I have recently been dismissed from my employer ( a nationally known gas/electric company) for so called "gross misconduct". I undertook some work at a property and more than 24 hours later the elderly customer said that she could smell gas. National Grid attended, and noted on their paper work "pressure test passed" and also "no trace with gasco", which to me indicates that they could not find any trace of the leak. As per company policy, a technicial had to do a follow up visit, and funilly enough he said that there were 2 gas leaks, even though National Grid (who are known as the gas police, and highly trained) could not find anything. I have had several run ins with the management at the company, and before my old manager recently left the company he told a member of the union "I will get rid of that c**t if it's the last thing I do". I also had emails from the regional manager questioning whether I should be working for the company. A few weeks ago I was signed off work due to work related stress, because of the pressure I was getting from the management. They have said on the dismissal letter that I failed to follow a number of their procedures, one of them was "not stripping and cleaning an open flued boiler, as per company procedure". But this particular boiler could possibly contain asbestos (confirmed by manufacturer) and should not be disturbed. Me and the union rep had requested for the disciplinary hearing to be adjourned, he had been hit by a car a couple of days earlier, which broke his glasses and also injured his wrist. He said he felt he could not properly represent me, as he could not read any of the paperwork, or take any notes, this request was completely disregarded. With regards to the gas leak, I took all reasonable actions to check the appliance was safe, and carried out all safety checks, there was no smell of gas during the time it took me to do these safety checks. If I had not carried out these checks, then I would happily hold my hands up and say that I did not test for any leaks. I am appealing against the decision, and also going to take some advice from ACAS, I was just wondering whether anyone out there had any other advice for me? or anyone want to list their view?

my view is you should have contacted someone higher up in the union to get a replacement rep.

I had not met this union rep before. I only found out he would be representing me, on the day of the disciplinary. He only found out the night before the hearing, as the company dragged him in the office to work on "light duties".

Sounds like you are being victimised, and the refusal to postpone the hearing sounds unreasonable based on your information.

Take legal advice prior to the appeal - what you are being accused of is serious and if the dismissal is upheld it may be difficult for you to get another job in the same field. If you followed procedures and this episode has been used as a pretext to dismiss you unfairly you may be able to get an injunction preventing the company carrying out the dismissal. This is quite rare however, and expensive, and you would have to show substantial procedural irregularities on your employer's part.

Look slike you have been treated very unfairly.

Do you have these emails and have written down dates/times of when your manager said these horrible things? The appeal is likely to get you nowhere, however it is an essential part of getting your point of view across. Make sure that you have notes of the meeting, or if they allow it - a recording of the meeting.

I have to say that it is extremely unlikely that they will change their decision and that you will remain "dismissed" so it would be wise of you to start looking into submitting an ET1 with your union for Unfair Dismissal. The work related stress could also have an additional bearing depending on its severity.

Yes, I have a copy of one of the emails that were sent on my own email account, as soon as they suspended me, they also suspended my work email, so I was unable to get any access to it. No notes were taken during the disciplinary, that is why we requested for it to be adjourned, so I could be represented by a union rep who could make some notes for himself, they just disregarded our request. Do I only have a certain amout of time to submit an ET1? I have sent an email to my former employer, making them aware of my intentions to appeal against the desicion. I have also heard rumours from several employees that the company is really struggling, and may not last 6 more months. They have got rid of a lot of engineers over the past few weeks, to save paying redundancy money, I wonder whether this could be the reason why?? Seems a bit suspect to me.

You can suspend the meeting for up to 5 working days until your choice of rep can be there. This includes contacting the union regional office to get the regional rep to your workplace. After the 5 days are up, the company can then continue without your choice of rep unless there is a valid reason for an extra delay.

Your employer cannot refuse or choose a rep for you in the initial period.

But this particular boiler could possibly contain asbestos (confirmed by manufacturer) and should not be disturbed.

I would suggest you look up the Health & Safety laws about this (of which there are many!) in particular, to do with asbestos and gas (=potentially explosive materials?) You cannot be forced to do anything dangerous if it contravenes the regulations. HSE might be able to advise you.

If your employers are struggling financially and they go under, it might be difficult for you to get full compensation if you win at an ET. However, you might still need to clear your name.

In your appeal, spell out the hazards of this particular boiler, and the potential consequences to H&S of modifiying it, and this may help focus your employers' minds to treat you more fairly, as you will have made a protected disclosure under H&S.

You need to appeal against your dismissal. The appeal mechanism should accompany the dismissal notice (usually you need to notify the employer in writing, within a few working days). Get proof of lodging the appeal - a countersigned letter, or reliable witness - like a decent union rep. You also need to lodge an Employment Tribunal claim within three months of the date of dismissal, even if your appeal is ongoing (employers often string them out so you miss the deadline, if you aren't careful).They are already in the wrong by denying you representation as spelt out above, and have no evidence - notes from the meeting that have not been agreed with you don't count. Get a copy of their own discipline procedures if you can - any employee should be able to see them, certainly the union reps should have it.