Hi... You are so brave talking about it. I remember a few years ago telling one of my lawyers..... that when you reach the bottom there is nowhere else to go but up. I suspect you are now on your way up. Remember that you may find at times you will come up against what seems an insurmountable wall, no wall is that big or thick.... they can all be flung down and you can 'go forward' over the rubble. Take one issue at a time and solve it. Try writing down a plan.... short term goals.......... mid term goals........... and long term ones. Then make a plan on how you get from one to the other. Keep a written record of them and as you cross them out you can easily see where you have come from and in what time scale. It is very satisfying and will bolster your resolve to move on again. I am looking forward to seeing your successes. Don't be worried about prison.... it is the shame of the crime that stings not paying for it afterwards. Anyway haven't you heard there is a deficit to pay and courts are being instructed not to send people to prison.

hey Pulpo .... I want a job with this company they would get their asses whipped..... in fact I think we all should line up to work for then whip em!!!

Hi Sherinator..... what an awful story. I am glad your wife is starting to feel better. She will need your love and support especially if you proceed to the next step which is Employment Tribunal. However I think if you are contemplating that route that you should also be submitting a grievance to the company. The reason being that compensation can be downgraded if one has not gone in. have you got Legal Protection cover which covers employment disputes? You can find them attached to Home Contents insurance. How long did this go on for and when did she actually first go to the doctor? Any DDA matter may take as the starting point this date. Also what in the nature of the employment private company / government department. You also need to ensure that the DWP is informed that the this incident is recorded as an industrial accident. Read up on what the criterea is though because the nature of the "incident" cover many days and the creeping nature of events are not liked at the DWP. You need to spot one or two main incidents that actually CAUSED the illness eg the manner of being informed of the make up of time... but you and your wife will be better placed to decide which they are. There are time limits in ET cases which are normally 3 months from the last date of the incident ie when she left not intending to come back but this is extended to 6 months if Discrimination matters are grieved. I am sure you will get more posts from others with experience.

I am not suggesting that the 12 year old is not intelligent, only that he develops the emotional maturity to be objective in a highly charged and potentially no win situation for him. It is difficult steering a neutral path when their are children involved.

Hi cornettoG........ Well done on winning the appeal. Two things come to mind here, 1, if you were dismissed and that dismissal was overturned it is hard to see why the company should not pay you. write to them and ask them when you will be paid back pay. 2, I am always surprised when employers actually go with the employee on ocassions like yours. They are perhaps righting a wrong which they would punished even more if the case went to tribunal. With you being on a final warning seems to suggest that either you have done something before to warrant action or they have leaped to a final warning to give themselves more time to 'do things properly' so to speak. Would you care to elaborate on what has gone on?

Are you the Respondent?

Hi tigger..... it was not that long a rant, there are bigger ones as I am sure you know!! What a tricky situation. I am at a loss as to what to suggest as all roads will lead to confrontation. Perhaps your husband should be thinking the long view with his son. I am assuming he wants at some stage to have a ongoing relationship with him and this is being hampered by his ex. Perhaps there is nothing much he can do at this stage but to take the punches. Children are inevitably the punch bag and my brother in law has had a similar situation to deal with (although his son is now 20) His son may not understand the to aand fro of the parental battle now, at the tender age of 12, but when he goes out into the world at 18 or 20 and understands the problems of adulthood he may be more amenable to understanding the current (and past) problems. What I am suggesting is a diary, a catalogue of evidence, tapes, photos, legal papers, (your get the idea) of the battle your husband has had to secure the relationship. he could and should only present iot when the son is of an age to appreciate what Dad did to try and keep his son close to him. It is going to be an uphill struggle but maybe the situation can be retrieved in the years to come. send him my regards and hope it works out. hey you might want to post ocassionally on this thread to keep us all updated on events and of course to sound off to willing ears!!

Hey redfish......... I know this sounds a little crazy but is it possible that you can sketch or draw what happened and put a picture of the scene up on the thread? As Unclebulgaria says normally one should be in a position to stop and avoid an accident, but what you are describing sounds as if you were in the wrong spot at the wrong time and were a victim much as the oncoming car was. Were the police called? Were you hurt? What is happening police wise re prosecutions?

Pulpo.... companies do things for the strangest of reasons, some no more so than to show everyone that the boss is the boss. Maybe you were the hardest to crack in the company and he has a plan for the remainder. So if he 'wins' against you he has a psychological advantage with the rest. I know you feel reticicent but once the money is in the bank and you move on it will all fall into place for you.

Angelic.... you have a right to see anuthing that is written about you. My wife had a similar issue with OH and wrote to them and insisted that all letters, reports, files, computer documents and notes were released before any meeting with them took place. It took 6 months to get to the first OH meeting because they were unwilling to comply fully. Note the word fully. The Data Protection Laws are relevant and if you write a letter asking to see them in compliance with the DPA then they have 20 working days to comply (unless that number has changed!!).

Good luck. You'll be Ok.

