Friday to Monday....

[cojak]

The OP might not want to be a contractor Mal, he's been forced into this situation.

[Fred Bloggs]

The OP might not want to be a contractor Mal, he's been forced into this situation.

Along with 000's of others I'm afraid.

[eek]

I am entitled, it's a reasonable package, how much I want to give back for the sake of secured employment...is the golden question.

I guess the day rate is the key to whether being inside IR35 is worth it or not, giving back separation is worth it or not, I think that is what all of this boils down to, pros outweighing the cons.

Well I wouldn't be giving back any of the redundancy payment for a contract. They are making you redundant and need to pay you the redundancy payment.

The new contract is a distraction to partly try and confuse you. If they really want you why haven't they simply offered you a transfer from department A to department B. So go back and look at my first paragraph.

Now once you understand the redundancy payment issue do you really want to be a contractor or work for a company that is trying to cheat you. Remember as a contractor you could be out of the door at a moment or days notice so is it really worth the risk of taking of that for an IR35 contract.

Personally I would:-

1) insure you get the full redundancy payment.
2) if you get it take the IR35 contract as long as it has a reasonable escape clause
3) find another job or contract asap.

Good luck btw

[mudskipper]

It's worth getting proper advice - there are rules round redundancy that many companies play fast and loose with. If you are at risk of redundancy, the company is obliged, during the consultation period, to look for alternative suitable positions. In your case it sounds like there is one (in fact the same position). Phone ACAS for free advice.

[malvolio]

Well I wouldn't be giving back any of the redundancy payment for a contract. They are making you redundant and need to pay you the redundancy payment.

Redundancy is clearly defined. You get a tax free pay off of up to £30k if your job no longer exists. If it does still exist there are two options; you take it and pay the tax on your redundancy money, or you sue for wrongful dismissal since clearly your job is not redundant. Right now it looks like the OP should be following the second option...

FWIW I took five of a client's staff through this very loop a while back, when merging the team into a shared services structure meant that the client had to lose two. I went very deeply into the legalities to ensure neither they nor the client got stuffed.

[DaveB]

True, but I do know folks who have managed to hang on to their pay off and still do Friday/Monday.

Havn't had an HMRC investigation yet.

[SueEllen]

It's worth getting proper advice - there are rules round redundancy that many companies play fast and loose with. If you are at risk of redundancy, the company is obliged, during the consultation period, to look for alternative suitable positions. In your case it sounds like there is one (in fact the same position). Phone ACAS for free advice.

An employment lawyer would happily give a free consultation in this situation as they know they would either get the work to sue the company for unfair dismissal or at least a fee for a compromise agreement.

[harry20]

Erm, a bit more to add:

The seperation is voluntary.

I've already signed and agreed to it.

My dilemma is if it's financially viable to go back, if so under which scenario.

Thanks for all the input though, it's really opened my eyes to stuff that loyalty has probably stopped me seeing. A friend keeps telling me, "You need to think like a contractor now, company XYZ doesn't care about your mortgage, only you do"....says it all really...

[mudskipper]

Erm, a bit more to add:

The seperation is voluntary.

I've already signed and agreed to it.

My dilemma is if it's financially viable to go back, if so under which scenario.

Thanks for all the input though, it's really opened my eyes to stuff that loyalty has probably stopped me seeing. A friend keeps telling me, "You need to think like a contractor now, company XYZ doesn't care about your mortgage, only you do"....says it all really...

Voluntary redundancy is covered by exactly the same laws. It is still unfair dismissal if your job is not redundant. The fact that you put your hand up only overrides the selection process - everything else is the same. Talk to someone!

And good luck.

[TheFaQQer]

Erm, a bit more to add:

The seperation is voluntary.

I've already signed and agreed to it.

My dilemma is if it's financially viable to go back, if so under which scenario.

Thanks for all the input though, it's really opened my eyes to stuff that loyalty has probably stopped me seeing. A friend keeps telling me, "You need to think like a contractor now, company XYZ doesn't care about your mortgage, only you do"....says it all really...

It doesn't matter if the separation is voluntary or not - if they are keeping you in the same job, then any payment that they give you (whether they call it redundancy or not) is merely a bonus which attracts NI and PAYE. It's a taxable bonus for agreeing that they can terminate your contract at any stage without any further payment.

So the first calculation you need to work out is how much tax and NI are you immediately going to have to pay. After that, factor in the daily rate and tax on that. Then, and only then, can you really see how badly you are getting shafted.

I'd start looking for other work, either contract or permie, elsewhere.