that is th most refreshing thing i have heard in a while, good luck posty, you have the gods on your side.....

Well stand up against it, think we can all tell we are all in Tory times. I am currently challenging the current legislation that only allows an employee the right to a trade union rep (if they belong to a union) or a colleague from the orkplace to represent them. whilst employers are going in armed with HR consultants and the like. Hardly what i call equlaity of arms. Anyone shuld have the legal to take who they want into represent them. Posty keep us all updated as t how you are getting on. Squaddie, you are a legend in my books.

I totally agree, i was senior shop steward for 4 years at my last work place, and i hate bullies, managers with over inflated egos, and companies who now deem it ok to use discilinaries as a way of streamlining their workforces as opposed to redundancies. good luck posty, well done squaddie....

Squaddie i salute you sir......wish there were more like you......

Hello and welcome. Firsty thy have the right to use anything they like, however if the statement offered by colleague c bears no relevance, then let them use it, may i ask if you have arranged representation, are you a member of a trade union?

I totally agree with Honeybee, this evil boss is now just trying smooth over the many cracks he has created. And dont believe for one min that he is anything of a friend as he so makes out in his email. He makes a good ref to the so called Legal crap, that tells me he is now running scared, and has sent this as a way of trying to get you to drop your case against him. Continue to take the good advice you are being given here, and follow through with the grievance, if he is scared now and wants to send an email like that, wait until he really has to deal with his own actions. I am pretty sure he will be willing to offer alot more than a months salary he initially intended to do.

Your more than welcome, some things always seem daunting until you actually deal with them, speak with your GP tomorrow about your concerns and fears, and i am sure that your Dr will reassure you and you will leave feeling happy and confident. Kevin x

Hello Lou, your Dr will know exactly what to put in his report, so you have no need to worry, anything that isnt relevant or work related need not be submitted. You will be in safe hands as its your own GP. a completely different story when its a company DR. I would also send an email informing them that due to their inablity to get the information to you in good time, that you duely require the same amount of time in order to seek proffessional advice and guidance in future. This will only act as a throw away comment, but will let them know that your not going to be bullied or messed around, and the time contraints they are trying to impose on you will in order to bring fairness to all be granted to you. Kevin x

Hello Lou, if it were myself i would make an appointment with you GP, and explain to the Dr that your company will seeking this information, he can then with your assistance detail a report for your loser of a boss that outlines your current medical condition, and state that the result of your illness is work related. Something your boss wont want to be reading when he opens it. I would almost certainly agree to the report being given as its in your interest that you co operate as much as fully, and this could well work in your favour. Kevin

Hello once again Lou, Firstly dont be surprised by this latest attempt of his at getting to you. I would keep calm as this will almost certainly have him thinkong as to why are you being the way you are, Stay polite, and well mannered at all times, it will certainly throw him. And ask either by phone, or email or again via letter that he furnishes you with a copy of your contract of employment, dont let on the reason for you wanting it, and dont mention the issue of sick pay at this stage. Once you have your contract you can then establish if he is in breach of that with regards to the sick pay, if as expected there is no contract because as you stated it has disappeared, then it may well be argued that as you were head hunted by him, you joined the company on similar grounds to what you were originally employed in. I will have to check the legal position on this for you, or perhaps papasmurf will be along and advise accordingly, but dont show any signs of anger or bitterness and never disclose your reason for requesting information from him. Will try and get the answer for you asap.

Your welcome Lou, and rest assured that myself and others will guide and advise you through the whole process bringing you strength to deal with this thug. He is nothing more than a bully, and one thing i have learned about these creatures is that the thing they hate more than anything is those who stand up to them, its leaves them unable to control and bully and usually they move on to another target. I will advise you through step by step with everything as and when it happens, and you will be amazed at how much you soon draw strentgh from this case, and along that journey it will bring amazing satisfaction to you also when watching him squirm. I am sure Papasmurf will also be along to add his much valued experience as i have found his advice to be second to none. So you will be more than well looked after. Advise further when you receive information from the freak. Kind regards x

Hello again Lou, please just be mindfull that should you ever wish to take this thug on all the way to an employment tribunal you will have had to have exhausted the grievance proceedure first to give your case foundation. I know that this isnt at the forefront of your thoughts at present, but who knows what lays ahead.