Monkey girl you did brilliantly. They wanted to muck you around well now they have reaped the whirlwind. You have all of us behind you. Hope you feel better soon (but not too soon)!!!!

Just hand them back and ask the company to remove you from the list. back that up with a letter to the local police stating that you are no longer a keyholder and asking for an acknowledgement they have taken you off their list. Keep a copy of the letter and the reply just in case you start getting calls. If they don't acknowledge write again to the Chief Superintendent (try and get a name) until you do. If eventually you get pee'd off complain about the Chief to the Force's complaints dept that it is not being done. It will get done.

What is your goals, what is it you want?

Nasty explosion. I only saw one photo but I get the idea!! I think you need to write to the insurance company complaining that your voice messages have not been acted upon. I can see they will merely say they could not identify your claim against their insured. Explain the circumstances and do not detail the exact extent of your injuries. Say that you want to come to a settlement quickly and ask for the money for the pram and something for the injuries. They will get back to you and hopefully they will be agreeable to settling, they probably will want to know what you have in mind, that is where it gets tricky. Try that and let's see their response.

Did you agree as a condition of employment, is it in a contract? I can't see any restriction otherwise in handing them back. Being a keyholder can be a bind especially if you get a call from the Police in the early hours!! Is this the reason for not wanting to do this?

Hi I am sure we would all love to see them. Did you go to the doctors to register your injuries? I assume you did take pictures of your injuries. Have any of you got any anxiety about using such equipment since then? Appliances are expected to be in a good working condition and are not expected to do this sort of thing. I would say that you have a Claim and depending on the level of injury I am sure a solicitor would take it on. Generally one needs medical evidence but if you have photos your solicitor could obtain a doctors report. The insurance company are probably waiting for some sort of letter of claim from you or a solicitor. You were right to reject the miserly offer of £25 in vouchers it is worth much much more and should be in cash to all that were injured or had damage done to their property. You have plenty of time to sort this out. Are you insured for legal expenses?

Hi coleslaw.......... believe me I know how management a) will collude to save themselves b) manipulate so you are the one at fault. My wife is a nurse and one course of action we had in mind until the employer decided to pay her off was to complain to the NMC over professional misconduct. You were probably advised correctly by the lawyers as you needed to prove that you were affected in your purse. I am assuming that the manager is a nurse and subject to the NMC guidlines. You can check on the NMC site as to whether she is on the register. If she is complain about her and any other manager that was involved in this sordid affair. Here are the codes http://www.nmc-uk.org/Nurses-and-midwives/The-code/The-code-in-full/ So once you have lodge a complaint your answer is on interview........... "My lawyers stated that I had no losses to recover, however I am unhappy with what happened and have lodged a complaint with the NMC for Professional Misconduct, Untruthful behaviour and Bring the Profession into disrepute. You don't have to go through with the complaint only as far as to when you get a full time job. (Although I would as the behaviour is appalling). Good luck keep us posted as to how you get on.

Have a nice holiday and keep us posted on what happens.

The point is what do you want to do and to what extent will you go to get your £250? This is a small claim so you could take action in the county court but you would need to pay the CC fees, which may be a problem to you. Have a look on the site as to what you need to do to start a smal claim. Before you actually start a claim you should write to them outlining all your attempts to obtain your wages and failure to pay you these within X days will result in you starting proceedings in the county court. I don't suppose you have legal protection insurance?

The first thing to do is not work for them until they pay you. Write to them telling them that you expect to be paid for the work done and in accordance with the contract but that until you have been paid you are going to do no more. How much are we talking about?

Sounds like a very toxic environment all of a sudden Monkex. The only positive thing to do is what you are doing gather in the evidence. You could also start to keep a diary of events. You never know when it might come in handy. Also to get yourself a digital recorder and ensure that and 'informal' meetings you have is recorded. The unfortunate thing is that you are now involved and we need to keep you safe and in the best position to ensure you come out the other side unscathed.

I agree HoneyB......... but unfortunately these things start out small and 'issues' are manipulated until the victim is out of their minds with what to do. Newly promoted managers need guidance. They don;t need to bring problems to their managers that get out of hand, that is not good for more promotions. Hopefully it will be nipped in the bud.

A good manager leads they don't bully and that appears to be what she is doing. Have a look at Bully Online http://www.bullyonline.org/ click the green entry button. You will find loads of information about bullying in the workplace. You will recognise many character traits I am sure. You need to tread carefully with these people...... they are dangerous as they seek to get allies around them and then they bully en masse. Read up on it as forewarned is forearmed.

Hi Monkex..... I know this is a sledgehammer to crack a nut but altering paperwork that is used for an accounting purpose is a criminal offence. The perpetrator needs to be informed of this fact because if it is done again they have no excuse. Is this a manager that is doing this? Are there issues that go deeper than the timesheet issue? Who has access to the time sheets and have they been spoken to? Good about copying the sheet. You should continue to do this before and after you have entered your times.