RIF - How soon can you rehire?

borntexan

Hello All,

Another location of our company has recently performed what they are calling a "Reduction in Workforce". However, they apparently would like to hire new people to fill some of the positions they have eliminated immediately. They are not planning on altering job titles, simply hiring new employees to fill the eliminated positions. I had always thought there was a time limit before you could rehire for the same position, and I thought it was 1 year. Anyone know the law on this topic???

Thanks,
Leslie

Rockie

I'm not sure about a specific time limit...but why would you do a RIF if you were going to immediately rehire new employees into some of these positions? In doing so, you may discriminate against some of the prior employees such as age, sex, etc. I'd be very careful proceeding down this path. It looks like management just wanted to unload some people and get some new blood (or cheaper)in....I'd advise against doing it this way.

sonny

I agree with Rockie . .this is not a smart way to go. How are they defending this action/idea?

Betty I_O

Doesn't sound like HR had any input. This just doesn't make good buisness sense . . . now you have the expense of your RIF employees collecting unemployment and you are hiring people into the same jobs? The rationale (if there was one) does not appear defensible.

borntexan

This was NOT my decision, and it is a done deal. The people have already been terminated and told it was due to an RIF. I am just trying to ensure that they follow any laws regarding rehiring the eliminated positions, as this is an area that is not my expertise.

Thanks,
Leslie

Brad Forrister

I don't know of a specific time limit. I've certainly seen cases where rehires occurred fairly quickly. But if they're immediate, it certainly makes the RIF look like a sham. There are some cases arguing that it's a violation of ERISA to use a RIF/rehire scenario as a sneaky way to change employees' benefits. And you're certainly opening yourself up for age discrimination and race discrimination lawsuits.

Brad Forrister
Director of Publishing
M. Lee Smith Publishers

Pork

[font size="1" color="#FF0000"]LAST EDITED ON 04-14-04 AT 01:12PM (CST)[/font][br][br]The moment you hire someone into my position in which you led me to believe was a RIF action is the moment that I truck it on down to the EEOC office and make my claim for Title VII violations and discrimination for AGE (if your hire someone younger than 40, RACE (if you hire someone which is other than cauc), SEX (if you hire a female), MIX OF BAGS, (someone who is not a retired military person, which I am, and you hate the soldier in me).

JUST PREPARED A RIF NOTICE THIS MORNING TO BE EXECUTED THIS AFTERNOON. The position has been eliminated and the responsibilities and accountabilities passed up to the Supervisor, who now must get all of the work accomplished by 2. The number of barns to shovel manure, wash the pins, feed the Hogs, and prepare the animals for market has been reduced to 5 instead of 10. This unit at one time had 4 herdsmen and 2500 HOGs to watch over. It now only has 1000, by the end of June this position will likewise be dissolved based on a remodel of the farm complex. This person has already been told that he is working his position into elimination; we will look at his performance and consider him for transfer into any position that may be available at the time. Today, we had no openings in which we could transfer today's RIF hit.

IT IS SIMPLE WHEN WE HAVE A REAL "RIF ACTION". I will not take or be involved with any false RIF action. When we terminate, we do not pay unemployment benefits to anyone, unless it is connected with a RIF action. We defend the non-payment because we terminated for cause or the individual voluntarily left our employment.

JUST GOT THE CALL AND THE RIF ACTION WENT DOWN WELL AND THE EMPLOYEE WAS GLAD TO KNOW HE WOULD BE ABLE TO DRAW UNEMPLOYMENT, BECAUSE HE KNOWS, OLE PORK DON'T PLAY AROUND WITH THESE TYPES OF ACTIONS!!!

GOOD LUCK HOPE THIS POST HELPS YOU TO CLEAR UP THE DANGERS WITH YOUR LEADERSHIP!

PORK

Don D

The whole question boils down to one of credibility. In any hearing where this is challenged, the company will be called upon to show that it did in fact eliminate positions pursuant to a business plan, and that, after the passage of time, and the reversal of perhaps negative financials, the company made a conscious decision to place those positions back in the staffing plan and repopulate them.

There is no magic time period. The longer the better, obviously. Immediate is a no-win. I would think a minimum of 6 months would be comfortably normal unless really unusual reversal of business circumstances presented themselves.

Pork

I whole-heartly concur with Don's post. Without a business plan in hand before a jury or EEOC hearing officer, board of review, the senior leadership must be able to have solid proof that there was a business decision or reason for the RIF action; otherwise, the company reverts to my previous post.

It is this very type of activity that causes the "ATTORNEY DAWGS" to get to chasing cars and peeing on ever twig in the area, staking out their claim. Go check the corners of your building and I bet there is a sign that they are on the prowl in your area of interest.

Everyone have a Blessed day and "pray for some ice cream, which is good for the soul"!

PORK

Don D

Stick with pork, the other white meat. No carbs! Ice cream - many carbs.

hrbanker

Have you thought about hiring back those people you just laid off? Are they still available? If they are the same jobs, it would make sense to hire the employees that have already done that work.

If you would not rehire them, then the RIF was a sham and you should have been upfront with them with the reasons for termination (poor job quality, poor work ethic, etc).