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Redundancy from a job I don't have
bendix
Posts: 5,499 Forumite
I've had the weirdest experience.
Between October to December 2008 I was employed by an international consulting firm in Thailand. However, within weeks of starting with them I was offered a better role back here in the UK which I started in Jan 2009. I told the Thai company this and after I left in early Jan, they wrote to me and said that in return for paying me a salary for Jan 2009 (for which I didnt work), could I change my resignation into a 'extended unpaid leave' arrangement with a view to returning if I wanted.
Whatever, I thought. So I duly accepted another month's salary (around £7500 after tax at the then exchange rate) and promptly forgot about them, never intending to return to them and focusing instead on my new role in the UK. I've literally had no contact with them since January.
This morning they called me. They had bad news, they said. Because of the downturn they could no longer honour the agreement that I could return if I wanted (but I don't want to, I said). As compensation, they have offered to pay me two month's extra salary as a severance payment
WHAAAAAT?
Because of the lovely tax arrangements for severance payments in Thailand, a princely sum of 1,100,000 Thai baht is being paid to my Thai bank account next week. At today's exchange rate, that's over £20,000.
For .. ummm . . doing nothing.
Am I the only person in the world to get a redundancy payment for a job they left nearly six months ago, to do a much better job on the other side of the world?
Between October to December 2008 I was employed by an international consulting firm in Thailand. However, within weeks of starting with them I was offered a better role back here in the UK which I started in Jan 2009. I told the Thai company this and after I left in early Jan, they wrote to me and said that in return for paying me a salary for Jan 2009 (for which I didnt work), could I change my resignation into a 'extended unpaid leave' arrangement with a view to returning if I wanted.
Whatever, I thought. So I duly accepted another month's salary (around £7500 after tax at the then exchange rate) and promptly forgot about them, never intending to return to them and focusing instead on my new role in the UK. I've literally had no contact with them since January.
This morning they called me. They had bad news, they said. Because of the downturn they could no longer honour the agreement that I could return if I wanted (but I don't want to, I said). As compensation, they have offered to pay me two month's extra salary as a severance payment
WHAAAAAT?
Because of the lovely tax arrangements for severance payments in Thailand, a princely sum of 1,100,000 Thai baht is being paid to my Thai bank account next week. At today's exchange rate, that's over £20,000.
For .. ummm . . doing nothing.
Am I the only person in the world to get a redundancy payment for a job they left nearly six months ago, to do a much better job on the other side of the world?
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Comments
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Cor! My first thought was "jammy ******" - "some people have all the luck".
Errr...my second thought was "hmmm....wonder if that firm is up to something suspect and you might end up sorta seen to be involved or them finding a way to extract money back OUT of your bank account - rather than INTO it".
It may be you just get very lucky - it may be a bit "odd". Personally - before I started celebrating I'd check things out a bit that me and my finances were both quite safe from any possible harm...0 -
You've got the paperwork! Take the money and change your bank account. You've moved on.
It was odd in the first place for them to want to keep you on their books, wasn't it.
Strange but if it all works out, good for you.
Jen
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Is your contract under UK law?Gone ... or have I?0
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Cor! My first thought was "jammy ******" - "some people have all the luck".
Errr...my second thought was "hmmm....wonder if that firm is up to something suspect and you might end up sorta seen to be involved or them finding a way to extract money back OUT of your bank account - rather than INTO it".
It may be you just get very lucky - it may be a bit "odd". Personally - before I started celebrating I'd check things out a bit that me and my finances were both quite safe from any possible harm...
No . there's nothing dodgy. I've been sent a formal letter to the effect agreeing the severance, and if I told you the name of the company you'd know there's nothing suspect. Put it like this . . . it is one of the Big Four Accounting / Consultancy firms - a household name.
Moreover, the account they are paying into is a 'holding account' I kept open in Thailand when I moved back here . . it currently has a grand total of around £6 in it (until next week, that is).0 -
Is your contract under UK law?
Thai law, which is extremely good from the point of view of severance payments.
But that's why this is strange. I actually quit and had no intention of returning, notwithstanding their sweetener to stay on their books as unpaid staff. I guess from a legal point, I'm still staff so that's why they have done this.0 -
I quite fancy a job with them !!!0
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Jennifer_Jane wrote: »
It was odd in the first place for them to want to keep you on their books, wasn't it.
x
Odd, but nice of them, yes.
They knew I was taking a risk coming back to the UK and they wanted to give me the option of returning to them if it didnt work out. Hence, offering me extended unpaid leave. As they didnt want me to leave, it was a risk they wanted to take.
Anyway - an update. A payment of 1,132,350 thai baht was paid to my account on Friday evening. £20,588. Wooooo hooooo. . . .0 -
well it is good to hear about someone's luck like this, given all the gloom around, good for youLindsayO
Goal: mortgage free asap
15/10/2007: Mortgage: £110k Term: 17 years
18/08/2008: Mortgage: £107k Mortgage - Offset savings: £105k
02/01/2009: Mortgage: £105k Mortgage - Offset savings: £99k0
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