TUPE and effects on future promotion

AverageellieLDN

My small consultancy company was bought out by a much larger company three years ago. All the staff were retained under the original contracts which were transferred under TUPE regulations.

I have now been offered a promotion but have been told I must sign a new contract with the new company. The problem is, the terms of the new contract are not as favourable as those in my current contact, especially the maternity benefits. If I were to sign the new contact and then have a baby I would be set to lose over £7000.

Firstly, must I sign a new contract? If I do, do they have any obligation to try and match the conditions of my original contact?

It just seems as though I could potentially be seriously penalised if I took the promotion, which really doesn't seem right.

An advice would be much appreciated.

Jarndyce

AverageellieLDN wrote: »

My small consultancy company was bought out by a much larger company three years ago. All the staff were retained under the original contracts which were transferred under TUPE regulations.

I have now been offered a promotion but have been told I must sign a new contract with the new company. The problem is, the terms of the new contract are not as favourable as those in my current contact, especially the maternity benefits. If I were to sign the new contact and then have a baby I would be set to lose over £7000.

Firstly, must I sign a new contract? If I do, do they have any obligation to try and match the conditions of my original contact?

It just seems as though I could potentially be seriously penalised if I took the promotion, which really doesn't seem right.

An advice would be much appreciated.

They are not doing anything wrong. They are offering you a new post (promotion or otherwise) on different terms and conditions. You have a choice whether to take it or not. If you refuse, you stay on your current conditions in your current role.

Only you can know what life will be like if you turn it down, but you have to weigh up the pros and cons as to how they affect you personally.

The only middle ground would be to try and negotiate better conditions for the new role, but how successful that would be will depend on how much they want you.

AverageellieLDN

Thank you so much for your quick reply. I guess I'll have to weigh up the pros and cons. It's just a shame that a reward such as a promotion is so tainted by the terms of the contract-they give with one had and take with the other!

SarEl

You may want to bear in mind that even if you choose to refuse the offer because of your better terms and conditions in this post, that may be a limiting choice - after three years the only reason you have your current terms is because the employer hasn't chosen to change them. But that situation may change, and ta this stage there is little stopping them from doing so. So you could refuse the promotion and then find some months down the line that you end up with the same terms that you would have had if you ahd accepted, but without the job.

Jarndyce

That's right. No guarantees at all. Surely you will be earning more money in the new role as you are terming it a promotion? If so surely that will offset any deterioration in other terms and conditions to some extent, and will also prevent you being earmarked as someone who doesn't want to embrace the new company's ethos, which could hold you back even more.

AverageellieLDN

Thanks for all the advice! I feel much better equipped now to make my decision.