Have they handled this right?

[NoodleFace]

Hi, I am posting for some advice for my dad.

He has Parkinson's and recently volunteered his HGV licence as he didn't feel fit to drive any more. He worked driving HGV trucks.

The company put him on a months temporary contract doing warehouse work. They had a meeting saying when the temporary contract expires he will be offered a zero hours contract, or can take redundancy.

Where does he stand? He feels he has been pushed out, but the only other branch with possible job opportunities is too for away.

Have they done things right or is there an issue here?

[goshhhhhh]

Someone with more info will come along soon. There is something about reasonable adjustments but that is quite hard define. He needs to look at his contract. My dh is in a similar situation and is currently advised not to drive & probably will loose his license. He is going to loose his job.
Can he get advice from a union?

[flowery]

He feels pushed out? But he himself feels he is not fit to do his job and told them so? What does he think they should do that they are not doing?

If he is not fit to do his job they should offer him something else if there is something available, but ultimately if he can't do his job, there are no adjustments possible to enable him to do the job, and no alternative employment available, they can just dismiss him (not make him redundant as it's not a redundancy situation). Instead of dismissing him they have offered him redundancy pay which he's not entitled to, or an employment alternative if he prefers that.

I know it's a difficult situation and I feel for him but what is it he expects/thinks they ought to do that they are not doing?

[NoodleFace]

His contract for driving terminated when he was no longer fit for the role. That's when he was issued with a temporary one that ends at the end of this month, it outlines a meeting will be held to discus medical condition, work needs ect. That is the meeting he was offered zero hours.

From a contract point of view to me(who doesn't have much experience) it seems to be followed.

He is waiting on a call from the union, thought I would get some info from all you lovely people while he is waiting.

[flowery]

Well it's a bit weird terminating his employment if that's what happened and then reengaging on a new contract, that sounds a bit bizarre. But in terms of feeling pushed out, understanding what he thinks they could/should be doing instead would be useful in trying to advise.

[NoodleFace]

Thanks flowery, he thought the warehouse work was going well, and in the meeting he would be offered a permanent position.

The offer of a temp contract was to see if work was suitable and he believes it was. The employer is saying there isn't a position in the warehouse now.

If that is the case and they haven't recruited, why give him a months trail?

[NoodleFace]

He doesn't want to agree to zero hours on the basis is it zero hours and believes he will get none through.

[flowery]

If they are offering him zero hours in the warehouse it doesn't sound like they are saying it wasn't suitable work, because in that situation why bother offering him zero hours at all. It sounds like they don't have enough guaranteed hours to offered him a role on those terms.

If he thinks there are guaranteed hours vacant he should ask about that.

[goshhhhhh]

To be honest they didn't have to offer him the warehouse work & it was potential done whilst they looked at the options. How long has he worked there. What would the redundancy be like ?
It would be worth him thinking through his options - Eg staying there with a zero hours contract v redundancy & looking for a non driving job. They don't have to make him a job - a reasonable adjustment would also need to be something that is financially viable for them as a company.

[NoodleFace]

Thanks for both your inputs, I will put it all back to him. He has worked there for 20 years, and is going through an emotional time.

Obviously I'm biased, I wanted some advice that wasn't. Thanks again.

[goshhhhhh]

It must be v difficult. To be honest I feel craps about our situation & my dh company is a business that needs to make a profit. Hope things work out for your dad

[NoodleFace]

Thanks, I hope things work out for you family too x

[Lunastarfish]

If he has Parkinsons then he is probably disabled within the meaning of the Equality Act 2010. Therefore his employer needs to make reasonable adjustments. Offering a zero contract or redundancy probably won't amount to reasonable adjustments. RA should be things like offering non-driving work (if any exists). Sometime employers cannot make RA. However, that said, Tribunal claims can be stressful and expensive so if the redundancy package offered is decent, he may wish to investigate that.

[GetYourFingersOutOfThere]

If he has worked ere for 20 years it would be worth asking how much the redundancy payment would be maybe?