My job may disappear in a merger while I am on maternity leave

[Enid]

I am currently on maternity leave (due back in Feb 2007)

It is proposed that my organisation merge with another organisation (both arts charities, ours has council funding) in March 2007. A working party has been set up to discuss merger and how the new organisation will be run and staffed - my maternity replacement is on the working party. Apparently my job is not guaranteed, and I may have to apply for the equivalent job in the new organisation. If the job is advertised, rather than being a continuation of my current job, then my replacement will definitely apply for it...this makes me think that she may not have my best interests at heart whilst on the working party.

So basically I could return to work for a month and then be made redundant?

This is all a PItA maybe I just wont bother going back.

didn't you post recently dsaying that it would cost you money to go back? maybe this is a blessing in disguise - this way you would get redundancy money

certainly wouldn't just not go back since in this scenerio you'd be entitled to redundancy pay woudldn't you?

I don't know much about this, but a similar thing happened to my friend in that they tried to dissolve her post while she was off due to a re-org.

She went to her union and they got her a very good settlement. It seems employers who mess around with someones job whilst they are on maternity leave could be on dodgy ground.

Might be worth finding out where you stand. My friend didn't feel like going into battle as she was having a lovely maternity leave and was not in 'fighting work mode', but it was worth the effort.

A similar thing happened to me on mat leave the last time. It was very stressful and absolutely horrible. However, there is no guarantee where I work that you will return to the same post esp if you request a change in hours (I wanted to go from full time to 3 days per week) but they will give you something equivalent. In reality they're very good at working it out with you. Are there not rules about this sort of thing? Surely if you're on mat leave they have to give you something when you go back at the same level, if not the same post? Is there any scope for your being on the WP too?

Oh no enid, what a shame! You like the job don't you? What do you want to do? Do you want the job? Could you/would you want to go back sooner, hence getting rid of replacement and any hidden agenda she might have?

I think I am not going to stress about it

just assume I am going back in Feb as arranged adn if my job disappears then hopefully will get redundancy

I was only this morning trying to wrok out whether we could manage without my salary

I do love my job though (although not the bunch of dullards on the council of management)

i wish that would have happened to me.

I'll get feck all redunancy though

enough to pay dd2s school fees for a term hopefully, then she's off to state primary so staying at home a possibility