another work problem

[vorticella]

Hi all

 

I wonder if you could give me some friendly advice . I have been working for a company for two years ,not that happy there but these days a job is valuable to anyone.

 

I get on well with the staff I work with or thought I did and until recently I have never had a day sick in two years. A few weeks ago I informed the company reluctantly that I may be off work due to a health problem which is getting worse and needing a major operation in the near future. The company were sympathetic I felt.

 

Anyway I came into work on Monday [just gone]. The next thing my colleague [a professional] who I book appointments for calls me and asks me to look a client up , at this stage I could tell by her nasty tone that something was up.

 

Basically she accused me of favouring another colleague and booking appointments for the former to earn large amounts of commission she told me she couldn't afford someone like me [she isn't my boss]. I saw on the system that someone else had moved the appointment in question but failed in trying to reason with this person ..she started shouting at me and also had another person with her who she tried to draw into the conversation. I ended up putting the phone down on her in tears as she wouldn't listen and I was so shocked at the allegations I couldn't think straight.

 

I called HR straight away and told them what had happened and that I was so upset I was going home,They seemed very keen for me to go home as they knew I was going to take sick leave anyway.

 

Once home I wrote HR an email detailing what went on and how I felt this behaviour is totally unaccaptable and that I want to know what I'm being accused of exactly .I got an email saying they would pass the comments on to my line manager..so far I haven't had as much as an aknowledgement which is making me feel hurt and angry .

So here I am on the sick waiting to see a consultant worrying about that and the fact that if i'm ever well enough to work I will be too scared to walk in the place because I maybe intimidated and verbally accused again.[this person has made nasty comments before,gloated because she says someone once left after she shouted at them and is accussing another colleague of stealing though the poor girl doesn't know it ]

Where do I go from here ? should I now write a formal letter to the company inviting them to comment on this incident ? I dont know the company policy for formal grievance as its on their internal system. I was actually stupid enough to think this person might appologise.

 

It could be that i may lose the job eventually anyway depending on how quickly i can recover from the operation but I want to try and do something as I think hard as it is you have to stand up to a bully.

[beachblue23]

how long ago did you send the complaint? if its recent it may still be being dealt with after bank holidays etc. If it was a while ago I would contact them again just to try and get some follow up and then go down the grievance stage. You don't need this kind of stress, certainly sounds like theres a few not so nice people working there

[vorticella]

Thanks for replying!

 

It was Monday morning it happened and I think it was easier for them to tell me to go home than deal with it.

 

What I dont want is for them to try and pass this off as part of me feeling ill and not thinking straight!

 

It's a horrid place to work a good friend got a job in the head office next door to where I work,she lasted two days !

 

Do I have to put a grievance in according to their company policy or is it enough to state that it's a formal grievance.

[beachblue23]

Personally I would try to keep to company policy as much as possible, its a tough thing to do when you still work somewhere and your sending a grievance. But if that doesn get you anywhere I'd do what ever you can to get your self heard

[assisted blonde]

You told HR you were going home not they told you to go home. I understand you were upset and the other person shouldnt have shouted, but was it really necessary to go home, a bit of fresh air, a complaint to HR and a request for an apology might have been better than going sick.

I dont know if a formal grievence is the right way to handle this or not I suppose it depends what you want out of the procedure, is it just an apology, do you want this other person to face a disiplinary?

[vorticella]

.

Thanks the problem is sorted now:-D

Edited June 10, 2012 by vorticella
delete post

[vorticella]

The problem is sorted and to the last poster I was due to go on the sick ,I was told to stay off by HR and was paid for it as i think they had problems with this person and wanted me off the scene ..I didnt go on the sick because of that it ran into my sick leave. However I am allowed to walk out of any job if i feel ill and insulted and abused and there is nobody there to help me ..it isnt an issue anymore anyway because due to illness and needing a large operation it's unlikely I shall be able to return [i have planned for this financially so wont be relying on benefits ] .

Edited June 10, 2012 by vorticella

[ScarletPimpernel]

No-one has judged you, though you appear to have been very quick to judge Assisted Blonde.

 

Civility to all, please.

[moll 61]

Having read the vast amount of threads on here, the majority are concerning bullying in the work place, it makes you wonder what sort of lives these bullies have outside of work, I know the few bullies where I work have very little in the way of social lives. Perhaps they were bullied themselves. With the help from the Caggers here more and more people should stand up to the bullies in their workplace, it makes life intoloerable for people who have to enter the work place with fear in their hearts. Only a minute amount of bullying cases are on here, just imagine how many there are in workplaces around the country. In a former life I was a Prison officer and saw bullying by inmates on inmates, staff on inmates and management on staff for the first 10 years i accepted it happens, for the last 10 years I didnt tolerate it at all in any of the aformentioned ways. We all know that Managers will stand by their colleagues which make many victims feel they cannot challenge. well you can, just be brave seek good advice and meet them head on.... rant over

[vorticella]

Very well said moll:-) and I hope you feel better for the rant.Yes your right.. my friend lasted just two days at the company after she picked up some very unfriendly vibes and a couple of sarcastic remarks on the second day .She bid me fairwell and I dont think understood how I managed to work there.I do know that she really needed the money too but said no amount of money was worth putting up with that place. They pay minimum wage and want skills that go far beyond unskilled labour and as for stress well thats another story. I think most of the bullying and bitterness in my work place comes from resentment ..most of the staff are paid a pittance for doing a good job yet we see the managing directors and company owner turn up in a different classic car every day. ...and of course we have to dance to their tune ..I take nothing to work but a plain cheese sandwich cause one of the directors hates food smells in the building and hits the roof if you dare make toast as it lowers the tone of the place ..I have to go to the bank in my lunch break..I have been told that it's not my job yet someone has to do it or I cant do my job, once i got into big trouble as I left my desk and shut the front door just for a min to go to the bank[at this point i was think why should i miss my lunch break to go to the bank i shall do it now] ..well i got back and a collegue from upstairs was sitting in my chair shaking ..he told me never ever to do that again as they had been looking for me and my head would roll if a certain director saw me missing!..the biggest thing this job has taught me is that if you have plenty of money you may as well be a God and people are too scared to challenge you.