Redundancy.. WWYD?

[DarcyDrive]

Hi all, looking for some advice as I really don't know what to do.

I've just been told that my role at work is being made redundant. I have a choice now- accept their redundancy package or apply for a new role.

If I take the redundancy that means I'll have money in the bank (£12k) to tide me over until I find something else. If I apply for the new role, I'll have a guaranteed income- albeit it will be less money than I'm currently on but still enough to pay the bills. The job itself will be shit but a job is still a job. The only downside is, the company is in a lot of trouble financially. So this new role could go on for 2 years or it might be gone after just 2 months! There's no guarantee that I'll get the same redundancy package again and if the company goes bust completely, there will be no package at all.

My DP thinks I should take the redundancy package and get a temporary job in the interim until I find something else.

I'm tempted to go for this new role because even if the company goes under, I will still have an income until I can retrain/study/find something else. Plus it's a familiar environment and I already know the job. To be honest, the thought of being unemployed in 4 weeks time terrifies me. DP's wage doesn't cover all the bills and we would have to eat into the redundancy money until I find something else.. however long that will take. We would get no help with tax credits etc because the redundancy would count as savings.

I just don't know what to do. If I take the role then it's a job and I could spend however long I have left looking for something else/retraining. But if the company restructures in a few months time, I could be in exactly the same position I'm in now but potentially without the £12k safety net. We do have more savings but it would still be devastating to miss out on so much.

Thanks for taking the time to read this. WWYD in this situation?

I think from reading your post, you ought to take the new role. It sounds like it would give you more security and piece of mind.

I have been through it - I was in a pool of 1 and knew what the outcome would be so ended the consultation process rather than prolong it. For me, I didn't get any redundancy package so it was a no brainer anyway

I would take the redundancy and claim jsa new style. Be available for temporary contracts and contact national careers service and see what support you would be available for under rapid redundancy offer

I would definitely take the package and get out while the going is good. You can start looking for new roles now:get your CV polished up, register on some job seekers web sites etc - you don't have to wait until you're actually out of work. Once you're a free agent, you'll have time to properly job hunt, go for interviews etc. I was once made redundant under similar circumstances and it was the best thing that could have happened: it gave me the impetus to look at other roles where my skills could be used and I ended up changing direction (for the better) as a result.

Depends how many months wages 12k is for you and how confident you are you could find something better than the alternative job being offered in that time? And how much of a salary drop you can afford to take if necessary. Do you work in a very niche area? Have there been lots of redundancies of other people similarly qualified? All things to consider.

I think I would take the money, mainly because you don't want the alternative job and the company doesn't sound like it's doing well anyway - so as you say, you could end up in the same position but minus 12k, and after months on a smaller salary with a worse recent job on your cv..

Thanks to all who replied.

When I say the job would be shit, I don't mean it's a step down. It would actually be a step up but it would be a lot more work/responsibility and everything would be thrown on to me.

I actually received the job description yesterday and the extra responsibilities are much more along the line of what I really want to do in future careers. Plus the money is much the same as what I'm already on.

Any other jobs I could find would most definitely be a step down.

I am still job hunting currently and I actually have an interview on Friday. I do think I'm going to apply for this new role though. That way I can leave my options open.