It’s not just the banks moving staff. Businesses usually relocate for reasons such as financial savings and expansion plans but they need to ensure they are following a fair process.
Employers should check their workforce’s contracts of employment. Usually these contain a mobility clause which states they agree to move locations that are a certain time or distance away from their normal workplace. Although this allows relocation, it does not mean that the employer can move the workforce to another country in a week because the request to move has to be reasonable.
Reasonableness will depend on a number of factors including the distance away from the original location, how long it will take an employee to travel there and the notice the employee gives before relocating. It may be that the position of the employee makes the request reasonable because, for example, requiring a senior manager to relocate a greater distance away is likely to be reasonable when compared to a junior member of staff. Where there isn’t a mobility clause, employers can still ask their staff to relocate but they will have a choice whether to agree or not.
Employers should notify their staff, in writing, about the proposed move and the business reasons for it. They may also find it useful to discuss the move with affected staff, explaining why this needs to happen and what the possible outcome could be if it doesn’t take place.
Compensation may need to be offered to those locating. There is no right to receive this but financial incentives may be included in the mobility clause and can be used to sweeten the deal. Where employees are uncertain about the move, offering an incentive such as supplementing travel costs for a fixed period of time may help the parties to reach agreement about the relocation.
It may be the case that employees do not wish to move and they would rather leave. In these circumstances, it’s important that the employer can show a fair and reasonable process was followed to ensure the employee cannot claim they were forced out of the business and go on to make a claim for constructive dismissal. A failure to get agreement to relocate could mean either a redundancy or “some other substantial reason” dismissal but, again, the process needs to be fair and will depend on the individual situation.
