Employer threatening to move employees shifts from nights to twilights

[solos]

I work for a supermarket on nightshift, 94 stores are being given the proposal that nightshift is ending and the option is to voluntarily move to twilight (there was a 2^nd option to move to nights in a store nearby but this is not relevant for our store)
I have not agreed to this change so far due to the financial implications, also because of health reasons and I provide care for my mother. The business has now comeback with an update stating it is going ahead and if we don’t agree the only other option they can see is to follow a policy of fire and rehire.

I have some questions if you are able to help me with these it would be must appreciated:
Can they legally go from stating a voluntary move and then go straight to fire and rehire with no redundancy option? As they have stated no redundancy as the work is still there but moving to twilight shifts but this means a drop of up to 5k wages due to losing a night allowance payment
I was wondering how the 12 weeks notice period of a change works? Are they unable to change you from your current role until the 12 weeks period is over? Do they need to honour this or could this be bought out?
Should my company provide me with their redundancy policy if requested as it is not in the handbook or their online portal? They have stated it would only be available to view when redundancy is ever an option.
They have stated that these meeting are all informal so far, does this seem correct?

[Law Student 5]

Celestine ULA

Hi, so to fire and then rehire is one options employers resort to being about change. This is, although drastic, legal and allowed.
Should you not want to even accept the new job they are proposing via the fire and rehire route, then you should inform your employer that you do not want to accept this alternative job and then check whether they'll give you your redundancy pay instead. You have a right to redundancy if you have worked for your employer for at least 2 years by the time your current job ends. you will also need to refuse the alternative job role before your current job ends and then give a good reason for refusing your new job ( so the fact that you are a carer for your mother).

In regards to the 12 week period for notice of change, this cannot be reduced or bought out. You should check your contract however to see whether changes can be made earlier or later due to any contractual clauses, as the contract terms will always prevail. You are usually entitled to 1 weeks of notice for every year of your service, up to a maximum of 12 years 9 this is of course should the contract not state anything tot the contrary).

Since there was significance beyond a possible informal warning, in this cade there was the possibility of a new job or potentially being fired then these shouldn't really be identified as informal meetings.

i hope this helped

[solos]

thank you for your response, so can I ask do you think that if they keep stating no redundancy there would be a good chance to win at a Tribunal as the new shift pattern is not possible due to the reasons above?

[EnglandPi]

To be made redundant your job must cease to exist.

Your job still exists, only the shift patten is changing the job is exactly the same as it was before therefore you have no grounds for constructive dismissal.

[ULA]

As you say the company is looking to make changes to the shift working arrangements and in doing so your employer needs to follow a fair process to implement a significant change in your terms and conditions, which this would be. As part of that fair process they need to fully consult with you/any union and agree any changes to the employment contract.

However if you do not agree the law does recognise that employers have to adapt to changing market conditions, and that sometimes the contract of employment must be varied to reflect this. As part of the consultation process you need to be able to put your case across to your employer for not wanting to change your terms, however this situation seems to be about a wider company decision across a large number of stores and i am not sure how they will handle individual objections. If your employer has given reasonable and due consideration to objections and alternative suggestions that you put forward, but deem those suggestions to be unworkable, then they can terminate your original contract and offer a new one in its place on the new terms, effectively "fire and rehire" as Law Student 5 has said.

If you do not agree to the changes, then your course of action would be to make it clear to your employer, which you should do in writing, sign and date your letter, and keep a copy. This letter will count as a written grievance. If you don’t tell your employer you disagree with a change, this will be taken to mean that you’ve accepted it. You should do this straight away, or as soon as possible after the change has been introduced. You can continue to work 'under protest' for a while but you can’t do this indefinitely without taking further action.

As EnglandPi has stated this is not a redundancy situation since the job still exists, it is just the shift pattern that is changing.

Also just a slight correction in regard to the notice period it is only in circumstances where the change is via dismissal and rehire, that your employer will need to provide you with the statutory minimum notice period for terminating your contract of employment or your contractual notice whichever is greater. If you agree to the change then it is "reasonable" notice (undefined) taking account of the consultation process.