voluntary redundancy and claiming benefits.

[owdamer]

If you take voluntary redundancy from your job are you entitled to claim any benefits? ie jobseekers?
My employer has said that 7 out of 31 engineers are going to have to go and 15 people have said they want to leave. My employers have responded to this by telling them that if they leave they will not be allowed to claim as they havn't been "made" redundant.
They say that they will decide who goes by scoring everyone on attendance, length of service and skills level.
I've had a look around on the net but cant find a clear answer. anyone know anything definate?

[flat spot]

If you are made redundant the redundancy money is classed as wages to the benefit people. For example, if you earn £1000 a month and you get £4000 redundancy then they won't pay you a penny for 4 months.

If you take voluntary I'm not sure you'll get anything after that time either as you left the job voluntarily.

[DanceLikeAMon...]

^^ Are you certain that's correct? My place is in the process of laying folks off and because we are ex-government staff we get big bags o' cash (I am one of the shortest serving person there and I will walk away with just over £40k if I am one of the lucky ones). I'm sure that the ones who took voluntary last year were still entitled to claim JSA after the 6 month period for leaving a job.

I could be wrong though.

[owdamer]

When I took voluntary redundancy from Bae systems in dec 99 I was told by the dss that I could claim jobseekers from day 1 for 6 months, but my current employers are telling people that you wont be entitled to anything. I dont trust my employers, they are lying coniving bastards and I think they want to have control over who goes, rather than letting people decide their own future.

[DanceLikeAMon...]

Just did a quick Google, and the TUC have kindly volunteered this info:


When a person loses their job they may need to claim benefit, so the details of how the job ended will be important. When claiming JSA, the jobseeker attends a New Jobseeker’s Interview. At this, particular attention will be paid to why the last job ended. A sanction can apply (not paid JSA and sometimes not awarded National Insurance credits), from 1 to 26 weeks for:
• Leaving a job voluntarily without just cause, or
• Losing it because of misconduct.

[cqueen]

Job seekers is fuck all anyway, I shouldnt loose sleep over it.

[TheShaggyDA]

[owdamer]

I aint loosing any sleep. I'm off sick at the moment and suing them for my injury anyway. If they make me redundant i'll sue em for unfair dismissal as well. I've got a few mates who want to take redundancy coz they hate the place. Jsa may be fuck all but its better than nowt.

[Walloper]

Call the TUC.

I hope you are not a Union Killer.....

That was what Unions were about. How things change.
The stick is in the hand of the Boss once more.
____________________
W-ireless A-rtificial L-ifeform L-imited to O-bservation P-eacekeeping and E-fficient R-epair

[owdamer]

[Walloper]

[Finglonga]

[Walloper]

[cqueen]

As is my understanding, unemployment benefit is £40/week, Am I right? Who on earth can live on that?

[Walloper]

[owdamer]

I tried ringing the local Job centre plus today to try to find an answer. The phone rings, gets picked up, I can hear talking in the background, then i get a few beeps and the phone gets put down.
Great stuff. They do not have the courtesy to speak to me yet I have to pay for the call.

[Walloper]