My appologies Honeybee, didnt realise and was trying to offer some extra reassurance in what is already a very stressfull time. i will be more mindfull. Kind regards Kevin

I would advise that you send a further email informing the BIGGOT that you will not currently be in a position to attend any kind of formal/informal meeting under medical advice. And that you will contact him or his office when your health improves to arrange a suitable time in order to address the issues he has raised. This will then give him for time to panic over what your doing next when he receives your letter requesting information about the grievance proceedure and as Stu put, the company Whistleblowing policy, if they have one. I understand that you may at times be needing some more urgent advice perhaps after receiving another threatening phone call/emal.or text message, and unfortunately i am not always available to get onto this site, so if it would assist in putting your mind at rest i would be more than happy to forward to you my personal mb telephone number so that you may contact me earlier. This option is open to you to decide, i am also happy to leave my personal email here for you so you may contact me there.

That doesnt surprise me in the slightest, i would like to say i am shocked by what you have said, but unfortunately its an all to common thing, good on you for not doing the things that being asked of you, it clearly shows which way your moral compass points. I dont think it is an issue at this present time in question but any information you have regarding the above breaches you witnessed may come in handy, (as a nice insurance policy in the future). It is important that you raise a grievance regarding your treatment and especially the harrassment and bullying you have received, especially as they are major contributing factors to your current health problems, do you have a grievance policy at your place of work, and if so are you familiar with it. If not i would send a letter in writing that they forward a copy of this policy to you and send the letter via recorded delivery. That will get him thinking and its only for starters. The most important thing in all of this is you and your health, and you will be afforded every bit of support from this forum along your journey ahead. Another thing it would be good to know is do you have household insurance as if so you may find that you have legal cover which would be handy if you needed a solicitor, or are you a member of a trade union. Either way it isnt the end of the world, as the people on this forum will guide you and give good advice.

Hello Loobylou23, Well firstly i would say that if you are off work sick, and you have notes from your gp confirming this stay well away from any meeting. It is very generous for your boss to have stated in writing that someone else could attend the meeting on your behalf, something i would more than look forward to doing for you. (Imagine the fun i would have in an enviroment with a bully with an over inflated ego) it would be like christmas all over again for me. And to meet in a hotel, just think i may even get lunch out of him. On a more serious not, have you ever raised a grievance with regards to the harrassment and bullying you have received, if you havent then you seriously need to address this. And keep every bit of information you can appertaining to this case. Even every text message, How convenient that the boss has his wife as HR, i have always said that they are in the same bed together, just proves my case. Could you possibly shed any light as to what the illegal activity they were asking you to carry was. Will respond along with many others to assist you in dealing with this torment of a so called manager/boss. Kind regards Kevin x

There are various issues ongoing here, firstly if her contract was for 16 hours and the hours were reduced, 16 hours should be the minimum she should get paid under contract unless she had agreed to the reduction of hours. Therefore that could imply a breach of contract from the employer. Also it would be nice to know what the time period is for terminating ones employment with the company, most will ask for 2 weeks notice, however it should be somewhere written into the contact, and should this be the case than that would have to be adhered too. That said if it is her intention to terminate her employment and she follows the agreed time period in doing this, then they cannot refuse to accept her request. More info would be appreciated.

One thing that can always be used that will have an employer thinking is the Equality Act. Ask your employer through your trade union if you have one to do an Equality Audit, this will clearly highlight if there is any forms of discrimination, it will establish the true percentage of the whole workforce, and other issues.

