Job Role different to contract

[JustaPorter]

I was offered a job 2 years ago and signed my contract of employment which included my roles and responsibilities working in a yard. Answering to the Foreman. When I arrived for my first day I was told that the job description was incorrect and I would be more office based answering to the Office manager.

I didn't mind this and took on everything they wanted me to do and then some.

2 years later a new foreman has started and is trying to get me do the yard based role I signed the contract for as my skillset is "wasted in the office" and some of the duties that were not on my original contract that I have taken on since.

After 2 years of being primarily office based the thought of going back to a manual job is quite unappealing.

Do I have any grounds legally to assume that my employment contract is what I had been verbally told I would be doing after signing my contract of employment?

I don't want to leave as I enjoy the job I do now but with no other outcome I will be handing in my notice and taking my new skills elsewhere.

[echat11]

You've taken on new duties and responsibilities but that might be possible within your employment contract depending on what it states in your employment contract. But it isn't fair because you've been doing the new role for sometime, what you could do is raise an informal grievance stating that you are unhappy with changing your current role. If your still not happy, you could raise a Formal Grievance. I'm sure this scenario crops up in ET's quite a lot.

https://www.acas.org.uk/grievance-pr...e-step-by-step

https://legalservice.which.co.uk/ins...nd-it-changes/

No doubt Ula will take a look.

[ULA]

Unfortunately is is not about whether it is fair or not that you have have been asked to revert back to the role for which you were originally employed to do.

However given that your duties changed, effectively from soon after you started and you have been working in this way for a couple of years now the approach for you to change your duties should potentially have been handled in a different way. There is also an issue that your contract/job description was not changed to reflect what you ended up being employed to do.

As suggested the first course of action would be to speak to either a manager or HR about the situation on an informal basis and see whether the issue can be resolved even if there is some compromise on the duties from both sides. If this does not provide a satisfactory outcome then you will need to take a formal grievance route.

[JustaPorter]

Thanks for your replies.

I have a meeting setup for Wednesday with the Operations Manager.

If they persist with the changes am i correct to say I am working under protest (in writing) and then start a grievance?

[ULA]

If you do not agree to the changes, then you must make it clear to your employer, in writing, by way of a grievance. If you do not tell your employer you disagree with a change, this will be taken to mean that you have 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 cannot do this indefinitely without taking further action.

[JustaPorter]

Thank you. I had a meeting and it all got sorted. I now have a contract that outlines the job I actually do.

[ULA]

Thanks for coming back to update us. Great to hear that things have been sorted