Changing Job Offer during Probation Period – BC

[Conner Lantz]

#80334

During the probation period as a sales rep with our company, the sales manager is feeling like the new hire is struggling to hit certain sales goals and may not be the right fit for the role they were hired for. However, the new hire has other skill sets that could be valuable for the company, and so the manager is now wanting to consider offering a slightly different role to which the new hire would be better suited.
Is this change of job offer appropriate, and what would be the steps to ensure that both the employee and the company can maintain a good relationship throughout the process?

[Conner Lantz]

#80333

My suggestion is to hit the RESET button and end the current probationary position on the basis of lack of suitability and offer the other position on a probationary basis, effective the date of acceptance. This clarifies the employee’s status and relieves you of liability for termination notice to the extent the employee’s overall service time surpasses the period under which employee ESA rights vest. I think that’s 3 months in BC but I’m not 100% sure. The only potential red flag would be if the new position was substantially like the current one, in which case the new offer/employment agreement could be construed as an illegal attempt to extend the probationary period. Even if that’s not the case, I’d be sure that the new agreement acknowledges that the original agreement has ended and that service time under it doesn’t count under the new agreement.
Of course, you could just go ahead and keep the existing agreement in place if you feel that there’s enough time left in the probationary period to make a fair evaluation of the employee’s suitability for the new position.

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