Following a company restructure, a management role I was performing will cease to exist and I have been made redundant. I finished up last week and am waiting for my severance pay to be credited.
Although the management role will no longer exist, there are vacancies in the team I was managing, which I was recruiting for prior to my termination. My previous job was in one of the roles that are currently vacant. After being advised (though not formally informed by HR) that my role was disappearing, I discussed moving back into that role with the relevant business owner, who advised they would happily take me in the role, but given my employability it might be personally more beneficial to take the package and seek something outside the company. When I was officially advised in writing that I would be made redundant I was told there were no suitable roles available in the organization, and was provided with a list of available roles which did not include the vacancies in my team. On the basis of that letter, it is a genuine redundancy with no option of redeployment.
The first working day after my termination, I was contacted by the business owner of the role, who effectively offered me the vacant position, possibly through an agency to avoid rehiring a recently terminated person directly. Besides the question of whether I want to go back to that company, I'm concerned that being rehired in such a short space of time, even if it is to a different, lower paid (~10% less) role, raises questions about the nature of the redundancy and if it was genuine.
There were definitely no agreements that I would go back to that role prior to my termination, but given the short time frame, and the fact that I knew about the vacancy before accepting redundancy, people or agencies may form a suspicion that this was planned. What are the implications for me personally if I took the role and someone looked into this?
Although the management role will no longer exist, there are vacancies in the team I was managing, which I was recruiting for prior to my termination. My previous job was in one of the roles that are currently vacant. After being advised (though not formally informed by HR) that my role was disappearing, I discussed moving back into that role with the relevant business owner, who advised they would happily take me in the role, but given my employability it might be personally more beneficial to take the package and seek something outside the company. When I was officially advised in writing that I would be made redundant I was told there were no suitable roles available in the organization, and was provided with a list of available roles which did not include the vacancies in my team. On the basis of that letter, it is a genuine redundancy with no option of redeployment.
The first working day after my termination, I was contacted by the business owner of the role, who effectively offered me the vacant position, possibly through an agency to avoid rehiring a recently terminated person directly. Besides the question of whether I want to go back to that company, I'm concerned that being rehired in such a short space of time, even if it is to a different, lower paid (~10% less) role, raises questions about the nature of the redundancy and if it was genuine.
There were definitely no agreements that I would go back to that role prior to my termination, but given the short time frame, and the fact that I knew about the vacancy before accepting redundancy, people or agencies may form a suspicion that this was planned. What are the implications for me personally if I took the role and someone looked into this?
