Home » Corporate social responsibility » Corporate practices » Great Britain: fears spark over a ‘fire-and-rehire’ wave after British Gas lays off gas engineers Great Britain: fears spark over a ‘fire-and-rehire’ wave after British Gas lays off gas engineers Nearly 500 British Gas engineers recently lost their jobs after they refused to sign up to new employment contract terms that included lower pay and longer hours, under the employer’s ‘fire-and-rehire’ practice. With this practice the employer offers the employee the opportunity to resign in order to sign a new, less advantageous contract, and the employee knows that if s/he refuses the new terms then s/he will be laid off. Perceived as a lifeline by some companies amid the current health crisis, this process is now becoming commonplace and trade unions are raising alarm bells. Expert opinion on the practice has been mixed. Through . Published on 20 April 2021 à 12h32 - Update on 20 April 2021 à 13h13 Resources Will the British Gas ‘fire-and-rehire’ episode now snowball? This is the question everyone is asking amid these highly publicized layoffs. Taking advantage of this spotlight, the Unite union launched a campaign on 16 April seeking to ban the process. ‘This would benefit millions of people overnight but it will also support the responsible employers while making clear to those with fewer scruples that these sorts of actions are not tolerated in this country,’ the union stated,… This article is for subscribers only Already have an account? Log in You are not registered yet ? Sign up for a free trialfree for 15 days Online services : studies, analyses, databases and much more Daily Briefing : latest news digest Weekly letters Last name First name Email address Need more info ? Contact mind's on-demand study service Which service do you want to contact :WritingCommercial serviceTechnical SupportFirst nameLast nameOrganizationFunctionemail* Object of the messageYour messageEmailThis field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged. Essentials Les dernières publications What type of employment status will platform workers hold? mind RH updates its comparison of several countries’ regulatory responses CSR: support for caregiving employees, a new challenge for companies Analyzes Les dernières publications Paternity leave: data observations from 41 countries EU: during H1 2022 five EU Member States have raised their minimum salary levels