Offered voluntary redundancy after applying for part time. wwyd?

[bedraggledmumoftwo]

When I returned to work after second mat leave there was a voluntary redundancy round aimed at my grade. I thought it seemed like perfect timing and applied, thinking it would be nice to be paid to stay at home with my two little'uns and would facilitate school runs, and I was exhausted commuting and working full time plus nursery runs etc My boss scored me highly and I spent a month or so assuming that it was a done deal, but they turned me down with no explanation other than that directors had been able to push for who they wanted to get it. I was shocked and disappointed and immediately filed a statutory flexible working request as it just wasn't sustainable full time long term.

It is now six weeks later, this afternoon I get an email put of the blue asking me to sign a commitment to leave letter! No explanation. Nothing has been done about my part time request in the interim, so aibu to think they don't want a part timer and they have now pushed for me to get it to deal with the flexible working request?

The thing is, I'm now on the fence about taking it! I had come round to the idea of part time being the perfect work life balance, and have since applied for a pre-school with good after school club, and felt like I had my ducks in a row until this blew them out of the water!

My concerns are whether I will be bored at home with no mental stimulation, whether I will then find it hard to get a job once they are in school, and whether I will actually be better off in the long term if I do take the money. At the same time, if I stay part time, after childcare and commuting costs it will take 2/3 years before I would earn the amount I could get tax free now! Help, anyone?

I wish I had the option of redundancy. I would take it in a split second. Part time I would also take. Neither appear to be options for me. But. If they want you to go, then personally I'd go. Not worth the fight.

Take the money on offer and find a job that suits you when you are ready. This is what you wanted when it first came up but you "settled" for a part-time role when your request was turned down. So unless things have changed I would go with your first instinct. However I would clarify from your HR people (if you have them, if not then an employment lawyer) about exactly what you are signing.

I think they need to be careful here. Could you send an email asking if you're correct in your understanding that they are offering you redundancy because you have asked to go part time? If so, they could be opening themselves up to a constructive dismissal situation, I think.

I agree with pp, this is really NOT great HR, they are pulling a fast one and are banking on you not knowing your rights and letting them get away with it. Look at the ACAS website and try to get some legal advice on the work/employment board on here. Are you in a union?

It is civil service so I assume it is all above board. Letter came out of the blue from the early exit team and my line manager didn't actually know about it although he was aware some people had turned it down so they were doing a second round of offers.

Part of me feels elated, but the other part actually quite enjoys my job ( now that I have gotten back into the swing of things. I am also quite senior and although i could lose the commute and look for something locally it would probably be at a lower level and salary. I had come to terms with it partly because I could earn as much doing my current job part time as getting a local job full time.

How so lougle? Would it not be easier for the company to reject the flexible working based on business requirements and therefore either retain OP as a full time employee or the OP chooses to resign and it cross the company nothing?
OP - if it has been sent completely out of the blue is there a chance there's been an error? Tho I'd be raising the lack of response to your flexible working request!
As to what you might do I can see why it's such a tough decision and suppose it would depend on so many factors such as whether uou enjoy your job, what your career aspirations are, whether you want to risk those by taking time out. I know id also find it tough to decide but ultimately if the redundancy paid enough to allow a few years at home id more than likely go for it!

No chance it was a mistake it had my name as the file attachment.

Didyeae, yes, I made it clear I couldn't go back to full time (using holiday to do unofficial part time now and between dd1 and dd2) so I would have thought the cheapest option would be to turn down flexible request knowing I wouldn't stick around anyway! BUT being civil service I would have taken a career break and not actually resigned, so that might muddy the waters.

My boss historically bypasses all the hr processes and previously refused to interview someone p/t for a f/t role, as "we don't want a part timer".

My request has been sort of ish responded to in a "application has merits, will try and put something in place before three month statutory deadline way". But that is how he is- didn't have maternity cover until after I left, both times! And he was talking about restructures/job shares in theory but hasn't actually done anything.

I'd take the money. They could decline your flexible working request anyway.

Take the money and run - a fab time to be taking it too as a new tax year and the first 30k is tax free.
I did this 6 years ago and returned to work after 5 years(PT and not related occupation) - there are few opportunities to get 3 years money in one lump.
Enjoy!

Good point, I should probably stop counting my chickens!

Figure out what you want, go and talk to your manager. Don't sign anything.

Time with your children is something you will never get back but equally you will never get your current career back either.....

I assume that you can decline the redundancy offer...

Ach - whilst I wouldn't normally using a generalisation, it does sound like typical civil service!
Have they given you a timeframe in which to consider it? Do you think you could ask your manager whether the option to take redundancy will remain once you've had their final take on flexible working? That would seem resonance to me to allow you to make your decision with all the facts. I sometimes think from an ideal world point of view though

I would take it, I work in local government and we have had our redundancy t&c's slashed. Just imposed on us, so we get no more than statutory redundancy now at my level. you are likely to never be offered such generous redundancy in the public sector agin as they will eventually go for your T and Cs.

Good idea didyea. Think I will nail him down on whether it is actually an option. Leaning towards taking the money and skipping happily off into the sunrise though!

Career wise I am as senior as I would ever want to be, I feel like I have "made it" and wouldn't really want to be a senior civil servant as the ts and cs change and flexitime etc goes out the window.

True stripy, our pension has already been slaughtered. And they have bought in less favourable Ts and Cs for new starters and anyone promoted (another reason I wouldn't want to go higher!)

Are they going to pay your redundancy based on your FT hours or your new PT hours? That is what would make me think they've picked you. They can get away with paying you less money.

No, I haven't got part time yet and have enough leave to not need to if I'm leaving anyway. I think it would only be the future part that would be pro rata if I did as the accrued service amount is already set.

I was in a semi similar position to you a few years ago, except I already had very good p/t hours in place. FWIW at our place if you had been f/t they would offer you that if you'd been p/t for less than 12 months.

Everyone else skipped merrily off into the sunset with their huge redundancy payments and I stayed put. It was because DH is a contractor so I do all the school drop offs and pick ups as he can't and I knew I wouldn't get another p/t job with as good a salary. I think I made the right decision - it's so hard to know.

I'd check how long you have to make your choice and also if they will be accepting your p/t request - I think they have 28 days to make a decision.

I work in Civil Service (but don't know your Department but in mine we have an extremely high % of part time workers, so not exactly a workplace known for not accommodating flexible working requests) sounds more like a coincidence and bad communication than something more sinister.

If they couldn't accommodate your part time hours, they would just refuse it. If you are a senior manager you will know the level of scrutiny that is given to spending public money and offering a VES scheme I am sure would have gone through a number of approvals and would need strong grounds for paying employees large amounts of money to leave, i.e. significantly stronger reasons than we don't want this person to work part time (which would much more cheaply be dealt with by saying no to the request).

Personally I would grab VE with both hands -we were offered it a year or so ago, and I wish I would have taken it.

Thanks for all your advice. I did some maths this morning and due to the high nursery costs ( full time same cost as three days) commuting costs and higher rate taxes, I would actually net £4k more this year by working out my notice full time (using leave to work part time) than working three days a week for the rest of the year. That is without even taking the redundancy money into consideration, so it is pretty much a no brainer. I will take the money and run!

I would make sure they will be expecting you to work your notice on full-time and paying you redundancy for your full-time hours. Once you have that in writing, you're free...