both heavily exposed to COVID-19 and Brexit complications.

North West

Total redundancies:

13,147

Redundancies per 100,000 people:

4.47

The North West is the third most populated region in the UK, home to major cities such as Manchester and Liverpool.

The North West has the highest number of people working in manufacturing and retail, with 20% of the workforce in these industries, so would be hit hard by increasing redundancies in these sectors.

The region where redundancies have increased the most

London

0.04%

10 years difference

London is the region with the largest increase in redundancies, rising from 19,088 in 2011 to 19,095 in 2021, resulting in an 0.04% increase over 10 years.

The regions where redundancies have decreased the most

Northern Ireland

-333.63%

Ten years difference

Northern Ireland saw the lowest number of redundancies over the last decade, falling from 3,920 in 2011 to 904 in 2021 resulting in a decrease of 333.63%, which may be a result of the COVID-19 job-retention scheme still being in operation.

North East

-125.65%

Ten years difference

This is followed by The North East, with a 10-year difference of 125.95% dropping from 5,172 redundancies in 2011 to 2,289 in 2021, a possible consequence of renewed economic interest for the customer service sector in this area.

Yorkshire & The Humber

-111.52%

Ten years difference

Yorkshire and the Humber was the third region where redundancies have decreased the most, with a 10 year difference of 111.52%, declining from 9,842 in 2011 to 4,653 in 2021, as a possible result of the high uptake of furlough in the early stages of the pandemic.

The regions with the most redundancies in 2021 ranked

KEY: Redundancies Redundancies per 1,000 people 10 Year Difference

		2011		2021
Rank	Region

The age groups most likely to be made redundant

Those aged 50+ are most likely to face redundancy, with 35,355 people in this age bracket being made redundant between April and June, which could be due to the fact that older people facing redundancy are presumed to be more prepared to leave the workforce.

This is in stark contrast to 16-24-year-olds who ranked as the least likely to face redundancy, just 8,962 redundancies in the same period, which is around four times higher.

35-49-year-olds rank after the 50+ age group with, 32,671 redundancies, followed by the 25-34 age group with 22,048.

KEY: 2011 2021

KEY: Redundancies Redundancies per 1,000 people 10 Year Difference

		2011		2021
Rank	Age range

How to deal with redundancy

Don't panic

Keep calm by making a list of all the things you need to arrange before your redundancy such as legal and financial arrangements or talking to your contacts. Doing this avoids either rushing into a flurry of activity or feeling like a rabbit caught in the headlights.

Know your rights

Find a copy of your company’s redundancy policy if possible and check your contract for exit terms. It’s important to know how long your notice period is and how much redundancy pay you are entitled to.

Get support

If the company offers any free support with redundancy, take it. Being made redundant is stressful and can narrow your perspective so taking full advantage of free support can challenge your thinking and open up opportunities.

Don’t take it personally

Try to keep in mind that there are logical and commercial reasons for making redundancies. Remember the role is being made redundant, not you.

Manage your money

Money can be a huge source of stress so make sure to plan your finances to avoid this. Consider creating a budget to plan your finances or saving money by switching bill providers and changing tariffs on your broadband or mobile.

Take stock

Redundancy can be a time to think about your future so take stock of your skills and experience. Explore a wide range of opportunities and ask yourself if there is anything you want to change in your career.

Make yourself more employable

You could take time to make yourself stand out in the job market by focusing on continuous professional development. There is a large variety of vocational courses or distance MBAs as well as webinars and virtual conferences you could take at little to no cost from home.

Coping with uncertainty

As redundancy can lead to worrying about the future, it's useful to accept things you can’t control and focus on things you can. This can be as simple as updating your CV or reaching out to old contacts.

Connect with others and yourself

You may feel a range of emotions such as shock, anger, resentment or relief. Being made redundant can also affect your sense of identity and self-esteem so give yourself time and space to express these feelings, be kind to yourself, and talk to people about them.

Think positively

This can help with kickstarting the next step in your career, increasing productivity, boosting confidence and allowing more effective communication. This allows you to present the best version of yourself.

Methodology

To answer the questions surrounding this topic we looked at UK government data on re-dundancies over a ten year period (2011-2021). Using this data we were able to compare redundancy rates across the industry, age group and region of the UK from April-June 2021 and the same period in 2011 in order to calculate the 10-year difference in redundancy rates as a percentage.

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