For privacy purposes, I will keep this as vague as possible to protect myself from potential retaliation. Part of this is a vent, part of it is a request for advice on if there is any legal recourse or ways I can protect myself.
TLDR: The company I accepted a position with is in the same ownership group as my current employer. Current employer expects me to continue my full level of current responsibilities in addition to my new role's responsibilities because it's what's “best for the business”. Does not intend on increasing compensation.
(1/8) I currently work for company A. At this company, I manage various programs of custom made products, each with their own unique set of criteria for acceptance. I manage anywhere from 10-20 different programs simultaneously, and currently oversee $70M+ in backlog. These programs can take many years to complete, and a few of my current programs stretch several years into the future at least, with the potential for delays always looming.
(2/8) I recently accepted a position with company B. This company is in a similar business type as company A, and is owned by the same overall business group – we'll call them Company X (spooky right?)
(3/8) I was pulled into a discussion with the captain of HR for Company X, and my current manager at Company A to discuss details for my transition to Company B. They said although I will be employed with Company B, they will be requiring me to continue to manage my entire load of current projects until they are completed. No exceptions, regardless of expected end date. This to be in addition to the onboarding and training and other responsibilities I'd have for Company B.
(4/8) I pushed back on this proposition, and explained I didn't think it's fair to expect me to take on that level of additional commitment with no intention of transitioning the work load to my replacement. They confirmed they will be hiring a replacement, but insisted I see all of my programs through to completion.
(5/8) I told them I'd be happy to continue to manage a few of my more complicated programs for a little while. These are so in-depth and complex that it would be very hard to get a replacement adequately trained up to take over in a short amount of time.
(6/8) They were still adamant that the decision had been made throughout the entire executive management team of Company X, and cited that my new manager at Company B “understands the current needs of the company (X) and has agreed they will modify my working responsibilities to ensure the success of Company A”.
(7/8) I insisted to captain HR at Company X that I expect to receive additional compensation for the increase in workload and mental pressure. They stumbled during the discussion and said “that would be something we'd need to talk about” and my manager quickly pivoted the discussion.
(8/8) Am I justified in my wanting to be compensated above and beyond my base rate due to the increase in responsibility and given that I'd be an employee of Company B while overseeing Company A assets? Do I have any legal recourse to ensure I'm paid fairly for this? And finally are there any steps I need to take to protect myself during this? If you made it this far, thank you for your time and consideration.