Please help! Making myself redundant?

[BicycleMadeForTwo]

My workplace is undergoing a restructuring. I have been to a meeting this week and have been told that my position is going to disappear. There is another job available that I have experience for but it is daytime hours as opposed to the evening hours involved in my old post. There are no other jobs available that match the hours I previously worked and I’m restricted to them due to childcare contracts. I have been told that I will then be making myself redundant? Is this true? It seems so unfair if it is. I was happy in my job.

Also, would this mean I don’t get any sort of redundancy pay or be able to apply for benefit help until I get another job?

So stressed out, hope someone can give advice! Thanks for reading.

The job being offered has to a like for like comparison to the one being made redundant, so similar hours, similar pay, similar tasks.

If it isn't then yes you are effectively making yourself redundant but as long as you have been there two years or more you are still entitled to redundancy pay.

LilyputLane thank you. I’ve googled so much that it’s just become bigger than me. That’s a small relief that I’ll still be eligible for redundancy pay.

Give ACAS a call.

Hi Op,

HR manager here, sorry you find yourself in this stressful situation. It sounds like there is definitely a redundancy situation as your post is no longer required, and that your employer has offered you what they consider to be 'suitable alternative employment' (which they are required by law to do if at all possible). As a PP said the test of whether a role is suitable is whether it is broadly comparable (but doesn't have to be exactly the same) in terms of grade/pay, duties, location, hours etc.

It's quite common for situations like this to arise because employers will always want to stretch the definition of 'suitable' as far as possible to avoid making redundancies - and in theory this is to the benefit of both sides, but of course employees have their own personal circumstances and needs to take into account and shouldn't have their right to a redundancy payment taken off them if the role is genuinely not suitable.

In my company, depending on what the employee's objections to the role we have offered them are, we might simply want to confirm in writing that we have offered them the role but they have told us it is unsuitable for xyz reasons (and then compulsory redundancy would still apply), or we might offer them a voluntary redundancy option as a compromise, or if we are really sure they are being trivial/unreasonable in their reasons then we might deem they have forfeited their right to a redundancy payment by refusing the offer of suitable alternative employment. I wouldn't call any of these 'making yourself redundant' but I guess that's a turn of phrase (not a particularly helpful one IMO!).

I think you need to put your reasons for thinking this job is not suitable in writing to your employers ASAP (if you haven't already) and clarify what they are saying refusal of this post means for any redundancy compensation you are due. If you aren't happy with the answer then you should take advice from ACAS, your trade union if you are a member or an employment law solicitor.

Good luck OP and hope you are able to work it out with your employer.

Maxelly thank you, I really appreciate the advise. The communication over the whole situation hasn’t been the best but I’ll try and get confirmation from them ASAP as to where I stand. I think a call to ACAS would do no harm either.

Thanks everyone