Employer reneging on verbal agreement - can I consider contract torn-up?

Setanta12

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I achieved a lower than sought-for salary increase last Summer. The shortfall was partly made-up by a boost in employer contribution to pension from 4.5% to 7%. I didn't look to draw down these pension monies as I was slow with setting up PRSA - until this year, when I looked for a cheque from my employer.

HR are saying there is no record of any pension uplift.

I have a new boss (CFO) since 1 January and the old CFO is still in the business on a messy contractor-type arrangement. But, the company have no record of the pension uplift and the old-CFO is 'too busy' to deal with me. New CFO appreciates the difficulties here, but is 'hands-off' stating merely the company are preparing a 'position' for me. I would be okay with dropping from 7% to 6.5% which other senior execs receive, on stupid fairness principles - but what are my rights in relation to anything else?

I can point to increase in salary as a result of same verbal agreement (CFO sent an email to HR confirming this uplift in the Autmn last year) and while I do not have soft/hard-copy of what was agreed; I do have emails to old-CFO asking him to confirm to HR the new pension arrangement. I have no replies to these emails, weeks later passing him in the corridor it was mentioned that he's too busy for that kind of thing.

I have a three-month notice period. Can I consider contract to be torn-up? Even as part of this negotiation they seem to preparing ... the 'position' they're preparing.
 
Why not wait to see what's on offer first ? It may well be what was agreed in the first place. Do you really want to leave a sour taste by stating the contract was not honoured. Even if you have another position why not come clean with the new employer (if that happens) about the three months notice.
 
I will. I'm not confident. This is a strange company. I would not look to leave without having another position but was more looking to get a quid-pro-quo i.e. to say something like 'if you renege totally, can I negotiate the notice-period?'.

Thinking aloud here.
 
More of an aside, but I wouldn't get too hung up on notice periods - how in truth will an employer force you to work longer than you want? The last thing anyone wants is a disgruntled employee working out their notice.
 
Update ~ Old-CFO denies ever making any agreement. New-CFO is hands-off. Suggested I was lucky to be earning the % in my contract, and asked me to justify it.
 
Unfortunately just serves as warning to others that verbal agreements are worthless. If it's not in writing, either side can deny any agreement was reached and it's impossible to prove otherwise.
 
To memorialise an oral agreement, put it in writing in the form of a hardcopy note or email to the other party. "Thank you for your time on 'whenever' when we met in 'whereever' and I look forward to the new pension/remuneration agreement being implemented for me. This new package is exactly what I needed to give my energy and enthusiasm a boost. When might I expect HR to get involved with the nitty-gritty? Thanks again, mathepac." Make sure your diary/to do list/calendar reflects the fact you met and the topics discussed.
 
Hi Mathepac. Good advice, and I did exactly that. Except I didn't list the % or EUR€ - I asked my old-CFO, with whom by the way I was getting along with famously, to send a note to HR. As it happened, that wasn't done at the time and my salary increase didn't kick-in that month (timing, sez me) until it didn't kick in the following month either - I asked old-CFO to send a note to HR and everything was righted (and backdated) for the payroll-run. I assumed all ok then too re my not-drawn-down pension.
 
Sorry to hear they still managed to weasel out of pension part of the arrangement. Very disheartening and annoying to be betrayed in that way.
 
Thanks Mathepac.

They reverted today to say that in fact - my pension % is not in fact 4.5%, rather it is a set EUR amount which works out at 4.5% (effective ceiling cap on their contributions). So the pension amount I thought I was entitled to in my first post is even less as their admittedly-correct pension number is based on my starting salary, and not my increased salary.

But as the 'clause creates moral difficulties' to HR now, they will increase my pension entitlement to 4.5% without cap.

On their side, this means - if my original salary is EUR'X', 10% salary increase for 15 months (effective 12.5%) by 4.5% (i.e. from 0% contribution as in excess of cap to 4.5%) = about 0.055% of my original salary will be added to their pension contribution for me in the next payroll-run.

I am trying not to write this in BLOCK CAPITALS as I feel so strong about this - but I am tempted to tell them 'no, I don't want it - I'm entitled to the larger amount/%, I accept you don't want to pay that and I can't force that - but I won't accept this'.

Can I ? Should I ?
 
You can accept their suggested amount "under protest" and state your disappointment that an agreement with a superior, cannot, for whatever obscure reasons (to you and to me BTW) be implemented. State that your disappointment is such that you may need to seek advice. One way or another you'll need to find a way to put it behind you either by leaving or getting what was agreed as the trust is blown between you and your employer. It'd be strange if they don't see it that way, but HR types tend to see things differently.
 
I am trying not to write this in BLOCK CAPITALS as I feel so strong about this - but I am tempted to tell them 'no, I don't want it - I'm entitled to the larger amount/%, I accept you don't want to pay that and I can't force that - but I won't accept this'.

Can I ? Should I ?

You can, but you need to look at the bigger picture and consider implications down the line. To be clear, you have no legal entitlement to whatever the old CFO told you, there is no means available to you to prove, let alone enforce this verbal promise.

The fact that it's not all that long ago, the old CFO may be feigning amnesia here because they've since realised they made a mistake and made you a promise they were not authorised to make, and now don't want to admit having made a mistake.

So you are under no obligation to accept their offer, they are under no obligation to improve it. So if you are reasonable in your approach, they may be able to look after you via other means within the existing structures such as increased salary if they value your contributions. But if you dig in a fight a lost cause, you may well mark yourself out as someone they can do without.
 
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Discretion is the better part of valour here.

As long as they don't insist on me being happy with it, I can compartmentalise it and just get on with my work, which is what I want.
 
all of my working life I always took the view that I had to be Happy working for the company not who was over me or running it at the top they can change at any time but the company and the people you work with change at a slower pace,
Right now the company have formed an opinion on the value you are worth to them this could change in the future for the better,They already know you think you are worth more,right now if you are worth more to some other company you know what to do,If you intend staying where you are looking unhappy may not be the way to go after all the person who promised you an increase is not doing that well in the company at presant,They come across as the type of person you are better off not having anything to do with them long term,
 
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I will never again take a verbal agreement to be fact.

I did a job for someone and over the phone we agreed a price for extras.

When the time came, they conveniently forgot all about it.

Next time I will send a text just after the conversation or will never discuss prices over the phone but in writing.
 
Unless you really hate your job and you have a nicer one lined up, you need to take stock. I don't know what business you are in but how much do you go beyond your work ? i.e. do you do some extra bits here and there which is not your work ? Perhaps (discreetly) cutting back on staying that extra 30 minutes in case of some problem arising or taking a short lunch break or even not doing some online shopping because you wouldn't like to use up company time for such things. They won't know but you will feel much better.
 
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