I've been on mat leave and am due to return in April. I spoke to my director today to confirm dates etc, as they've just fired my boss. He said that the person who has been covering my maternity leave (let's call him Dave) is very good. I'd agree - I know him and have a lot of respect for him and I'm sure he's been a very good cover. My director said that he was going to approach Dave's boss to see if he could move permanently to our team. Also, that our skills (Dave's and mine) are complementary.
He then asked what my expectations were regarding which role I'd be returning to. Of course, I said that I'm expecting to return to the role that I left, as it still exists, but that I would be open to discussions if things have changed materially in my absence.
I've always had good performance reviews for my work and no issues have been raised with me. BTW I'd be totally happy to work with Dave either on a handover or longer-term as he's very good.
Some questions:
- If my job still exists and they tell me they want Dave to do it, and me to do something else, is that legal? I think the idea is that they'd 'find me something else to do'. I'm sure it'd be at the same pay grade but it would probably be viewed internally as a demotion as my original role is a fairly senior one with significant responsibilities - I'm not sure they could replicate it.
- If I refused to take an alternative role (assuming my original role still exists) what would my legal position be? Eg if I chose to leave are they on constructive dismissal territory?
TIA and sorry for long post.