Employee's new boss wants to swap his earned department head role with a coworker's, calling it a "fair chance" that feels a lot like a demotion

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  • Bald man with glasses talking on a phone while holding his head, seated indoors beside a bright window.
  • I recently got a new boss, and his idea of what my job is differs from what I expected when I was hired years ago.
  • Years ago, I was put in charge of leading a small department (think, me and one other guy, who started a few months after me).
  • Man talking on a phone while gesturing from a couch, looking serious and frustrated,
  • My then-boss told he that I was too new for a department head position, but I could easily work my way up there.
  • Meanwhile, I took on the diet leadership role and did 80% of the heavy lifting for the job.
  • My coworker took on the remaining 20% and assisted other departments as needed. For years, I have expected my work to pay off in the form of a promotion.
  • My old boss quit and my new boss has come in and, in short, doesn't really think I'm qualified for the job as he wants it, and neither is my coworker.
  • Man in glasses taking a phone call at a desk with a serious, focused look
  • However, he wants to give us both a fair chance at getting promoted to department head, even though I've been in charge of it for so long that I have all the systems down pat.
  • I went on vacation recently and my coworker was given a chance to "do my job" for a while, though the work was so few and far between he didn't get the ideal opportunity after all.
  • My boss says he wants to rearrange us, and I would take on my coworker's job and hours, while he takes on mine.
  • It would mean I would be ceding my job role and position for an indeterminate amount of time.
  • I'm not sure what this would accomplish, and I can't help but feel like this is a demotion of some kind?
  • He says if I can come up with a different way for my coworker to prove himself, he would consider it.
  • What should I do?

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