KNOW YOUR RIGHTS WHEN BEING RETRENCHED

In my experiance (and yes I have been retrenched), was trying to deal with all of the emotion. The retrenchment process, done correctly or not, is never an easy one and the perceptions of "why" sometimes cause more stress on their own, without even the thought of the actual retrenchment. Try and take the emotion out of the situation and try and remain calm - a tall order on both fronts, I know - but one that will stand you in good stead.

Know your rights when being retrenched
John Mullins

01 March 2007 at 11h00

Of all the months of the year, February is my busiest. Apart from about a 100 birthdays to celebrate - which already taxes both my memory and my bank balance - it is the month where I see most people either changing jobs or starting new careers. February, being the second month of the year, is the time when most people realise that the job they are in did not miraculously become better over the holiday break. It is the time when it dawns on people that if they don't leave now they may be stuck in it forever. It also happens to be the time when your New Year's resolution notice period has been worked in, which is a step closer to freedom. However, February in 2007 will also go down in history as the one in which I have experienced the highest number of messy retrenchments, dismissals and resignations that I can recall.

The nature of what I do means I am always speaking to people who are either unhappy in a job, looking to leave, or simply out of work because they've been dismissed or have resigned in frustration.Granted, it is by far the most unusual condition one could have in a business. And here I don't mean some mysterious force has mutated the management team into some monstrous, cold-hearted life form. Although, come to think of it, that's what curatorship appears like to the staff from the outside. What I thought I'd do is share some of the experiences I have gathered in the last month, of how the process of leaving your job can be a really messy affair unless you put some clear and simple processes in place.

First, let's deal with retrenchment. It's getting so bad in South Africa that it's almost a national sport. It's worse than wizard chess for me, because the long-term effects on the psyche are massive. The example I want to share involves underdone lawyers, loose tongues, basic ball-dropping errors and deceived staff members. You put this all together and what you get is the following. Picture the scenes. First, an independent labour expert with no regard for the staff of the company calls a mass meeting, hands out retrenchment consultation notices, supposedly to initiate consultations to avoid dismissal. Staff react angrily - wouldn't you, if you were promised you wouldn't lose your job?

The meeting closes and the experts are heard mumbling profanities when describing the staff they have just addressed. Even worse, a few hours later, final notices of dismissal are handed out, making a total mockery of the spirit of the consultation process. The solution is simple. Know your rights inside and out. Get representation if necessary, but for goodness' sakes, let's stop these cowboys from operating so loosely in the workplace. Their biggest blunder came a little later when they called an entire department into a room, to retrench them, only to discover, after a while, that they had the wrong department. Imagine the stress and anxiety. For me, this kind of unprofessional performance at a time when things need the utmost sensitivity is unacceptable.

You can avoid the trauma if you know your rights and understand the process. The last group I want to focus on is the group who get left behind. The so-called survivors who are sometimes expected to consider themselves lucky. The truth is, these folks can't wait to leave. They are dealing with the loss of friends, and the loss of a community of workers. Life is never the same after a mass retrenchment. The problem, though, is that leaving under these emotions can be fatal for your career.You want to make sure the next job is actually a better prospect - not for your immediate situation, but for what you had experienced in the past. Rather stay in control. Stick around while you search for a better job. Test your true reasons for leaving and stay positive about yourself. Most break-ups are messy, but you do have the power to keep yours clean and positive.
John Mullins can e-mailed at john @dnalearning.net