Constructive dismissal - a credible case?

[Prestwich_Blue]

I'd say you wouldn't have much of a case, if any, for constructive dismissal unless you'd been discriminated against. It's very hard to prove to a tribunal. If your contract of employment has a variation clause, then they can legitimately change your contract without consultation.

If it doesn't, then they should consult you in advance, and you are entitled to say you don't agree and will work under protest. You could also suggest an alternative method, that might involve a higher basic but less commission.

You and your colleagues should speak to ACAS or an Employment Lawyer but at the end of the day, it's your decision whether to stay and accept the new terms or just fuck off somewhere else. It's a seller's market currently if you have decent skills.

 

[Phil Mitchell Foden]

I'd say you wouldn't have much of a case, if any, for constructive dismissal unless you'd been discriminated against. It's very hard to prove to a tribunal. If your contract of employment has a variation clause, then they can legitimately change your contract without consultation.

If it doesn't, then they should consult you in advance, and you are entitled to say you don't agree and will work under protest. You could also suggest an alternative method, that might involve a higher basic but less commission.

You and your colleagues should speak to ACAS or an Employment Lawyer but at the end of the day, it's your decision whether to stay and accept the new terms or just fuck off somewhere else. It's a seller's market currently if you have decent skills.

Thanks for this response. My friend shared some information with us on the legality of the change which apparently states they have the right to change the commission structure, but they have to make sure we're equivalently compensated by the increase in basic. If it isn't comparable it's effectively being forced out of the business and to look at alternative work - hence the constructive dismissal. Is that not the case?

We'll no longer make any commission with the change and will only earn our income from the basic, and the discretionary 10% at the end of the year. And either way it's still a cut in pay.

 

[117 M34]

Was thinking about it this morning and I've come up with a plan that will work for you.

- agree with your team to make the least amount of sales possible without you getting sacked (they are going to reduce naturally anyway if they aren't paying commission).
- management will do analysis and realise sales people need commission to incentivise them to sell - shock!
- they will reintroduce commission but on top of your now higher basic salary.

 

[aguero93:20]

Just wanted to seek the wisdom and takes of blues experience on this front. I work in a sales role in the financial sector and they recently told us they're abandoning the commission structure entirely, and simply replacing it with a higher basic wage.

The basic wage increase would still mean I'm being paid circa 13% less annually than I earned as shown on my recent P60. I expected to earn more this year also given my experience in the role etc.

They've told us we could all qualify for a 10% annual bonus if we hit target regularly etc, but it all seems very discretionary, talk of if "we have money in the pot" etc.

A friend of mine in a similar position has said we have a credible case for constructive dismissal, given our role hasn't changed and we're being given a material paycut, however you square it.

Anyone with any experience on this front have any advice? Is it worth going that route and what kind of timescale would we expect if it was to be pursued? Is it worthwhile, or should I just look for alternative employment?

Any advice or experiences welcome.

Cheers blues

Brick all their windows and set fire to their cars.

 

[dronefromsector7G]

Brick all their windows and set fire to their cars.

This is the best, and free, legal advice

 

[DelToro]

Almost 2 years.

Two weeks.

None.

If you have less than 2 years service prior to leaving you do not have the right to claim constructive dismissal.

I think your company ought to have given you at least 2 weeks notice of the changes and should have consulted but the bar for a successful constructive dismissal claim is very high so my advice is not to bother.

Get a new job and fuck them off.

 

[mancity1]

Just wanted to seek the wisdom and takes of blues experience on this front. I work in a sales role in the financial sector and they recently told us they're abandoning the commission structure entirely, and simply replacing it with a higher basic wage.

The basic wage increase would still mean I'm being paid circa 13% less annually than I earned as shown on my recent P60. I expected to earn more this year also given my experience in the role etc.

They've told us we could all qualify for a 10% annual bonus if we hit target regularly etc, but it all seems very discretionary, talk of if "we have money in the pot" etc.

A friend of mine in a similar position has said we have a credible case for constructive dismissal, given our role hasn't changed and we're being given a material paycut, however you square it.

Anyone with any experience on this front have any advice? Is it worth going that route and what kind of timescale would we expect if it was to be pursued? Is it worthwhile, or should I just look for alternative employment?

Any advice or experiences welcome.

Cheers blues

If you like the job and it involves a lot of interaction with colleagues and you have built some decent friendships in and out of work I would stay. If your knowledge and skills are fairly transferrable to other firms / organisations in the finance sector and sentence one does not apply and you have no ambition to move into roles of higher pay and responsibility then maybe look around to roles that still reward KPI's with higher commission based pay. As a side note companies that go down this route could be looking to downside albeit wage based pay is usually devoid of hour or effort and productivity per say in many roles. Sometimes job satisfaction and happiness are not correlated to remuneration. You don't want to go through your working life making every decision based on chasing an extra dollar. i did that for a while and in the end I realised how futile it was and never regretted my choice for one second.