Possible case, do not be blinkered by HR, i have yet to meet that are representative of the employee. They are an insurance policy for the company and nothing more. It is important that if you should consider going down the route of an ET, then you have to have at the very least submited a letter asking for a grievance hearing. As without this proceedurely you wouldnt get far at ET. Best wishes, and as an Equlaity Rep i will follow this link closely and advise when i feel its needed, as its about time we ended this cancer called bullying spreading through our work places. Best wishes.

No you havent messed up at all, you have done what many in your position would do, and that is grab the opportunity of work. So can i confirm that you at some point received a regular weekly wage, and pay slips, and that tax was deducted at source by your employer, ?

Hello Iceboy. You will have to use the custom and practice argument here. What constitutes Custom And Practice in time limits? There is no given hard line definition on this, only a tribunal can rule if something is custom and practice. When I checked with our legal advisors, they agreed that any arrangement going on for 12 - 18 months or more was likely to become permanent, and anyone doing something for 4 years or more would most definitely be!! The exact point at which something becomes permanent is very difficult to judge, but generally speaking, if the arrangement feels like it is permanent, and it has been in place for 12 months or more, then it probably is. I tribunal would be more likely to agree that it was custom and practice if the period was 12 months or longer, So you would more than adequately fall into this area and no tribunal would rule against your current working practice, Inform your (Snotty nosed, over inflated ego HR manager to do one) or you could just write a lovely letter explaining that you have sought legal advice on the proposed changes, and that it would be considered under custom and practice that your current working arrangent is permanent.And that any proposed changes to this would be met with resisitance. Then sign it Yours sincerely Mr Get stuffed and do 1.

Suziebear hit the nail on the head, a visit to your more caring and sensitive GP will see you with a sicknote for 2 weeks, this will ensure you get paid, albeit without overtime or bonus, but all the more sick pay is better than nothing, and 2 week breathing space to concentrate on your loss. Our thoughts are with you and your family at this sad time.

That would be the case Wobbly, but that is because they were trade union officials, the law before never made it possible for any individual to take someone of their choosing into a disciplianry, that is until this ruling.

Firstly you are entitled to representation. If you have a friend or colleague who is willing to go into the hearing with you, the latest knowledge of law is this, everyone is entitled to representation by either a trade union official, workplace rep, or colleague from the workplace. Now this i have always argued is unfair, as with many companies there may not always be union recognition, it is often the case that other members of staff will not enter another disciplinary for fear of reprisals themself. Or that those available are just not experienced enough to take on such a role. This i have always argued is unfair and gives yet again more power to the employer. If someone has a friend or family member or even the finances to take knowledgeable reps in with them why should the law not allow them to do so. Simply putting it because employers would be tied up in knots. However there may be light at the end of this unfair tunnel, and this i feel is about to change under a new ruling. In accordance with Article 6 of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) the right to a fair hearing. The recent is a copy of a statement that i came across in relation to the rights of a fair hearing. Practical Effect for Employers If an employee is facing disciplinary proceedings and requests legal representation at the disciplinary hearing, either by friend or employment advisor, or legal proffessional, employers should give careful consideration to such a request if the employee faces disciplinary charges which are so serious that, if proven, they will be significantly career limiting. Employers may consider having their own legal representative and/or a legally qualified member on the internal panel to ensure “equality of arms” and a fair hearing but, clearly, this will increase costs. This is an extract from a longer version and although it was in relation to a judgement known as Kulkarni v Milton Keynes Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, and initially covered employed proffesssionals, but it has been used and unchallenged to argue that if you yourself run the risk of being dismissed at a disciplinary hearing, then this in itself would be signifacantly career limiting. I would write to your employer asking for another date to be rescheduled and inform them that under this ruling you will be accompanied by a friend. You have nothing to lose. Good luck.

Mariefab has raised all the key bullets point, In order for us to be able to advise further these key points need to be known, because if you never attended a disciplinary hearing, or even made aware of one, then there is no dismissal on the grounds of Gross Misconduct, and that is simply a cop out. Waiting for further info before advising further, please be mindfull that the paper trail must start asap. Time to use the 3 d`s and c`s, document,document,document. Challenge challenge challenge.