Harrasment at work

[WelshMam2009]

I seen his email account this week and no he has not deleted any..he also has some against our managers due to the fact ' he does not like the way certain procedures are done ' .

He is quite outspoken and offensive about certain people behind their backs which annoys the hell out of me...

 

You have to do this through the official channels. By all means keep the paperwork (preferably at home) but make an appointment to see an HR rep.

 

If he gets wind of this, he may somehow manage to turn the tables on you. Therefore, be discreet but do go and speak to an appropriate individual within your organisation.

[MARTIN3030]

This is from a site that gives a run down on an Employment Tribunal process and procedures.;

 

What Counts as Evidence ?

 

25 July 2008

 

‘Evidence’ means any material that helps prove one side’s case or the other’s - what witnesses say, pieces of paper with things written on them (commonly known as ‘documents’), computer files, records of text messages, photographs, CCTV footage, emails, monogrammed handkerchiefs dropped at the scene of the alleged sexual harassment, bloodstained blunt instruments (admittedly these are rare in employment tribunal proceedings) - etc. etc..

It’s a common mistake to think that what witnesses say doesn’t count as evidence: as in “It’s my word against his, but there’s no evidence.” If he says you did and you say you didn’t, that’s evidence on both sides: the tribunal will just have to decide who it finds more believable.

[jj69]

So you obv need some clarification as to your legal standing as regards the emails (referring to them).

In the absence of knowing where you stand on this-it could be counter productive to take any steps until thats established.

I will ask site team collegues for some thoughts.

 

 

Thanks for your assistance on this...

There does not seem to be any disclaimer on emails yet I need to check company policy regarding the reading of other people's email.

[MARTIN3030]

Yes agreed.Look forward to the updates.

[jj69]

Yes agreed.Look forward to the updates.

 

 

Have found a section under Electronic mail which states '

 

do not amend any messages recieved,and excepet where specifically authorised by the other person,do not access any other persons inbox or other email folders nor send other email porporting to be that person '

 

For some of the mails I have access this persons account...

 

Need to check the general policies regarding email overall...

[Sali]

I think you would also have to do a lot of explaining on how you got to read his emails - sorry, I don't buy the administrative logs. Your admin rights would give you the option to access his mailbox, but you would be the one in the wrong. I have always thought that having admin rights gives you the ability to access data, but not the right. This could be considered gross misconduct and you would be the one in the firing line.

 

You will find this kind of bullying, excluding or ganging up on an individual, happens in every organisation. It isn't right, but it is commonplace. Did you say this person is your supervisor? I think a face to face with this guy is not going to sort it out. You should go directly to your manager and discuss your problem with him. It is his responsibility to try to resolve the matter (and definitely don't mention about reading other people's emails). If your manager does nothing, then I guess you will have to make it official. Make sure you have evidence, but only that which you have accumulated without breaking the rules.

[WelshMam2009]

Have found a section under Electronic mail which states '

 

do not amend any messages recieved,and excepet where specifically authorised by the other person,do not access any other persons inbox or other email folders nor send other email porporting to be that person '

 

For some of the mails I have access this persons account...

 

Need to check the general policies regarding email overall...

 

You do not need to disclose that you have these emails and it is not a pre-requisite of any complaint.

 

Your internal audit and/or HR will be able to access these legitimately, if they have reasonable grounds to do so.

 

You need to complain stating that you believe such documentation exists which is undermining your position. It will then be for HR to undertake an investigation.

 

If you don't pursue this matter through the proper channels, then you could be the one on the receiving end and not your colleague.

[borisbeaver]

With regards to deleting incriminating e-mails. Any server team worth it's salt would have their e-mail server backed up.

[Sali]

Umm, if I were the manager I would be asking for an explanation of how he knew the emails existed. Just because somebody leaves themselves logged in, doesn't give you the authority to go routing through their files. I would also expect (and if I managed the systems I'd make sure of it) that there was an audit trail to show if a mailbox was accessed by someone who was not the owner. If your colleague suspects that this is what you have done, he may go looking for evidence and make his own complaint against you.

[jj69]

Thanks for the great advice.

I know that showing the emails will be counter productive as I will look in the wrong for accessing these in the first place.

I will go down the route of HR asking them to check for any material.

To be honest I have other areas in my favour such as the lack of involvement and the passing on of information from this colleague when he has been on training or recieved documentation that should be passed down to us all in the team.

I have overheard him talking to another team member about his latest training and how he will show him what is required,which appears to not involve me.

I am tempted to let them get on with it and report any lack of experience down to the fact information is only flowing one way..

 

To answer another question the person is not in a manager role.We are all tech support guys in the same role it is just this person started a few months before us and belives he is more senior and would like a team leader role...lol

Also we have no immediate bosses on site as they are based in another office in the UK.

We basically manage ourselves which is part of the problem i think.HR are on site as is our union.