How to Write a Redundancy Letter with Claude
You'll finish with a clear, professionally worded redundancy letter ready for legal review — even if this is the first redundancy you've ever handled, you're not sure what you're legally required to include, and the conversation with the employee has already happened.
A redundancy letter is a legally sensitive document. Employment law varies significantly by country, jurisdiction, and employment type — what's required in the UK is not the same as in the US, Australia, or elsewhere. This workflow helps you produce a clear, structured first draft; it is not a substitute for legal advice. Before this letter is sent to anyone, have it reviewed by an employment lawyer or qualified HR consultant familiar with your jurisdiction. Do not skip this step.
TL;DR
- You'll have a complete draft in under two minutes — structured, professional, and ready for review.
- Free plan at claude.ai works fine; one conversation handles the full letter and any follow-up edits.
- Claude drafts, you fact-check, a professional signs off — the legal responsibility stays yours.
- Oriented to UK/US context, but the prompt is adaptable to any jurisdiction with one extra instruction.
Before you start
- A Claude.ai account — the free plan handles one full letter without issue.
- The employee's full name, job title, and start date. You'll need the start date to calculate the notice period and any statutory redundancy pay if applicable.
- The specific reason for redundancy — role elimination, business restructure, site closure, cost reduction. Be precise: "the role is no longer required" is different from "the department is being reorganised." The reason shapes both the legal standing and the tone of the letter.
- The notice period from the employee's contract, and any redundancy pay entitlement. If you're unsure of the statutory minimum for your jurisdiction, look it up before you open Claude — pasting an incorrect figure into the prompt means it appears verbatim in the draft.
- Whether a consultation process has already taken place and, if so, a one-line summary of what was discussed. In the UK especially, failing to document a fair consultation process can make a redundancy legally challengeable.
How to do it — step by step
Write down the facts before you open Claude
Start by pulling together everything you actually know: the employee's name, role, start date, the reason for redundancy, notice period, any redundancy pay figure, and whether a consultation has already happened. Don't open Claude yet — spend an extra two minutes making sure these details are correct, because every one of them will appear verbatim in the draft. A wrong notice period or an inaccurate redundancy pay figure doesn't get flagged by Claude; it ends up in the letter. The same goes for the stated reason for redundancy: "the role is no longer required due to a business restructure" and "performance-related reduction in headcount" are entirely different situations with different legal implications. Lock in the right phrasing before you start, not after. If you're using an HR workflow to track this kind of employment data, you should have most of it in one place already.
Decide what the letter needs to cover
Before moving on, run through this list and tick what applies to your situation: reason for redundancy; termination date or notice period; redundancy pay amount and how it was calculated; final salary payment and accrued holiday; what happens to company equipment, benefits, and pension contributions; the right to appeal (required in the UK); any garden leave arrangements; and a reference offer. Not every letter needs all of these. But deciding now which sections to include saves you from a half-finished draft that you have to go back and patch. If you're doing this without an in-house HR team, the AI for HR Teams hub has a checklist for exactly this kind of standalone HR task.
Run the prompt and get a first draft
Now open Claude and paste the prompt below — fill in the green placeholders with your specifics, and send. Claude returns a complete, structured redundancy letter in professional language in under a minute.
Review every factual claim in the draft
At this point, read the draft line by line — not for tone, but for accuracy. Check the notice period against the contract. Confirm the redundancy pay figure is correct. Make sure the stated reason matches the actual business decision. Check that the termination date is right. If anything is off, fix it in the same conversation with a specific instruction: "The notice period is six weeks, not four — update the letter." Vague feedback like "make it more accurate" won't help here. Then, once the facts are right, read it once more for tone — redundancy letters should be clear and professional without being cold. If it reads too formal or too blunt for the relationship, ask Claude to soften a specific paragraph. The HR Prompt Builder has saved prompt versions for exactly this kind of follow-up edit if you find yourself doing this regularly.
Send to a qualified professional for review — no exceptions
Don't worry if you're not confident about whether the letter is legally sound — that's exactly what this step is for. Send the draft to an employment lawyer or qualified HR consultant before it goes anywhere near the employee. This is not a formality: redundancy letters that miss a required element or use the wrong framing can expose you to an unfair dismissal claim. The cost of a 30-minute legal review is a fraction of what a tribunal costs. If you don't have a regular legal contact and need to find one quickly, search for employment law solicitors (UK) or employment attorneys (US) in your area — most offer a fixed-fee letter review.
