Fixed term and secondment differences??

(14 Posts)
Ilikewinter Wed 21-Oct-20 08:56:22

Ive worked in my current role for 5 years and im bored, have been for a while, ive seen a fantastic fixed term (april 2021) job id love to apply for, Ive spoken to my manager who said go for it etc but basically hes replacing me ppermenant l so ill have no job to go back to - well i will but not in my current store ( im in retail).
Hes says because its fixed term not a secondment it means he can backfill my job.
The new job is a project so will likely end in April.
I cant find any internal policy about fixed term or secondment roles.
Does this sound correct? - I have applied but now doubting myself because of where I could end up going back to.

OP’s posts: |
peachypetite Wed 21-Oct-20 09:00:14

Yes it does. A secondment means you go and do another job with the security blanket of having your own to come back to. Fixed term doesn’t.

Ilikewinter Wed 21-Oct-20 09:28:57

Ah well thats a shame, the jobs also been advertised externally so I thought that may be why its advertised as fixed term.
So assuming I got the job, what would happen in April if there arent any vacancies for me to go into, would I just be resigned?

OP’s posts: |
peachypetite Wed 21-Oct-20 09:52:20

Exactly. I’m not sure why you’d leave a permanent role for such a short fixed term contract?

Ilikewinter Wed 21-Oct-20 09:55:38

Thanks for you help @peachypetite, not really sure how they expect to fill roles internally then....looks like I'll be sticking with my boring job for now 🙈

OP’s posts: |
BuffaloCauliflower Wed 21-Oct-20 09:56:52

A secondment and a fixed term contract are very different things. A fixed term contract for a short project is just that, at the end of the contract you don’t have a job anymore unless you get another one. They don’t have to keep your old job open and they don’t have to give you another job with a new contract, so yes, if youre not given another job at the end you’re not longer employed. Someone external could come in and do it for 6 months then leaves.

A secondment just varies your contract but you remain on the same employment terms but doing something else.

peachypetite Wed 21-Oct-20 09:57:12

The only way would be to ask your manager to advertise your role as a secondment so that it’s yours to come back to - but they are usually longer than a few months.

Ginfilledcats Wed 21-Oct-20 09:57:23

If it's internal could you ask the recruiting manager about it being a secondment? Of course you'd have to get your current manager to agree and they don't have to

unfortunateevents Wed 21-Oct-20 10:01:38

not really sure how they expect to fill roles internally then... - I'm sure they have a policy of always advertising internally and presumably there are permanent roles which will be attractive to people, just because this one is fixed term doesn't mean they shouldn't advertise it.

At the end of the fixed term role you also wouldn't "be resigned", your contract would have come to an end and you would just leave. The resignation would actually be now from your current role which you would need to do in order to take up the new contract.

VanGoghsDog Wed 21-Oct-20 10:22:22

They advertise internally because other people on fixed term contracts that might want to move to their next role.

RedskyAtnight Wed 21-Oct-20 10:26:16

It depends on the company as well. My company advertises a lot of jobs on fixed term contracts but it's extremely rare for a person that wants to stay at the company not to then get another job once their fixed term contract has completed. Though it is still a risk.

Worth speaking again to your manager to see if they would second you to the other post if you get the job.

Ilikewinter Wed 21-Oct-20 10:30:41

Thanks for all your replies, im currently waiting for a telephone interview which i might still do, good for experience I suppose. Feeling a bit deflated now.

OP’s posts: |
Florencex Wed 21-Oct-20 11:46:26



It wouldn’t matter to the recruiting manager whether the project role is a secondment or FTC, either way you are no longer in the role after April.

It is your current manager that this is relevant to and they are free to decide whether it is a secondment or not. Policy is unlikely to come into it as I cannot imagine any company having a policy that mandates for all secondments to be allowed whenever an employee asks.

So they have obviously decided that they don’t want to support a secondment as is their prerogative. It is a shame they don’t want to do this, but I can also understand why they don’t want the bother of settling somebody in for six months and then having another disruption either upon your return or if you decide not to return after secondment (which often happens).

dontdisturbmenow Wed 21-Oct-20 14:04:54

Ask what opportunities there might be afterwards.

Finding good staff prepared to take on a job for 3 months is not always easy. You look for people who only do contract work but there might not be easy depending on the role and sector.

You never know, they might not have any other candidate and might be prepared to make it longer but you have no right to redundancy before 2 years employment and you don't become automatically permanent until even longer nowadays, so it is quite a risk to take when your current role is permanent.

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