Dont think my current job should have been advertised?

k_bagpuss

Hello,

I left a secure full time job in December to start with - I'll call them "Company O". On my second interview I was with the Chairman of the company and the HR Director. I specifically told them I was looking for a company I could potentially stay with until I retired (I'm 40 years old). I was told they were also looking for someone who wanted to stay. I asked about the companys performance and I was told that they'd had a tough couple of years but were turning the corner and coming out the other side. I was offered the job - which I accepted. I had to go and buy a car as there wasn't a company car (I got a car allowance per month on top of the salary).

Three weeks ago I read online that Company O had hired a strategic management company to come in and look at the business and they had also got Deloitte involved too. I called head office who confirmed they were talking to people but not to worry, my division was safe and unaffected. The HR director did a conference call with us and told us not to worry.

Now the company has applied for a CVA, and the debts are over £20million including £8.6M to HMRC. The shareholders are to vote on March 31st and if the CVA doesn't go through the company will go into administration.

I called the HR director who was promoted to deputy MD at the end of January and said I was very worried, and felt I had been misled and that my job should never have been advertised and had I known the mess the company was in I would have never left my last job. The HR director apologised and said that I was right and that he was very sorry but he hadn't been made aware about the severity of the companies situation at the time of my interview - he had only found out the full details at the end of January. But this situation must have been building up for months previously.

I will get no redundancy and will be left with a car contract that I can't get out of for 2 years. I know Company O has made a good few people redundant and has broken pretty much every employment law going. I'm wondering if I have a case too given the information above?

Does anyone have any advise or can anyone point me in the right direction?

KiKi

I'm not sure you have a case for anything. You were offered a job which you accepted. Even if they *did* employ you knowing full well there were problems, that's not against the law as far as I know. You chose to enter into a contract for a car; they're not responsible for that, either.

In addition, lots of companies have problems but still have to deliver in the meantime, and the HRD and your manager may well not have been privy to those issues. The worst they've done is misled you, but you would be incredibly hard pressed to prove that - and it you won't gain anything from it.

I know that's not what you want to hear, so I'm sorry. But I don't think you have a case for anything. On top of that, you have fewer than 12 months' service, so your employment rights regarding any dismissal will be zero.

KiKi