Voluntary redundancy - what are the implications?

pinkpie

Just wondered if anyone had any thoughts/experience on voluntary redundancy

If you were offered another job you didn't really want at a site over 50 miles away as your site closed, would you take it or choose voluntary redundancy?

also does anyone know if jsa can still be claimed if redundancy is voluntary?

any thoughts appreciated

real1314

if the employer is making redundancies anyway, taking voluntary in place of someone else being made redundant compulsarily does not affect claiming JSA (afaik - you should be able to confirm this via advice sites).

Taking voluntary redundancy from a job being moved 50 miles may be defensible on the grounds that you were unable to travel this far on a daily basis? (imho)

Is it a good job?
what are your circumstances?

pinkpie

it's actually my oh who is main wage earner and as such has started a trial period with new job at different site and hates it and the travelling - can be nearly 2hrs each way if traffic is bad. voluntary redundancy is still available during trial period but technically would not taking it in place of someone else.

should find another job ok and would take any job in the short term if taking voluntary redundancy but just wondered how other employers would view it and whether jsa is still available if it all went wrong.....

jobbingmusician

I have taken vol redundancy in the past, and it certainly would not prejudice me against any candidate I was considering for work. If your OH can get another job fairly easily, I would not hesitate to take VR (and any nice financial package I could negotiate to accompany it ). AFAIK, JSA is payable if you are made redundant.

Three_Dancing_Dragons

It used to be that you wouldn't be penalised for turning down a job if it was a) a certain distance or b) travel time. From memory, more than an hour? Why not ring the jobcentre and check.

I was able to turn down a job during a trial period in 1998 because I didn't have a car and it was taking me an hour and a half travel each way on public transport. Went straight back onto JSA with no delay (much to the annoyance of my psycho boss).

pinkpie

thanks for all your help - just finding it a hard decision as it is a job after all and pays ok but oh is really unhappy and missing out on family life with a long day.

redundancy would cover a few months and he would do any job short term to get by but I guess part of us is scared to make the choice - it actually would have been easier in this case if it had been compulsory, although I know that that's hard as my Dad went through it.