Forced to move location

pollythena

I moved departments at the beginning of December to a new role, based in Leeds where I live and worked previously. Today it was announced that the department is moving to Halifax, which is 25 miles from where I live. I don't drive and rely on public transport, which is why I've never applied for roles in the Halifax office. It will take me 2 hours to get to Halifax and 2 hours to get home every day, so I will be working 12 hours for 5 days a week, which I believe will be extremely detrimental to my physical and mental health. It will also leave me with no leisure time during the week.

The building we work in now is owned and will continue to be owned by the company, with many other departments occupying it. We were told that because our roles would still exist we cannot opt for displacement or voluntary redundancy and have to work from Halifax. The only other option we were offered would be to work from another building altogether, which is on an industrial estate in a different town and completely inaccessible by public transport, so in essence we haven't been given an option at all. This isn't being done as a cost saving, it seems to be a very recent decision by the area manager to have all his staff in one location.

Travel costs will be covered but it's not the cost that's concerning me, it's the travel time. I'm not in a position to move house. Is there anything I can do? I have looked at other positions within the company but right now there aren't many.

Also, there are different pay bands. Leeds is in a higher band because it costs more to live in and although our pay will remain the same when we move, in future years our pay will be measured for Halifax which is lower. Is this fair when many of us will still be living in Leeds and incurring higher living costs, considering this is not a voluntary move?

I'm going to speak to ACAS tomorrow but wanted to know if anyone else had an opinion since they're closed right now.

SarEl

It depends on what you mean by "fair". It's lawful yes. Even without a mobility clause. moving you to an office 25 miles away isn't going to be considered unreasonable in law. Your pay remains the same for now. I am afraid that if you don't like it, then the only option is to move until you can find another job - you have no legal grounds to refuse.

By the way - you must have found the slowest posible route by public transport to get from Leeds to Halifax - a maximum of 36 minutes centre to centre by metro train at a weekly cost of £29.70 and that cost includes all public transport costs within the West Yorkshire area for the entire week. There are monthly, quarterly and annual passes too which represent significant savings on the weekly cost - perhaps you could convince your employer to stump up for a pass - there are corpoarte schemes. Not all barristers are in London you know!

[Cut an pasted from the answer I left on the other site you posted on]

pollythena

SarEl wrote: »

By the way - you must have found the slowest posible route by public transport to get from Leeds to Halifax - a maximum of 36 minutes centre to centre by metro train at a weekly cost of £29.70 and that cost includes all public transport costs within the West Yorkshire area for the entire week. There are monthly, quarterly and annual passes too which represent significant savings on the weekly cost - perhaps you could convince your employer to stump up for a pass - there are corpoarte schemes. Not all barristers are in London you know!

[Cut an pasted from the answer I left on the other site you posted on]

I already have an annual pass but I purchased it for buses only. As I said though, it's not the costs, if the company pays for me to upgrade to include trains then fair enough.

I don't live in Leeds city centre, I live in east Leeds, Halifax is south-west of Leeds. Therefore with the transport available to me it really will take two hours because I'll have to get a bus and then the train.

SarEl

That really is irrelevant I'm afraid - in law the distance is quite within reason. And you must live in a very remote part of East Leeds - there are express buses throughout most parts of the city, and an hour to get from any part of Leeds to the centre is an awful long time - and a distance that you are presumably already having to travel. Have you considered other options such as car sharing with a colleague - there is also a West Yorkshire car sharing scheme on the internet.

pollythena

I had considered trying to find someone that lives near me but unfortunately I'll be working a different shift every week (even though the job I signed up for was office hours), so I'm unlikely to find someone who works the same hours as me all the time.

Part of the problem is the times of day they are wanting to me to work - one week involves me leaving very early before the buses start running regularly and the other finishing after they stop running regularly. It's not really about how long they take to get into the city centre, it's being able to get one that's running early enough to get me to the station on time.

SarEl

So how do you get to work now?

How about a bike - trains carry them all the time?

corbyboy

You have been given your answer so it's time to find a solution rather than just keep saying 'it's not fair.'

Tell us where you need to get from and to and somebody will find you the quickest route. You don't need to post your address. Just the general area.

Acc72

corbyboy wrote: »

You have been given your answer so it's time to find a solution rather than just keep saying 'it's not fair.'

But that isn't the answer the OP wants ......................

jfh7gwa

You also have the option of arranging lift shares or buying a car. Sure, it'll cost you money, but it does for most people who have to use a car for work - you may end up having to change roles to offset the cost e.g. think about applying for any internal promotions at your new office or even changing employers (either back so you have an easy/cheap commute, or relish your new found freedom with a car and look for work whose pay will justify car commuting).

There ARE options here - you've stated that they've essentially given you no options - but that's not true. Just none that suit you. Which isn't the same thing.

WhiteHorse

If you really don't like it, go with it for the time being and look for another job. Admittedly this is probably what your employer is after, but that's just the way it is.

Gordon_Hose

I commute from Kent to London everyday by Train. 1 hours walk every day, plus 3hrs 40 mins on the train (in total, when it's not delayed).

Many people commute 2 hours each way everyday, and the journey between your home and work isn't the responsibility of your employer. You either move, get a new job or put up with the commute. Those are your 3 options.