Your ASU arranged a meeting with company HR representative Victoria Harris. We wanted to give the group every opportunity to explain their worrying change process to a new store structure.
Victoria Harris has confirmed the following details about their Expression Of Interest (EOI) process to fill the following estimates of vacant positions in the new store structure:
- 86 Team Leader positions.
- Approximately 971 FTE full time and part time Senior, A and B Travel consultant positions – full time roles retained in this structure would continue to be subject to JobKeeper enabling directions to Stand Down for part of a full-time work week.
- About 600 new maximum term temporary roles designed for redeployment from existing positions.
Redundancy due to ‘special circumstances’
The ASU sought information from the group about the criteria FCTG are using to offer redundancies due to ‘special circumstances’. Victoria Harris declined to provide their criteria for each individual assessment but confirmed that the decision rests with her team.
If you provide feedback to FCTG that you need a redundancy now due to ‘special circumstances’ and you are unsuccessful, contact your ASU Organiser about the outcome of individual consultations.
Voluntary Redundancy
We know that ASU members are very interested to know why FCTG have chosen not to run a Voluntary Redundancy process – it seems the most fair option for many staff who have been waiting for more than 6 months to know their fate. If you want to go, shouldn’t you be allowed to go?
FCTG are sticking to their confusing plan to deem all your positions redundant and the new vacant positions subject to an EOI process. ASU members have told us that their key concerns with the process are, as follows:
- Staff don’t want to re-apply for their jobs.
- What jobs are staff actually applying for? Staff don’t want to re-apply for jobs that aren’t there.
- Staff don’t know what’s lawful if they don’t apply for anything.
Unfortunately, FCTG is still very light on the details of what their new structure with about 2,000 personnel will look like for the short term but they do expect you to re-apply for your job.
The ASU has put FCTG on notice about lawful directions to its employees. We do not believe that it is lawful to require you to re-apply for a job that has already been made redundant. FCTG may desire to retain you in the same position you held or re-deploy you to an equivalent role but we don’t believe there is any lawful way they can deem you resigned if you do not re-apply.
Our advice for ASU members is to engage with the consultation process by confirming the position you held with FCTG and affirm that you want to continue in the same or equivalent position.
What’s next
If you are uncomfortable filling out a detailed EOI our advice is to provide a response appropriate for your circumstances like this – choose either scenario that may apply to you:
SCENARIO 1
If you only want a permanent role and would otherwise take a redundancy:
“I have been employed at STORE and would like to continue working with Flight Centre at any of the following STORES, otherwise I would prefer a redundancy.”
SCENARIO 2
If you aren’t successful with a permanent role but would accept redeployment to a maximum term temporary role and continue to collect JobKeeper:
“I have been employed at STORE and would like to continue working with Flight Centre at any of the following STORES, otherwise I would accept a temporary role.”
EOIs close today. If FCTG proceed to deem you ‘resigned’ not redundant – contact your local ASU Organiser (download the full bulletin here).