In danger of redundancy

Caroline_a

Need some help here please. There is some evidence that I may be on a list of people chosen for redundancy. On the same list is a temp who has been covering my work while I've been off having cancer treatment. Treatment has now finished and prognosis is good - I've been back at work fulltime since September.

What are the legalities if one of us is retained rather than made redundant? Can they keep the temp on instead of me? I've been there now as a FTE for 3 years.

asajj

Good to hear you are better. For the actual query, let's wait for the experts :P

lincroft1710

The term "redundant" actually relates to a specific job no longer required by the employer. So if you are the typist and the employer no longer needs a typist then your job would be redundant. Similarly if you worked in a dairy delivering milk on one of 6 milk rounds and because of falling sales the dairy decided to reorganise the rounds into 5 or even 4, then there would be respectively 1 or 2 redundant rounds and thus a requirement for only 5 or 4 people instead of 6.

"Last in, first out" is not a criterion that should be solely used when considering which employee is no longer required

Caroline_a

This person has been doing my role, initially when I was off sick and when I came back full time she was retained to do parts of the role. There is not enough work for 2 people anyway and hence the temp has been doing personal jobs for my manager. I understand that my manager wanted to retain the headcount but it doesn't seem right if a FTE is let go who is doing the same job as a retained temporary staff member.

asajj

I'm a bit confused as to whether your role will be redundant or not?

Caroline_a

One role will be made redundant. So it's me or the temp. I have an unblemished work record - apart from the time I had off for cancer treatment. My feeling is that if it's me then it's discrimination - cancer sufferers have the same rights as people with disabilities.

TBagpuss

It could be discrimanatory of one of their selection criteria was abbsence/sickness so you were selected becaue of your illness.

However, having a disability (including cancer) or another protected characteristic doesn't mean that you cannot be selected. The requirement is that the selection process and criteria must be fair and non-discrimantory.

So, they could select the other employee if they feel that, on the basis of their criteria, they feel that she is the best person for the job. I belive that as part of the consultation process you do have th chance to make representations, and if you do have that chance, focus on what you bring to the role, and why you are the best person for the job - in other words, show them the positives *for the business* of retaining you, rathe than accusing them of bais or discrimination. Be honest with yourself - consider whether the other employee has skills which you don't have, and whether you could acquire them.

You refer to her as a temp - is she still working on a temp contract, or was she made a permanent employee after you returned to work? It is possible that that may be relevant.

Caroline_a

No, she's still a temp. My tech skills are far greater than hers - she openly says how she 'hates technology' and it's a software company!

I've seen how they work these things before - once you are on the List then they skew any results from any consultation.

macca1974

If they do it properly, they will decide which role(s) are redundant and then decide what the new role is (which may include the personal jobs for the manager). They will then decide on what the duties of the new role are and come up with a selection criteria for the new role. If they decide that the temp is the best person for the role then she gets it and vice versa. They can use whatever non-discriminatory criteria that they like to decide who is the best person for the job.

Caroline_a

So really they could just make it up?

TBagpuss

They get to decide what their criteria for the job are.