Told that I am redundant

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charlotte20196
charlotte20196 Posts: 21 Forumite
in Redundancy & redundancy planning
Hi all

I am looking for some advice. I have worked for a small engineering company since 28th April 2014.
On Friday the MD asked if he could have a quick word. He then said that I was redundant as he can not afford to pay for someone to do my job. And that he and a part timer where going to cover my position.

Also that he will pay me for two weeks as notice.

I have been given nothing in writing. Am looking for any advice, can he do this and is it legal.

Thanks

Comments

  • ~Beanie~
    ~Beanie~ Posts: 3,043 Forumite
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    Yes he can unfortunately. In the first two years of employment you have very little protection.
    :p
  • getmore4less
    getmore4less Posts: 46,882 Forumite
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    He could have just got rid but as this is a redundancy then you can consult and look for other options.

    Chances are they won't get you anywhere but worth a try.

    Are you the only one doing the job(or very similar)?
    It may be there should be a pool to select from.

    Any other ways to save money, be more productive or make more money

    Could you go part time.
    Is there other work you could do
    Any ideas that could improve the situation.

    What is the notice in your contract?
  • charlotte20196
    charlotte20196 Posts: 21 Forumite
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    There has been no consultation, how do i go about asking for a consult.

    I am the only one who does the job, production administration. He said that my work would be covered by him and someone who works part time (they are the daughter of the MDs business partner)
  • cinderfella
    cinderfella Posts: 419 Forumite
    edited 24 August 2014 at 12:40PM
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    I know this is going to sound dreadful but in my opinion unless you are living in a very rural area, normally only good comes from a change like this.
    It is all very traumatic at the time bug the world is a huge place.
    Sorry again if I sound flippant.
    Good luck in your job search.

    Also it would do no harm to ask your employer in a nice way to stretch his notice to one month. That sounds reasonable.
  • getmore4less
    getmore4less Posts: 46,882 Forumite
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    charlotte20196 wrote: »
    There has been no consultation, how do i go about asking for a consult.

    I am the only one who does the job, production administration. He said that my work would be covered by him and someone who works part time (they are the daughter of the MDs business partner)

    you just start talking that's all consultation is.

    come up with good reasons why they need to keep you. Might be there are none or they are not interested as they think they can do the work.
  • charlotte20196
    charlotte20196 Posts: 21 Forumite
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    I think he thinks that they can do the work. He only bought the company at the beginning of April and has already got money issues.
    The girl who works part time had never sent an email or opened a word document until a couple of weeks ago.
  • TELLIT01
    TELLIT01 Posts: 16,489 Forumite
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    I really don't see that you can do anything. You say the company already has money issues. If you stay on longer they could go bust and you could end up with no pay at all. Losing a job is never a good experience at the time, but it might be a blessing in disguise in the long term.
    He has said that your work will be split between 2 other people so it seems that for once it is a genuine redundancy situation i.e. the job no longer exists.
  • tgon
    tgon Posts: 710 Forumite
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    Seems if the company is in trouble. You might not even get the offer you have soon.
  • zzzLazyDaisy
    zzzLazyDaisy Posts: 12,497 Forumite
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    Put simply, you have no rights.

    You have less than two years service, so the employer can simply terminate your contract without giving you any reason at all, and you have no come-back.

    The exception to that is if you believe that you can prove to a tribunal that the real reason for wanting to get rid of you amounts to unlawful discrimination (age, disability, sex, race etc). However nothing you have said suggests this.

    At least with the reason for dismissal being 'redundancy' you have something to put on your future job applications as a reason for leaving.

    It sounds like the company is struggling and you are probably best out of it anyway.

    Make sure that you get all outstanding holiday pay owing to you, and try and negotiate a good reference - that will probably be the most valuable asset in your search for a new job.

    Daisy
    I'm a retired employment solicitor. Hopefully some of my comments might be useful, but they are only my opinion and not intended as legal advice.
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