The prompt
You are helping me draft a professional redundancy letter on behalf of a business. Situation: - Employee name: [Full name] - Job title: [e.g. Marketing Manager] - Employment start date: [e.g. 14 March 2019] - Reason for redundancy: [e.g. The role is no longer required following a company restructure / The site is closing / Cost reduction measures] - Notice period: [e.g. 8 weeks, as per contract / 4 weeks statutory minimum] - Last day of employment: [e.g. 30 August 2026, or "to be confirmed once notice period is agreed"] - Redundancy pay: [e.g. £3,400 statutory redundancy pay / Not applicable — less than 2 years' service] - Final pay details: [e.g. Final salary to end of notice period plus 5 days accrued holiday] - Consultation process: [e.g. A consultation meeting took place on 18 July 2026 / No formal consultation process has taken place] - Right to appeal: [e.g. Yes — appeal must be submitted in writing within 5 working days / Not applicable] - Jurisdiction: [e.g. England and Wales / Scotland / United States — California / Australia — NSW] - Additional details: [e.g. Garden leave applies / Company laptop to be returned on last day / Reference will be provided upon request] Using the details above, write a professional redundancy letter from the employer to the employee. The letter should: - Clearly state the reason for redundancy - Confirm the notice period and last day of employment - State any redundancy pay and how it will be paid - Confirm final salary and holiday pay entitlement - Include a right of appeal section if specified above - Close with a professional, respectful tone — factual without being cold Use formal business letter format with today's date as [DATE] (a placeholder). Do not invent any details not included above. If a field is marked "not applicable" or left blank, omit that section from the letter. Note: This draft is for review purposes only and will be checked by a qualified employment lawyer or HR professional before being sent.
What the output looks like
[DATE]
Dear James,
Notice of Redundancy
I am writing to confirm the outcome of our consultation process regarding your position as Operations Coordinator at Meridian Supply Ltd.
Following a review of our operational structure, we have made the difficult decision that your role is no longer required. This decision is not a reflection of your performance or conduct, and we want to acknowledge the contribution you have made during your time with us.
Notice Period and Last Day of Employment
Your notice period is eight weeks, in line with your contract of employment. Your last day of employment will therefore be 12 September 2026. You will continue to receive your normal salary and benefits during this period.
Redundancy Pay
You are entitled to a statutory redundancy payment of £2,850, calculated on the basis of your length of service and weekly pay. This will be paid with your final salary payment.
Right of Appeal
You have the right to appeal this decision. Any appeal must be submitted in writing to the HR department within five working days of receiving this letter. Please state your grounds for appeal clearly.
Claude vs Gemini for this workflow
| Dimension | Claude | Gemini |
|---|---|---|
| Tone calibration (formal but not cold) | Better | Good |
| Sticking strictly to your inputs | Better | Good |
| Handling jurisdiction-specific language | Better | Good |
| Integration with Google Docs | Good | Better |
| Speed on free plan | Good | Better |
| Overall recommendation | Recommended | Solid alternative |
How to adapt this for your situation
For UK redundancies
Add this line to the prompt: "This letter should comply with UK employment law and include the statutory right of appeal." Claude will use the correct statutory redundancy pay framing (based on age, length of service, and weekly pay capped at the current statutory limit) and will include the right of appeal as a named section. Still have the letter reviewed by an employment solicitor — particularly if the employee has more than two years' service, as this triggers the statutory right not to be unfairly dismissed. The AI for HR Teams hub has more on handling UK employment scenarios without a dedicated HR function.
For US redundancies (WARN Act context)
Skip this if you're a business with fewer than 100 employees — the federal WARN Act likely doesn't apply. But for larger employers, or in states with mini-WARN laws (California, New York, New Jersey), add to the prompt: "Include a note about any applicable notice obligations under WARN Act or relevant state law." Claude will flag what may apply, though your employment attorney should confirm whether advance written notice is required for your specific situation before any letter goes out.
For small business owners with no HR background
Don't worry if you've never written one of these before — that's a common situation. Add one line to your prompt: "Assume I have no HR background and may not know what standard clauses are expected — include any that are typically required." Claude will add sections you might not have thought to ask for, like returning company property or the treatment of confidential information post-employment. Before moving on, run the draft past the HR Prompt Builder to check whether there are any follow-up documents you also need to prepare alongside the letter.
For collective redundancies (multiple employees at once)
At this point, the process becomes significantly more complex. In the UK, collective consultation obligations kick in when 20 or more roles are at risk within 90 days. In the US, WARN Act thresholds vary. Each affected employee still receives an individual letter, but the legal framework sitting behind those letters is different. Use the prompt above to draft the individual letters, but get employment law advice on the process itself before any letter is issued — the consultation requirements matter as much as the letter wording.