Any advice about being messed around when coming back off ML? (long)

[spicemonster]

I'll try and keep this brief but it's fairly involved.

Before I went on maternity leave, I was up for a promotion. To be promoted where I work, you have to get a load of testimonials from people saying why you should be promoted and put a business case forward too. I did all that and the deal was that the forms would be submitted just before I returned from maternity leave and so I would come back on the higher grade (which is not only a higher salary scale but has extra benefits). While I was off, they restructured our department (again) and the job I was doing before I went on leave no longer exists. So my boss called me and explained the new structure, told me what the roles would be and we agreed between us which role would be the best fit for me. Idea was that the jobs would be advertised internally almost immediately after I returned from leave, I would apply for the one I wanted and more than likely get it (as I have the mix of skills and experience that not many other people have). So that although my promotion wouldn't be immediate, it would be very soon after my return to work.

The jobs are advertised not straight away but about a month after I came back. I applied immediately for the one we discussed. It took about a month before I had an interview and the first question was 'can you travel abroad during the week?'. Err no. I can't. That wasn't in the job spec and I'm not going to apply for a job with a load of overseas travel because I can't do it. Rest of interview goes okay but I have a feeling that they've changed the spec but can't get a straight answer out of anyone.

It then takes them another 6 weeks to get back to me for a time for a 2nd interview which is in 3 weeks time. So that's 2 months between interviews. AND the only day they've offered me for the interview is a Wednesday at 4pm. I don't work Wednesdays and, even if I could get childcare, I have to leave the office by 4.45pm to collect my son from nursery. So I can't really do the interview (but I've accepted it anyway in case I can sort something out).

Last week my boss says what I've suspected - they've now decided this job will mean loads of overseas travel which I can't do. So he mentions the remaining job. Which is shit and I don't want to do it but if it's the only job there is, then I'm going to have to. Weirdly, the shit job does mention travel but he says I won't have to do it.

So basically, while they're farting around and moving the goalposts, I don't really have a job to do, I'm not getting the benefits or higher salary and I can't put in a formal request to do flexible working (at the moment I'm using up last year's holiday) because you need to have a job to put in the request. And I have to give the nursery a month's notice to change Elliot's hours and I really don't want to (and can't afford to) send him to nursery full time on the current salary band.

Do you think I should push for the promotion to go through now even though I haven't officially got the job? Should I talk to HR?

I know they only have to give me a job at the same terms and conditions as the one I had before I went but there are no jobs at my current grade - they have to promote me basically.

Any advice? And thanks for reading all this!

Difficult to say without knowing more about the jobs. Is it reasonable to say that for the job you are best suited to it is essential for that person to do the travel, but for the job you don't want it is not essential? What's your opinion about the job content?

I don't think pushing for a promotion when you don't know what job you are going to be doing is a good idea tbh. Focus on sorting that out first, as long as your current terms and conditions are no less favourable there's no immediate problem.

Go to the interview. Ask if it can be changed, because of your childcare commitments, request that it is moved to a day when you normally work, or something else which works for you. With the lengthy timescale you have it ought to be possible to sort something out.

Think about the travelling, what your opinion is about what is necessary for the job. Is it something where you could in theory put in a flexible working request based on no travel or reduced travel? Could you think of ways to potentially make that work, should you get the job? If so, you could discuss any possible solutions you come up with at the interview.

Thanks flowerybb, that's extremely helpful.

While I was on maternity leave, we merged with another firm in another country. The job I'm best suited to is leading comms across the merged firms so realistically will involve a fair degree of travel with overnight stays. I'm a single parent so that really isn't possible for me to do on a very regular basis. The other job is a more administrative role and so arguably can be done much more easily from one place.

I will try and sort out childcare for the day of the interview - I can probably get the nursery to take my DS for an extra afternoon session (but it irks me that I'm going to have to fork out for added childcare costs). Basically I'm supposed to be interviewed by two people, one of whom only comes to the UK on Wednesdays (which is the day I'm currently not working and which I would ideally like not to work in future).

There is possibly another job within the company in another department which would be UK-based but that is likely to be even further off, delaying my promotion (and thus my ability to sort out a flexible working arrangement) even more. I'm tempted to accept the job I don't want to get the promotion sorted and then move into the other role (as there will have to be an official interview process for that too) but is that just a really stupid idea?

It's just so frustrating because I've been back at work 3 months now and have been in limbo ever since.

It sounds as though the job you feel best suited for isn't actually a real possibility, if you are satisfied that the travel really is a necessity.

Depending on how 'possibly' and 'further off' the other job you are interested in is, I might be inclined to take the one you don't really want, just to give you a bit of focus and something to do, as well as sort out your pay. Judging by the non-speedy recruitment process you have been going through recently, it sounds like it could be a long time before that post becomes a realistic option anyway, so that's a long time of limbo, assuming your employers would allow you to sit in limbo that long anyway. If I were them, assuming it is agreed that the 'best' job is not actually a possibility, I wouldn't be paying you to do nothing, I'd be insisting you take the other job.

In which case pre-empting that decision and taking it yourself will go down better. Do a good job in that one, show your commitment, demonstrate that flexible working is viable (assuming that goes through), and if the other job comes up, you are in a good position.

Still go to the interview, explore the favourite job, at the very least it might crystallise things in your mind.