For the purposes of collective redundancy consultation, appropriate representatives are either a trade union recognised by the employer in relation to the affected employees, or where there is no recognised trade union, representatives that have been elected for the purposes of collective consultation in relation to those employees.
Accordingly, an employer may be required to conduct an election exercise to appoint appropriate representatives prior to being able to commence consultation. There are complex rules in relation to the election of representatives and employers must factor into their timescales complying with these requirements and potentially training representatives in relation to their role.