What rights have you got if your company moves location?

rubadub

Have you any rights at all? Could your company move premises and just say take it or leave it, or could you claim redundancy or get some other compo?

If there is no compo it doesnt seem fair if the boss just said "we are moving premises to the UK next week" and leave you high and dry with no job, you may not even get dole as you left of your own accord. Would they have to give notice of a move or anything? is there any factor of the distance of the move?

mikemac

I'd say read your contract.

My own contract has a clause saying the company can transfer my job with 4 weeks written notice.

The company is transferring my team from Dublin to Cork but luckily it's recruiting loads more people so I was given the option to stay in Dublin.

rubadub

Contract has nothing and AFAIK it doesnt have to legally, I got the details on a government site about what a contract MUST contain and I dont think I saw that mentioned.
Are there any people in your team being moved against their will? did the contract say you could be moved outside the country?

stopper

Go to one of the Free Legal Advice Centres in your area and ask for advice. Go to www.flac.ie for more details.

You could also try contacting the Employee Rights Infomation unit at the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment. They might be able to advise you. Call them on 631 3131.

In my last job the contract I had said that I was expected to work anywhere in the Dublin area, so when the company moved to another part of the city there was nothing people could do about it.

Civilian_Target

Yep - you're not entitled to redundancy or anything - but if your company moves more than 50km (I think), there is a legal side...

vector

Look at the redundancy section of oasis.gov.ie, one of the points is where ones place of work moves...

rubadub

Thanks everybody. I looked at the oasis site and found this.

Redundancy situations
A redundancy situation occurs where one of the following situations arises:

Your employer ceases to carry on business or ceases to carry on business in the place where you have been employed
.......
Not all employees are entitled to the statutory redundancy payment, even where a redundancy situation exists.

then they discuss situations and it is a bit of a grey area, it says.

You are not entitled to a redundancy payment where:
-Your employer has offered to renew your contract of employment or re-engage you under a new contract, and
-The terms of the new contract as to capacity, place or other terms would differ from your previous contract

seems they it doesnt have to be in your contract, they can simply hand you a new contract saying you have to work in mongolia

http://www.oasis.gov.ie/employment/losing_your_job/redundancy.html

seamus

rubadub wrote:

seems they it doesnt have to be in your contract, they can simply hand you a new contract saying you have to work in mongolia

Correct. Your old contract probably specifies that either party can terminate the contract with a certain amount of notice. This means that they can offer you a new contract to include your new workplace, and if you refuse they can simply terminate your old contract without having to pay redundancy.

mountainyman

Depending on where they move to you are being made redundant.

An employment contract is not a real contract, there are a series of statutory obligations on the employer and it is a one way street. The contract is irrelevant and you will find the Employment Appeals Tribunal sympathetic to the employee.

Your employer can put a clause in that you've to move to Mongolia, but you don't.

On the other hand if the business moves from Bray to Blanchardstown you may find that you have no entitlements.

Talk to your union rep. But of course unions are out of date.

MM