Managing the credit crunch

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Hopes that the credit crunch would remain confined to Wall Street have been dashed with the effects now clearly being felt on Main Street. In addition, some of the world's best known names such as Lehman Brothers and Woolworths have been swept away by what has been described as a financial tsunami. As the economic slowdown continues, it is inevitable that many other firms, both large and small, will go to the wall and employees will suffer despite the protections available.

In circumstances where a company goes into administration and employees are dismissed as a result, or where the company's assets are liquidated, staff are able to claim certain sums from the National Insurance Fund (NIF). The payments available are as follows:

      
      ●     arrears of up to eight weeks' wages, meaning unpaid wages or salary, overtime, bonuses and commission, provided that these were contractually payable and that they relate to a specific period