Redundancy and re-employment?

[spekesoftly]

A couple of questions about redundancy please:-

i) Does an employer have any legal obligation to offer job vacancies to former employees, who had recently been made redundant, before recruiting elsewhere?

ii) I understand that employers need to follow strict guidlines when making employees redundant, but is it legal for employers to overtly target one specific age group in preference to another?

A Google search has helped with quite a lot of information on redundancy, but not with answers to the above, so thanks in advance for any replies.

[Herod]

I think you will find the answer to 1 is yes, they do,providing the ex-employee is suitably qualified for the new position. As regards question 2, no they cannot target an age group. If you are made redundant by that means, you can take the employer to an industrial tribunal for "unfair selection for redundancy". You have probably tried the DTI site via your google search, if you are a member of a union, perhaps their legal services can help you. If you're a member of BALPA, I know they can, they are very up to speed on this subject at the moment. Good luck.

[Meeb]

Sorry to contradict you Herod but I was in the situation described above (1) recently and Balpa advised me that a company has no obligation to re-employ any redundant workers. Once you have left the company you are treated like anyone else who applies to join the company at a later date. Cannot comment on point 2 but what you say sounds reasonable.

Edited to add that a company has no legal responsibility to re-employ, but I think they have a moral responsibility to do just that, but then again, when has airline management had any morality... :mad:

[spekesoftly]

Herod,

Many thanks for your reply and good wishes. Union help will be sought, if and when appropriate - my research at present is pre-emptive, and necessarily discreet.


Meeb,

Thanks also for your input.

[Herod]

Meeb, You're right, I misread the question. I think there is an obligation to offer any vacant posts to people being made redundant. Once you are redundant then it's a different story.

[Pilot Pete]

Meeb

I think you are indeed correct, but I was advised that if they made you redundant and then hired for the same position 'soon' afterwards they would have a hard time defending their actions if challenged.

They bank on people going elsewhere and then not challenging. The other point o note is whether it is compulsory or voluntary redundancy. If you accept the voluntary package, usually because it is more generous then I am lead to believe that you forego a lot of the rights to claim wrongful dismissal.

Good luck Spokesoftly however. It is not a nice position to be in, I speak from personal experience.

PP

[Arrowhead]

Having been made redundant twice (although not from any airline related job), this is how European law works:

In mass (20+) redundancy, the normal procedure is firstly to "let you know your job is at risk, and that they are reviewing all possible other internal vacancies". There is a legal obligation for your employer, together with you and any employee "redundancy consultation committee", to look for other internal job vacancies. Assuming one is not found (never is), you sign the paperwork and you are then out. You should get offered some kind of payoff, together with a legal piece of paper which says you have taken the money and will never come back to claim any discrimination/whistleblowing/etc. They must not replace your job.

The procedure for a one-off redundancy/dismissal is the same, albeit with no committee to back you up and make sure you are not being discriminated. In this case, if you feel you were unfairly treated for whatever reason, you can go to industrial tribunal to claim for lost earnings up to the value of £53,500 (compare this with the payoff/holiday due to you/other money/less legal costs).

Constructive dismissal, or whistleblowing can net you a much higher payoff. So if you were effectively forced into a position where you had to quit, or if you have any dirt on them which meant they wanted to get rid of you, you can get more.

On your specific points:
1) Once you are legally gone from the company, you are gone. They have no obligation, and may indeed want to shy away from you in case you hold a grudge/have turned psycho.

2) No. See above.

I am no lawyer, but this is how I understand it. Good luck!