What next - want to be smart how I play it

[SouthRay]

Hi,
Last Monday my Boss called me first thing Monday to tell me re-structuring was coming (I work in sales), happens every year at this time.
I am one of 4 people with my role all based out the UK. He then preceded to tell me that he cant justify all 4 and so they want me to take a job in a completely different department. I don't want this job and said so. He said there isn't a job for you then in sales going forward.
He said he had a call with HR after this call where he would advise them of where I am at.
I should add I am a high performer, 27 years service. I personally believe I'm the target as I reduced my hours to a 4 day week for health reasons.
After that I have heard nothing for over a week from him or HR
Now from my perspective I am ok with getting redundancy however it's not lost on me that they have missed a whole process here hence my thread title of wanting to play this right unlike them.
What should I do, just sit quiet and wait for them, raise in writing what he said to me and ask what the next steps are?

Perhaps he has been to HR and told he absolutely can't do it.

I would be inclined to sit and wait for them to make the next move.

Definitely wait. You are in a strong position due to your length of service and health issues, for which they cannot discriminate.

so little update, not long after I posted this my boss rang me. It's now clear he has been cavalier in telling me all this before even speaking to HR.
In order to save himself he was leaning heavily on this other role and why it would be good for me to do it......I have told him I have no interest in the other role. He said not to disclose what he has originally said to me as he was just being transparent for my benefit
He seemed very frustrated about that so it's clear he is in a pickle now as if they do introduce the process and I still drop out the bottom on the consultation/matrix evaluation then its dismissal isn't it?

Oh, he has massively fucked up! He has made it clear that they will have a process and you will go. I think get advice on this now. Was it all just verbal?

yes all verbal. I suspect HR have told him it doesn't work that way and needs to be under process but he has not fessed up that he has told me that I'm an the one and is hoping I won't....
I do want to go but obviously want to use this fuck up to my advantage

Why, as a high performer, and arguably more cost effective as a part time employee, would you be bottom of a matrix?

I think your bosses problem is that he knows you won't come bottom (if the process is done properly) and he has now opened up the company to all kinds of risk that he's discriminating against you. I'd double check which discrimination legislation would cover you as an employee, and also write up dated notes of what conversations happened when.

If you do want an enhanced offer of redundancy, this could be useful information to have.

If they try to have a "protected conversation" foolish managers misunderstand what this actually means. Read up on these too, and then you'll be a bit more informed depending on how you ideally would like the situation to resolve.

I'd consider telling HR what he said and use it to negotiate a better redundancy package if I was ok with leaving. Or I'd use it to argue my case for a fair process that demonstrably doesn't result in the one part-time worker being disadvantaged.

It's also financially illogical for the business if you're a high achieving sales person costing less per week due to fewer hours.

Hold fire on the constructive dismissal stuff. I was in a similar-ish situation a while back and when I looked up the likely outcome of constructive dismissal it was less than the redundancy I would be due.

Check your contract / company terms for redundancy and see what you might be eligible for. Also check the redundancy policy. Most places have a policy of taking voluntary redundancy before compulsory. With 27 years service I'd expect a fairly high redundancy playout that might be a once in a lifetime opportunity!

Do watch out for the part time element. Check the policy because you might be offered 27 months (perhaps capped at 25) of your current salary. It might be worthwhile going back to full time before redundancy kicks in. You can also negotiate, so say you will only go under voluntary if the payout is based on the FTE salary.

Are you in a union? Do you have any legal cover?

Do the sums now so you have a negotiation position.
Negotiate to get the payout in a fresh tax year to lower the tax liability (£30k redundancy is tax free, the rest is taxed as income.

Agree with @Rollercoaster1920 , if it goes legal, the costs mount up incredibly quickly and it's not always worth it by a long chalk unless the stakes are very high.

@Timeforabiscuit correct I would not be at the bottom of the matrix in a fair process but I have seen it many times where they frig the criteria to get the result they want.
@Rollercoaster1920 you are correct and there is a CAP for the constructive dismissal which would not be as advantageous as my package, I think what I'm trying to do though is leverage the mistake and poor handling to negotiate on a compromise agreement an enhanced package. I know they will want the reductions of their books by the end of the year (their financial year)
No unions in my sector.
I do have legal help on my Insurance policy if I needed it but I'm hoping to just use these fuck ups to subtly get the best exit I can [fingers crossed]

What's the other role? Can they argue that it is a fair replacement if your role is not included in the new matrix?

They could interview everyone for the three posts and then slot the last one in the other role as a second round. It then becomes a matter of whether it is a reasonable alternative. You not wanting to do and preferring redundancy is not their problem.

A shame about financial year targets, tax can be a killer at the end of a tax year. See if they will pay some redundancy into a pension to avoid tax. My employer wouldn't, but then you can put money into a personal pension to get some tax relief (via self assessment).

A couple of things to be aware of:

• your mortgage might require some kind of life insurance. I used my work one so when redundant that wasn't there any more. Luckily my partner had just got a new job where they had similar cover.
• Register for JSA ASAP because it cannot be backdated.

@vivainsomnia That's an interesting point on the other role. My understanding is the role has to be of 'Like work' so for me in sales, a new territory to look after would be considered similar.
However the role they want me to do is , engineering/tech/delivery so not even in my current department. I don't have a relevant degree but because I have been there so long I know a lot and guess could do the job but surely that doesn't mean I have to. It wouldn't look good for my career to make such a significant change, I'd also be at a financial disadvantage as I'd loose my variable pay.

Make sure you have contemporaneous notes of the phone call’s. These can evidence what you understood from his phone calls.

Quick update, HR called me back today to say a call had happened between my manager, his manager and HR. They are reviewing the organisation but have no answer for me yet other than its now clear I do not want the other job, HR advised not to worry they will not make me dot he other job and it was discussed with good intentions ......Very frustrating as its been 2 weeks now and I still don't know what's happening and have been left in limbo.
I asked what the timeline is and HR say they have another call tomorrow.....

@SouthRay that is HR speak for he fucked up, we are going to do this right, but we would really like you to help us by being be patient.

I know it is difficult but just be patient and wait for HR to get back to you. I suspect this may take a little time .

so a little update although not much to say. I have had a couple of calls with HR and the CRO (My managers manager) a lot of waffle that really cutting to the chase is saying......we are re-structuring and you have been involved/told too early and we have not finalised that re-org but don't want to deal with you in isolation as if it gets out moral could be affected and they need the team focused on closing the year.......
so I am being asked to carry on as normal and they will get back to me. Extremely frustrating and I've had a month of uncertainty already.
I've at least had the chance to be very clear on my own position which is I don't want the role in a different department or any other 'made up' role.
I got some advice and have been told any change >20% of your current role is deemed a significant change.

@SouthRay your update does make sense. As I said previously your manager fucked up big time.

They are correct that trying to find a solution just for you is not likely to be feasible and could undermine a fair process for everyone.

I also can understand the impact on the business if they announce anything earlier than planned or before plans are finalised.

However, that leaves you in a really shitty position of having to keep this quiet for perhaps a few months.

Conversely, it puts you in a position of strength because they know they have to be 100% correct in how they treat you and you have time to think about what you do and don’t want. You can quietly research other business areas to see what are a best fit for you. You can also look at jobs elsewhere to see if now is the right time to take a package and move.

I know it’s hard but keeping this quiet is likely to be best for you in the long run.