Can an employer promote staff and not advertise position?

[tigra]

Hi,

I found out only yesterday that everyone that has been on the same pay grade at me in work has been handed a promotion to the next pay scale. This happened in March of this year. Some of the employees have been there long and some shorter. I do the same job as them but in some cases I do more work than them. We had all been asking for a chance to go up to the next pay scale but we were all given the same poor mouth excuse by the company. Then yesterday I find out they have all been "upgraded" by the company.
By "upgrading" their job titles change. Can an employer do this without advertising the job first?
Thanks

 

[Deas]

Yes is the answer; however as your post shows it's not always the best course of action. You should ask management why you were not considered. Also, just because a role title changed does not necessarily mean an promotion. The job they were doing originally may not be the same as now necessitating the change.