Being Forced to Relocate Unwillingly

marybelle01

Gloomendoom wrote: »

It is. I was asked to relocate 18 miles away. I asked for redundancy instead on the basis of increased travel time (I didn't own a car at the time) and got it.

Mt ex-wife was asked to locate 42 miles away and, again, was offered redundancy when she said that the journey was unreasonable.

In both instances the union were helpful, even in my case, despite the fact that I wasn't a member.

But in both cases the employer agreed to pay - which they can do. The OP has already said that the employer is not offering redundancy, so if they refuse to pay redundancy, which is what they have said they will do, then it becomes a court case. That is why my comment is relevant - there is no guarantee she will win.

p00hsticks

marybelle01 wrote: »

The OP has already said that the employer is not offering redundancy, so if they refuse to pay redundancy, which is what they have said they will do, then it becomes a court case.

Re-reading the OP's original post, I cant see that they have said that the empoyer will necessarily refuse to pay redund
ancy, just that as yet it has not 'been mentioned as an option'

YorkshireGuy

Thanks for all the comments - very helpful.

My wife would be expected to do exactly the same job but simply in a different office. No change in salary or any other condition except that if she drove to the new office, she would have to pay for car parking. The organisation is prepared to pay her public travel costs for up to 2 years but after that she would be seriously out of pocket.

We don't have any children or other dependents but we do have an active social life which would be adversely affected by this move. Evening activities such as going to the cinema or sports centre or visiting friends would probably cease as she would be tired from all this extra travelling.

She is going to speak to the Unison rep at her office today and get some unofficial advice.

Gloomendoom

OP has your wife actually asked if redundancy is an option?

YorkshireGuy

Just a few more scraps of info:

I have the kind of self-employed job where I sometimes need the car and sometimes don’t. When I work from home or can catch a bus, my wife drives. When I need the car to visit customers in their own homes, I drop my wife off or she takes the bus.

Her current drive to work is about 4 miles. From our house to the new office is about 19 miles. She is not the most confident of drivers and has never driven to the new town before.

We have a bus stop right outside our house. The buses run between Town X and Town Y on an hourly basis. Unfortunately, the organisation wants her to work in Town Z so she would need to change from bus to train in either Town X or Town Y. Giving her a lift part of the way wouldn’t really help because I can’t drive much quicker than the bus.

Some of the more senior staff at her office are being offered redundancy. I understand that this is because their positions will no longer exist after re-structuring. My wife’s position will continue to exist but is being move to a different town.

She has decent qualifications and a fair amount of work experience. Saying that, there’s no certainty that she would immediately be able to find alternative employment.

YorkshireGuy

Gloomendoom wrote: »

OP has your wife actually asked if redundancy is an option?

Last night she told me she didn't think so because the position will continue to exist. I think her organisation has systems in place for hearings and appeals where you can take a union rep or colleague for support.

Some of the Managers at her office travel considerably farther to get to work but they are doing that by choice and getting paid lots more than her. My wife is office-based and rarely needs to visit other locations as part of her job.

RichardD1970

YorkshireGuy wrote: »

We don't have any children or other dependents but we do have an active social life which would be adversely affected by this move. Evening activities such as going to the cinema or sports centre or visiting friends would probably cease as she would be tired from all this extra travelling.

Unfortunately most companies don't care about your social life, only your working life.

Dunroamin

Wouldn't the simplest thing be to just buy a banger for your wife?

YorkshireGuy

Dunroamin wrote: »

Wouldn't the simplest thing be to just buy a banger for your wife?

Unfortunately that would be pretty expensive:

Old banger = £600 - £1000 ?
Road tax = £120
MOT = £50
Insurance without no claims discount = £800 ?
Weekly miles = 200 = £30 = £1200 per year

Plus servicing, maintenance, breakdown cover, etc. And she needs to pay for parking in the new town.

So that's well over £2k when she's on the same salary as before. She would get some cash from the employer for two years but after that she's well out of pocket.

