Work question

[Sarah2025]

So I have been offered an alternative role as part of a Compassionate transfer but they won't tell me which office I will be based but have said I would be expected to attend the office twice a week. They told me the main building where I will go once a month for meetings. The issue I have is that I don't think they want to give me this alternative role and are hoping I accept the offer without knowing the office location, then tell me it's like an impossible commute journey on the other side of the city. I asked my current line manager 6 times but he said it depends on business need, then asked the manager for the new role and he said the same. Would it be easier for them to get rid of me if I accepted the role offer as it is now, without knowing the office location , then if it is not workable for me to then get rid of me because I can't return to my current role.

Just go to HR this is weird. Surely they are involved anyway if it’s a specific change in control for you.

Contract not control

They can't just start you in a random location. Your new contract is legally required to specify your main place of work. If it doesn't, refuse to sign it until it's agreed. The building you only have to attend meetings at once a month is categorically not your main work location, so they can't get away with claiming that.

What does your current contract says about office location? Is it common in this role/company that employees would be ask to change offices?

I personally would push for the office location to be included in the contract, but it depends on the practice of the company.

I managed to speak to someone in post for this role and everything he said was the complete opposite of what the senior manager said about the role. I finally managed to find the role location after saying I spoke to solicitor and telling my manager it could be considered discriminatory if they didn't disclose it before I accepted the role due to my childcare. It is basically a 30 minute drive from where I live but he said I may have to cover 2 other areas that are 45 minute drives but in reality 1 hour and a half or 2 hours. I truly believe he wanted me to accept the role without disclosing location and then put me in one of these very far offices. The person I spoke to in role said I would never have to cover these offices. If I accepted the role and they put me in these far offices I would be a position where I would be forced to quit and he could say well you accepted it without knowing location or being made redundant on medical grounds which is not a lot of money.