Can I be forced to take a job at a lower grade?

teribar

At 12.30 today my colleagues and I were 'invited' to a briefing at 3.30pm. At the meeting was our manager,his manager, the director and two representatives from HR.

They announced a restructure, my role (supervisor) is being axed and there will be three senior roles instead of just two at the moment. Everyone will have to apply for their role and all the seniors will have to work one weekend in three.

They are adamant there will be no redundancies. The two current seniors do not wish to work weekends and I don't want to take a drop in grade (my salary will remain the same for three years)

Can anyone tell me what will happen if we don't apply for these roles?

Also I'm upset that mine is the only role to be deleted and I found out at the same time as everyone else. Am i being unreasonable to think I should have had the courtesy of a private meeting?

xapprenticex

You can be made redundant or you can apply for one of the other roles.

They seem to be trying to keep you all in work.

If you dont apply for the jobs you will have no jobs.

Remember, we can ALL be replaced within 2 weeks.

suki1964

You can lose your job, and Ive a sneaky feeling it won't be a redundancy as its a restructure

I went through the same scenario 20 odd years ago, dropped a grade, pay protected for 3 years, 18 months later my role was reinstated at a grade higher then it was

If you like where you work, just role with it. Lower grade, less responsibility , same pay

jonnygee2

They are adamant there will be no redundancies.

Can anyone tell me what will happen if we don't apply for these roles?

If your role is 'being axed' then it is being made redundant and standard redundancy procedures will apply.

It might be that what they mean by 'no redundancies' is that they are trying hard to offer you all work, despite difficult circumstances.

If you like where you work, just role with it. Lower grade, less responsibility , same pay

I was in a similar situation once. Took redundancy, best decision I ever made. Got a nice big payout and found a new job in a few weeks. I'll admit it was stressful for a time, but I'm definitely glad I didn't take a pay cut just to keep working with a failing company.

Sometimes there's a solid business plan but often these things are just part of a business slowly going downhill. In which case often better to jump ship.

TELLIT01

You can't be forced to take a lower grade job, but the company has already stated that there will be no redundancies so your options would seem to be somewhat limited. I'm not sure of the legal situation where a role is deleted i.e. made redundant, but not the number of jobs.
What is your concern about taking on the new role as your salary won't be affected for 3 years? If the new job doesn't work out you certainly have plenty of time to look for a new one.
I was in the same position following a merger between two companies. I had been in a true management role with loads of responsibility and authority within a subsidiary of one of the companies. Following the merger responsibilities changed massively, but my salary was permanently protected. I stuck it out for about 3 years until further restructuring did create the opportunity for redundancy and the chance to move on.

ACG

I imagine his concern is that if he plans on applying for jobs in the future, having supervisor as his current job looks better than senior xxx.

I am guessing she/he has also worked hard for the promotions and so to then take a step back is disheartening.

Im not sure on the legalities but I was made redundant, I was offered a lower job but with my pay guaranteed for 2 years. I took the redundancy and left. Those lower jobs were made redundant 18 months later.

I can only assume if your job no longer exists and they are saying you have to apply for the new job, you are in effect being made redundant if you do not apply. It might be worth getting some legal advice. If you have buildings insurance or car insurance they may have legal cover included. Not the best but should be enough to steer you in the right direction.

FirstTimer4Me

I know someone in a very similar position.

Role is being axed, they've been offered a similar role, less money, more hours, no redundancy communication.

In fact, the employer has stated their doing the individual a favour finding a job within the company.

Are they obliged to comply with a redundancy consultation period?

Ozzuk

Some guidance here, though it doesn't mention relative laws...:
https://www.citizensadvice.org.uk/work/leaving-a-job/redundancy/your-employer-offers-you-another-job/

I guess the key question will be is the role change reasonable. Ultimately if you disagree on that then only a tribunal will decide. When I was in a similar position HR told me if I didn't take new job I'd be effectively resigning - which obviously set the tone that they thought it was reasonable (doesn't necessarily mean it was).

nicechap

teribar wrote: »

At 12.30 today my colleagues and I were 'invited' to a briefing at 3.30pm. At the meeting was our manager,his manager, the director and two representatives from HR.

They announced a restructure, my role (supervisor) is being axed and there will be three senior roles instead of just two at the moment. Everyone will have to apply for their role and all the seniors will have to work one weekend in three.

They are adamant there will be no redundancies. The two current seniors do not wish to work weekends and I don't want to take a drop in grade (my salary will remain the same for three years)

Can anyone tell me what will happen if we don't apply for these roles?

Also I'm upset that mine is the only role to be deleted and I found out at the same time as everyone else. Am i being unreasonable to think I should have had the courtesy of a private meeting?

I can't see anything that suggests you are being "forced' to take a lower grade job. Your role is being made redundant, not you. You are free to leave the employer and find something else if you wish. Given your previous threads about failing to get an internal promotion and then being very unhappy where you are, this might be an opportunity to move on.

Most people would be very grateful for 3 years protected salary, more so at your age.

If you don't apply for any role, I would assume they would presume you wish to leave the organisation in which case, you might get notice pay if you're lucky.

ReadingTim

teribar wrote: »

Also I'm upset that mine is the only role to be deleted and I found out at the same time as everyone else. Am i being unreasonable to think I should have had the courtesy of a private meeting?

No - you are impacted as part of a wider restructuring which affects others, and it's only fair that everyone impacted hears at the same time. Why are you more special than everyone else?

However, now you're all aware of the wider context, then a private meeting to discuss its impact on your role is not unreasonable, and indeed is likely to be forthcoming.

ACG

Out of curiosity, what would happen if he/she went in and just did really badly in the interview - shy/timid, useless answers to questions etc?