Mergers: Get answers to the three most frequent questions
Many questions may come up among the employees when a merger is announced. The Chief Legal Adviser of Finansforbundet answers the most frequent ones below.
1. What about my rights?
"We get that question very often. And, as a general rule, we can say that nothing happens. When you're employed under a collective agreement that sets out your terms, these terms cannot be altered before expiry of the collective agreement," Mette Hjøllund Schousboe explains. As an example, she mentions the current collective agreement, which expires in 2028.
2. Will I be terminated?
Unfortunately, we cannot tell them who will be made redundant. But terminations are often a result of a merger as there will be overlapping functions when two companies merge," says Mette Hjøllund Schousboe.
If you happen to be among those who are given notices of termination, your local branch or Finansforbundet's legal department can help answer questions about the terms applicable to you as a terminated employee. They may vary but Mette Hjøllund Schousboe lists some of the most typical ones.
"There is a notice period on the part of the employer. If you've been with the company for a long time, you may be entitled to severance pay under both the Danish Salaried Employees Act and the collective agreement. It may be a requirement that you are released from your duties. In addition, mitigation measures stipulating an outplacement programme are in force. And lastly, there may be a pool set aside for educational purposes."
3 Can I say no?
There may be employees who have been with the same company for many years and have a hard time imagining a new constellation; they might want to decline a job offer by the new company.
As a general rule, you can't, explains Mette Hjøllund Schousboe.
"You have to be able to tolerate this; in return, your terms are protected in the way I mentioned while the collective agreement is valid," she says.
She underlines that you always have the option of resigning, but then the same rules apply as in connection with any other type of termination of employment.
When the collective agreement expires, the company may choose to change the terms.
"At this point, you may choose to say 'I don't want to accept this, I consider myself terminated'. And, in that way, you are entitled to the terms applicable to employees terminated by the employer. But you'll have to wait for this then," the Chief Legal Adviser explains.