After 41 years with the same firm I have now been found medically unfit to do my job. Does the firm have an obligation to find me alternative work, and if they can’t find me a different job do I have a right to a redundancy payment?
If you don’t agree that you’re no longer fit for work you have the right to ask for an independent medical opinion. Before you can be dismissed the firm must follow a fairly exhaustive consultation procedure, including trying to find alternative work for you. A large firm would be expected to be more successful in this regard than a small one, but if you felt this avenue hadn’t been explored you could claim you were dismissed unfairly. You are not entitled to a redundancy payment unless the job itself is being phased out.