My role is redundant but have been put in a pool for another job....questions!

[lovemenomore]

Hi All
This is long so I am sorry!

I am after some advice as I am getting confused by what I am being told by my employer/union.

I have worked for my employer for 4.5yrs and we were informed late last year that we are being taken over by a similar organisation. In December we were all notified of which category we are in for either keeping our role (A) in a pool for selection (B) or our role is already carried out by the new business so there wont be a role for us and therefore redundant (C) - I was in C as my role is done from their central offices some miles away from where I am now & there wouldn't be a similar role on site where I am.

The plan is to TUPE all employees over to the new company on a set date (in 4 wks time) and then you'll be made redundant that day if you are a C or not selected for the role in B. Whilst I was very upset at losing my job I came to terms with it and have started job hunting. Also to be honest the way the new organisation has handled all this has made a lot of us not want to work for them anyway!

We had our consultation meetings in December and mine and a few others were really unhappy about how our meetings went - for example they had my job title incorrect and name spelt incorrectly and the person doing mine basically said I won't have a job and to start packing up. I sent feedback along the lines of job title wrong, name incorrect etc and how unprofessional I felt this person was. None of which has been acknowledged.

Fast forward to last week when they publish the results of the consultation and I have suddenly been moved to a B and will need to interview for a role which is nothing like my current one, although they are saying it is suitable alternative employment. The role is not similar in that I wont be doing anything related to what I do there is no job description or location advised, or hours, and it has supervisory responsibilities as well as accounting which I do not currently do not ever have done.

I have asked our HR why I was moved to a different category and she said that the new organisation said I asked to be moved to this category by stating my job title was incorrect (??) I definitely didn't! They have never once spoke to me about this or advised this was happening I found out in an email sent to the whole company.

So I want to know if I have any options here as -

• I do not want to do the job they have mapped me too, it is not related at all, I have reasonable adjustments as I have a disability which means the new role may prove difficult (although I haven't seen a proper job description).
• I am told if I refuse to go to the interview I wont get redundancy.
• If I get the job and don't want it I have to then give 4 weeks notice and wont get redundancy.
• I am being told to 'flunk' the interview so they don't select me and make me redundant anyway - but what if they choose me anyway?! I am up against a senior person so it seems very random!

I am just so upset over all this as its an emotional rollercoaster…any advice tips would be really appreciated! I don't want to stay so if I am offered it my plan would be to not accept and lose any related pay I guess.

Any help would be appreciated!

It sounds like they are trying to manage you out without paying you a proper redundancy package. I would speak to a union rep or seek legal advice in your shoes, and definitely keep looking for another job.

If you were appointed you should get a trial period during which you can decide it is not working and still be entitled to redundancy. If the alternative is based an unreasonable distance then you can still be redundant,

Yes, they are trying to manage you out without having to pay you redundancy.

Get back to HR and tell them they couldn't even manage to spell your name right, and you therefore don't trust them to get anything else right either.

Have you tried calling ACAS helpline?

thanks for the replies!

I have been told they’ve moved me as I requested it which is not true! So tomorrow when I speak to their representative I’m going to state that’s unfair as it wasn’t a request and that the role is nothing at all like mine.

Yes I called them today and she said that they need to show me how it’s comparable to my current role (it isn’t as my role is sales so like a BDM, and in IT as well) and this new role is dealing with livestock (?!!) managing a team and accounts?!

^this. The helpline is fanrastic,

You mentioned you have a disability.

I have just googled Unison guide on disability and there are quite a few guides to choose from.

Even if you are member of a different union, please do have a look in case there is something about your situation.

I hope it helps.

Having been through this recently and knowing these processes, by choosing not to interview you are putting yourself at risk of redundancy so they’re right, they don’t need to pay your redundancy if you “choose to leave” which, if you have a suitable SAE and choose not to move forward in it, then you are essentially choosing to leave, not being made redundant. It’s not right but it’s legal. Did you have an effective group consultation stage? That would have been the time to surface that the SAE wasn’t “suitable”. If not, it’s too late to question the SAE now. Your choice is to interview (poorly) and get redundancy, interview (well) and maybe have job security or not interview and forgo redundancy.

Unless he is in his 40s or above, and/or has an insane salary, I cant imagine them caring enough to try that and risk getting caught for 4 years of redundancy pay.

I would say it's more likely either miscommunication from his complaint or his disability playing a role, or some combination and they aren't thinking about avoiding redundancy.

Unless they are doing it to a lot of people, but that seems complicated to pull off.

But they didn't tell her it was happening at the group consultation phase, did they? Maybe I have misread something but I thought it goes changed recently?

Hi

there was t a group consultation I was on my own (if that’s what you mean?) that was an awful experience in itself as the person doing it had no idea what my job was and basically said there is no job did you.

I will have to interview poorly which won’t be hard considering I don’t know much about the role I’m being mapped too!

thanks for the replies.