Bumping

What are the bumping rights at employment?

Bumping Rights means the contractual right of a senior employee being laid off to replace a junior employee not being laid off for a position he or she is qualified. They are essentially the privileges provided to senior employees, who have experience of many years, from being laid off and instead accept an alternative position in the organization.

Is bumping illegal?

No, in many organizations there are strict rules that govern bumping. It is accepted as long as fair and clear redundancy procedures are being followed.

What is bump redundancy?

Bump redundancy is when an employee who is at the potential risk of being redundant can transfer into another job role instead. This makes the latter employee redundant instead of the former.

What is the difference between bumping up and bumping down?

An employee being bumped up implies that they are being transferred to a higher position in the organizational hierarchy while bumping down is the vice versa.

Is bumping a good or a bad practice?

When considering to bump or not to bump, the following questions can be answered:

• Is the employee being considered for bumping, good enough with his/her skills to be bumped up?
• In case of bumping down, does the employee agree for the same?
• Would there be a significant drop in salary or loss of benefits?
• What if redundancy is considered instead of bumping? How would it make an impact?

Is bumping a legal requirement?

No, there is no legal obligation to bump. There are no defined rights made specifically for bumping. In general, employees follow their redundancy policies when it comes to bumping as well.