Being made redundant - Advice needed please

LegacyUser

Hi guys,

Advice really much appreciated. I work for an advertising company, a household name established a long time. Eleven of us in FieldSales are being made redundant having got notice last week. The company is a period of transition over the last eight years with various rounds of redundancies as they transition to a telesales model of sales.

The company in the past has provided generous redundancy packages but this time around is only offering statuary redundancies. They pleading inability to pay due to falling revenues however this business situation was forecasted by them over three years ago as they realign the business.

The money saved by making us eleven redundant is being redeployed to recruit cheaper telesales workers. We've had this confirmed by the MD himself. Our union is engaged with the company but I would love to get an outsiders view on this situation and if we have any recourse.

Thanks guys.

Avatar MIA

Being made redundant wrote: »

Hi guys,

Advice really much appreciated. I work for an advertising compayny, a household name established a long time. Eleven of us in FieldSales are being made redundant having got notice last week. The company is a period of transition over the last eight years with various rounds of redundancies as they transition to a telesales model of sales.

The company in the past has provided generous redundancy packages but this time around is only offering statuary redundancies. They pleading inability to pay due to falling revenues however this business situation was forecasted by them over three years ago as they realign the business.

The money saved by making us eleven redundant is being redeployed to recruit cheaper telesales workers. We've had this confirmed by the MD himself. Our union is engaged with the company but I would love to get an outsiders view on this situation and if we have any recourse.

Thanks guys.

It looks like they can do it. Restructuring, make one type of position redundant and hiring different positions.

What you can possibly leverage is that you'll fully cooperate in the transition period, and not affect the company's public image by, say, striking and drawing bad PR etc. to get better terms. Your union should guide you here.

LegacyUser

Avatar MIA wrote: »

It looks like they can do it. Restructuring, make one type of position redundant and hiring different positions.

What you can possibly leverage is that you'll fully cooperate in the transition period, and not affect the company's public image by, say, striking and drawing bad PR etc. to get better terms. Your union should guide you here.

Thanks OP not sure it matters but the same type of work is carried out by the telesales department. Also since January the company have undermined the field sales role by transferring work traditionally arrived out by our group to the telesales department.

Mrs OBumble

Would you go for the telesales role?

LegacyUser

Mrs OBumble wrote: »

Would you go for the telesales role?

We've been offered four new roles between eleven, there's a difference of nearly 30K money wise, commissions etc. Also the telesales roles are in Dublin while we're regional based reps so not viable.

Mrs OBumble

Being made redundant wrote: »

We've been offered four new roles between eleven, there's a difference of nearly 30K money wise, commissions etc. Also the telesales roles are in Dublin while we're regional based reps so not viable.

Fair enough.

I'm not sure about recourse, though. it's pretty typical to offer enhanced packages to people made redundant early in a process, reducing down to statutory for the last few. The only exception is if the company wants the last few to stay until the bitter end, but it doesn't sound like they'd mind if you went early.

So as long as they're complying with the a law in all respects, I'd struggle to see any comeback.

Maybe a clever lawyer could argue for more if they had access to the right company financial information. But getting that information would be difficult, and the lawyer would cost a lot.

Bandana boy

Mrs OBumble wrote: »

Fair enough.

I'm not sure about recourse, though. it's pretty typical to offer enhanced packages to people made redundant early in a process, reducing down to statutory for the last few. .

Is it ?
Never seen that myself and suspect that there would be issues with doing this.

I know I worked in a company that got bought and the new owners made everybody in the Irish Plant redundant , merging it into a plant in Scotland.

They new Owners had a business in a different industry that they had closed several years earlier in Ireland , the package which was more than statutory , was though less than they had paid previously in Ireland ,I know after going to the Labour Courts they were forced to up their offer to what they had offered in the previous incident of redundancy.
I think rules about discrimination etc can be used here in changing the offer down , unless they have a case of inability to pay.

Senna

I think a relevant question is, were you offered redundancy before by the company at better than statutory levels?

LegacyUser

Senna wrote: »

I think a relevant question is, were you offered redundancy before by the company at better than statutory levels?

No none of us were ever offered redundancies. They actually needed us to close accounts until now. We were told in January to have work completed by a certain date, that date turned out to be the same date we were told to be in Dublin to be told we were being made redundant.

JIdontknow

Bandana boy wrote: »

Is it ?
Never seen that myself and suspect that there would be issues with doing this.

I know I worked in a company that got bought and the new owners made everybody in the Irish Plant redundant , merging it into a plant in Scotland.

They new Owners had a business in a different industry that they had closed several years earlier in Ireland , the package which was more than statutory , was though less than they had paid previously in Ireland ,I know after going to the Labour Courts they were forced to up their offer to what they had offered in the previous incident of redundancy.
I think rules about discrimination etc can be used here in changing the offer down , unless they have a case of inability to pay.

I have also seen redundancy situations where any previous package etc was taken into consideration in the LRC.

Godge

Your union could take a case to the Labour Court, nothing to lose.