Remploy Workers Told Not To Take On New Jobs- Or Redundancy Pay Will Be Halved

I can’t believe this, readers. I think it should be shared everywhere.

AXED Remploy workers are being held hostage in their jobs after being told their redundancies will be slashed if they take on other work.

Several staff at a threatened textiles factory in Dundee – who were told to find new work – are now being warned if they take up other positions their severance pay will be halved.

As a result, many have had to turn down job offers or face losing years’ worth of service money.

The factory is one of dozens of Remploy centres for the disabled under threat of closure after the UK government decided to withdraw funding last year.

The government said there were more effective ways of using the budget for disabled employment services, but many who worked at the factories have no other options for work.

Dundee West MP Jim McGovern said the company were effectively holding workers hostage as they tried to sell on the factory as a going concern.

The Labour MP said: “It beggars belief that after finding alternative work, due to being made redundant, Remploy’s staff have been told that they will lose their severance pay if they accept alternative offers of employment.

“The government promised that they would ensure Remploy’s staff would be helped into work but this means very little if those who do find work are financially punished for leaving.

“The government’s fine words for Remploy’s staff are not being matched by their actions.”

McGovern raised the Remploy concerns with Nick Clegg in the Commons and the Deputy Prime Minister said the Department for Work and Pensions would look into the case.

McGovern said: “This is an outrageous way to treat people who are doing the right thing and finding work. They did not choose to be made redundant by this government.

“The staff need cast-iron guarantees that when they leave Remploy, they will receive the severance pay they were promised.”

A Remploy spokesman said: “Our arrangements are more generous than in many businesses. If an employee at risk of redundancy decides to leave, they are regarded as having resigned.

“Remploy have an agreement with the trade unions that an employee at risk of redundancy who has found another job can leave the company with 50 per cent of their redundancy entitlement if their departure has no detrimental impact on the business.”