YorkshireGuy

Her "Statement of Employment Particulars" (which I presume means contract) says:

"You will initially serve at XXXXX. You may however be required to undertake work other than at this office on a temporary basis at any of the organisation's offices. Any permanent change to your place of work will be dealt with under the terms of the Mobility Policy."

The Mobility Policy is 6 pages long and doesn't mention redundancy at all. The key sections seem to be:

***********************************

The policy will apply to all employees and makes a distinction between moves within the same business unit and geographical radius of 10 miles against those moves which involve a change of business unit or are between offices that are more than 10 miles apart.

The key feature of this policy is a fresh approach to those employee moves driven by organisational need. These moves are to be supported by regular and purposeful discussions between individuals and their line manager in supervision and appraisal. The emphasis is on colleagues who work in operations.

A transparent and fair approach to employee mobility. Colleagues are treated with respect and sensitivity with full consideration of individual needs relating to health and wellbeing.

All moves that are between business units or involve a distance greater than 10 miles will be decided by Heads of Service or above. The managers will also consult with the recognised trade unions to share the proposals and numbers involved at the earliest possible stage.

Employees who have been selected for a move to another business unit or one that involves a change of office over 10 miles away will be offered the opportunity to meet with the decision maker, who will provide them with an explanation for their selection. The individual may be accompanied by a trade union representative or work colleague to this meeting and the HR Business Partner will also attend. This meeting should ideally take place and the outcome be communicated in sufficient time ahead of the planned move to allow for an appeal to take place

All mobility decisions will be based on a proper review that takes individual circumstances into account including any caring commitments and the journey to work. The need to maintain effective service delivery will, however, always be the paramount consideration. Relevant factors to be taken into account will include the benefits of maintaining continuity, achieving a balance of expertise and knowledge in teams as well as promoting flexibility, deploying resources in response to fluctuating workload levels and developing a broad base of skills. Where reasonable adjustments have been implemented, the review will assess the impact of these measures in relation to the proposed move as well as considering any future requirements. Colleagues who raise health or disability related reasons during supervision discussions that prevent them moving to a specific location or undertaking a particular type of work will be expected to co-operate in a referral to the occupational health practitioner or a specific diversity specialist.

Individuals identified for moves between business units or between offices more than 10 miles apart have the opportunity to meet with the decision maker and be accompanied by a trade union representative or work colleague. The meeting should take place and the outcome be communicated as far in advance of the proposed move date as possible.

Employees have the right to appeal against a decision to move them between business units and/or between offices more than 10 miles apart, having first taken the opportunity to meet with the decision maker and receive an explanation of the reasons for the proposed move. The appeal should be made in writing to the Director of Human Resources, stating the grounds for the appeal, within 10 working days of the meeting with the decision maker. The Director of Human Resources may opt to hear the appeal his/herself or nominate a representative at ACO level or above. The appeal will be heard within 30 working days of being lodged. Moves will not normally take place until the appeal has been determined or until at least two hearing dates have been rejected and the employee has also declined an offer to proceed on a written representations basis. There may be occasions however when the Director of Operations decides the move is business critical and must go ahead. The Director of Operations will take this decision after considering whether other suitable temporary or interim arrangements could be put in place. If he/she decides the move will be implemented then the rationale will be shared with the colleague and their representative. This action will not be held to prejudge or undermine the outcome of any appeal process. The appeal decision will be final.

Excess mileage payments will apply for both volunteers and those who are identified for a move due to organisational need. For the avoidance of doubt, the payment does not apply to any move requested by individuals, nor will it apply to promotions or disciplinary moves. The allowance is a payment in respect of the excess distance from home to the new place of work compared to the distance between home and the former place of work. The allowance will be paid for a maximum of 2 years from the date of transfer. In the event that the employee moves house, the allowance will be reviewed. If an employee moves nearer to their new office location, the payment will be proportionately reduced. If the employee moves further away, no increase will be payable.