Sorry...another Furlough post! Made redundant on March 13th

HighContrast

Hi everyone,

Apologies as i think this question may have been answered already but it's difficult to sift though all the posts and articles so I hope I can just ask here for some info please, my situation is as follows:

Made redundant on March 13, mainly due to cororna virus as the specific industry the company was in was hammered by it. But the exact wording of the redundancy letter was follows: "I am writing to advise you that, unfortunately, the Company is considering ending your employment on the grounds of redundancy. Unfortunately, the business is over resourced and this has been exacerbated by the current situation concerning coronavirus".

Whilst the exact wording may not be that pertinent(?) my main question is - should i ask my previous employer to "re-hire" me so that I can claim the furlough/80%? What are others doing/recommending in this scenario?

Also if im honest I'm not 100% sure i could work for them again, should I say that when contacting them i.e. "can you put me on furlough but i don't want to return at the end of that period anyway"? Also if im brutally honest im not sure they want to would hire me again...but maybe i could be wrong there, but at least that gives them a get out too?

FYI I have another thread related to claiming contribution based job seekers in the meantime, but i want to get clarity on this situation first too, and obviously how best to approach my previous employer.

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/77002519#Comment_77002519

Many Thanks

TheAble

It can't hurt to ask. There's nothing to lose and they may say yes.

sharpe106

In your case if they want to it meets the criteria. Your job was lost as a result of the coronavirus. So there is no harm in asking, nothing stopping you from leaving as soon as the current situation is resolved if you no longer want to work for them.

HighContrast

Thank you for the replies. Should I say mention that I would only be interested in being "under contract" again for the period of however long furlough is being paid for and that I have no particular interest (i.e. not bothered) about returning after that period ends?

sharpe106

how much redundancy pay did you get? If you get more then a month redundancy pay it may not be worth trying to be furloughed as you would have to give that back and then quit once the furlough ends. If you got less then that you are better of giving it back being furloughed and then just leaving at the end and getting nothing further, and you never know they still might make you redundant again. 

HighContrast

Hi @sharpe106 I got  exactly 1 x months salary redundancy pay.

sharpe106

The minimum you will get is 3 weeks going back but the chances are it will be more but not guaranteed. They may change the scheme.

HighContrast

Mmmm...sounding like it might be worth the hassle?

sharpe106

Worst case you lose  a week of the redundancy pay.  Best case could get paid for another 2 months. So really up to you and how long you think this will go on for. 

HighContrast

Thanks for the replies, im guessing this will go on at least two months at the very least, maybe three
I will email old company today, as you say they can only say no.

HighContrast

Apologies all, I should have replied about this sooner, but when i got my reply back from my old company I kind of accepted this was going to go nowhere, however thinking about it now, I think they are backtracking, and they are now saying the reason for redundancy was nothing to do with Corona Virus at all but solely a "business decision"! This contradicts my redundancy letter/email - where they said:
"...Unfortunately, the business is over resourced and this has been exacerbated by the current situation concerning coronavirus".   (see my original post for details)

Here is the reply (02/04) I got when asking for the "possibility" of being furloughed:

"...I understand that you would like to be reinstated and then furloughed as per your email below, unfortunately the guidance you have read on the government website only applies to employees who have been made redundant because of a lack of business or fund caused by the ongoing Coronavirus (Covid-19) situation".

From speaking with the team the business decision to make redundancies was taken BEFORE the current Coronavirus started to have an impact on the country, and as such you would not be eligible to be reinstated and furloughed".

Here is my original question to HR (also 02/04):
"...As i (and others) was made redundant on March 13th 2020 and obviously still employed on the leap day 29th Feb, is the company able to re-hire/re-contract(not sure the appropriate term here?) as so to be put on the furlough/80% scheme (and solely for this)? Whilst I appreciate I/we are no longer under any contract, or that the company is necessarily obligated, I thought it would still be worth asking the question"

(In hindsight i may have been too polite in my original email?)

What are my options here, if any? I have not replied to that email from HR yet (which was a over a week a go).
FYI I'm a member of Unite, can a union help here?
As a quick reminder  - Made redundant on Mar 13th, one months redundancy pay given.