Merger at work - should I be bothered?

[hexagon123]

Just found out my company is merging with another.

Agh.

Just been promoted.

AIBU to be worried?

I work in social housing

Because they don't lie?

they can do, it is in their interest to lie as they want to choose who is staying and who is going.

seen it two ways. But yes, depending on the company they can be economical with the truth.

Depends how much stomach you have for sticking it out through a lot of change and distribution. I worked for a year in two merging organisations. Most of my close colleagues left, almost all though choice rather than losing their jobs, but it wasn't much fun. I left too in the end, as my role wasn't being valued by the new exec team

Not worried as such, but I think it would be wise to think about all eventualities. If there is an appropriate union for your type of job I would join it. I would not plan any major expenditures and would try and save a little extra. I would ensure my CV is up to date and keep an eye on job ads to see if any come up that catch my interest. I wouldn't apply for anything unless it's something I would have applied for anyway and, given you have just had a promotion, best to stay where you are to build up your experience and it would look better on your CV. When companies say they are having difficulty in recruiting it isn't necessarily in all areas, so keep an eye on what jobs your organisation is actually recruiting for.
I am, however, very risk averse and I like to plan ahead.

All of this may or may not be the case for the op.

I’ve worked on a number of acquisitions and divestments over the years and there have always been managers and other senior people who are not informed until a general announcement is made, even though they are integral to the business. Not the most senior leadership, true, but op hasn’t suggested she’s at that level. The ‘circle of trust’ is more about needing to know in order to make a deal happen rather than seniority.

As for duplication, again, we don’t know whether this is likely to apply to op’s role or not.

Also worth pointing out that there may be opportunities too.

I'd be more worried at management level than further down the line. It depends what you do. Rent officers/housing officers/ operatives etc are probably the safest but if you work in Finance or HR etc then there is much more likely to be duplicates.

For the merger to have the best chance of succeeding they need all the current staff to stick around as long as possible.

You'll be given positive messages until there’s been a reckoning of who is needed, or perhaps who isn’t.

Has there been any talk of new posts, new structure OP?
If you’re told you’ll need to apply for the new roles, that’s an opportunity for redundancies.

I know of one where the new structure had the same number of new posts as existing and the director pointed out “there was no loss of headcount”.
That didn’t mean the same people were in the new roles.

Probably given your line of work I'd suggest not too much. Though reorganisations are seldom good- someone about 60 years ago came up with the phrase 'when you reorganise you bleed' which may sound dramatic, but has a truth about it.

I think they said no voluntary redundancies....

No voluntary redundancies can mean ( a cynical pov ) they want to control who does go, they don’t want staff starting to plan exits, going for interviews, losing interest, disengaging.

if these are private companies listed on stock exchange it’s being done to reduce overall costs.

I don't think that's cynical, I've worked with old timers who would love to be made redundant and told me at every opportunity - yet I was made redundant.

@JunkIsland I earn £28k... it's a promotion for me but I manage no one lol

I don't think that's cynical, I've worked with old timers who would love to be made redundant and told me at every opportunity - yet I was made redundant.

It's cheaper and easier to make you redundant than them. Shorter length of service, no cries of age discrimination because they're more experienced etc.

How long have you been at this company?

Thinking about it, does the other company have a same-level counterpart doing your role? If not, they might have promoted you to protect you from redundancy.

No idea!

No one else turned for for the interview so it's not really a promotion as no competition.

@hexagon123 whether there was competition doesn't matter. Whether there is now is what matters.

I think you need to start digging and getting some answers.

any ideas how?

Ask your manager or speak to HR or someone who's friends with HR.

Do some digging online and see what the other company's structure is like.

How do I find a structure online? I rarely see this.

@GoodChat we are also 100% remote and I was a part time worker, I have no mates at work.