My daughters employer is bullying her.

[Janice1]

Hello, my daughter recently started a new job (5th Nov) however all is not well. She has become quiet and subdued because although she needs the job she is being bullied (Imo) by a manager. In short, she was told to report to work half an hour early for a week for training, she was told this was not optional and that she would not be paid for the extra time, she was advised by another worker not to ask for payment for the extra time because she would be sacked. She has been told she must be available on facebook in the evenings in order to receive any instructions for work the following day. A few days ago the manager said my daughters results were not good enough and she was removed from her colleauges and put in a room on her own for the day, she works in telesales by the way.

 

There's more but I'll leave it there, I don't want to bore anyone. I suspect when lots of people are unemployed it's easy times for bad employers. I just wondered if anyone had any thoughts or advice, I'm getting quite upset about her situation myself.

 

Thanks in anticipation.

[citizenB]

Does she have a contract ?

[becky2585]

The best advice for her here is to resign and find a job elsewhere!

[Janice1]

Does she have a contract ?

 

She signed a contract on her first day but was not given a copy, I have told her to ask for a copy but I think she finds it difficult to stand up to her manager.

[Janice1]

The best advice for her here is to resign and find a job elsewhere!

 

I agree but easier said than done.

[becky2585]

I agree but easier said than done.

 

Okay, so what is it you both want out of the situation?

[LaughingGirl]

The best advice for her here is to resign and find a job elsewhere!

 

I hate saying it, but this is the truth - she's got no real rights until she's been employed for two years, unless she's been the victim of discrimination. Getting into a protracted battle with her boss about working conditions won't really get her anywhere I'm afraid.

 

At this point, I'd concentrate on getting a good reference and getting out of there.

[citizenB]

She signed a contract on her first day but was not given a copy, I have told her to ask for a copy but I think she finds it difficult to stand up to her manager.

 

Hmm, I think this is where you are going to have some problems then. It is a dog eat dog world in employment at the moment. Perhaps it would be good for your daughter to enrol in some confidence building classes/groups otherwise I can see this escalating wherever she works.

 

I cannot believe that any employer can force her to be on Face book for instructions for work the following day ?

[altobelli]

Its not so easy to resign and get another job in the current market. By all means your daughter should look for another job, but I wouldn't resign from the current one yet.

 

The best way to deal with a bully is to stand up to them. Removing your daughter and putting her in a room by herself and asking her to be available on Facebook in the evenings is unacceptable. She should send an email to the manager in the first instance raising these issues and requesting that they cease. She should stress that she wants to do as well as possible in the job, but that she considers the manager's behaviour bullying. If this doesn't change things then involve a senior manager. If you consider what is happening to be discrimination then mention this, likewise if your daughter is being caused stress then mention this too.

 

Is the manager male or female? Are male staff treated in the same way as your daughter?

[steampowered]

I think a good strategy would be for your daughter to concentrate on building good relationships with the other employees. Your daughter is not alone here and she should make a real effort to talk to the other employees. They will be able to give her advice on the best way to deal with this manager, and act as a support network as they are all in it together. The facebook thing is a really unusual request, ask the other employees what they do.

 

In the meantime, search for another job.

[altobelli]

I agree with the last post, although the bullying manager is making this difficult by excluding your daughter from the other employees.

 

But even if your daughter does get another job, be sure and complain about this manager. It might stop the same thing from happening to someone else.

[san_d]

What about raising a formal grievance? In case she loses her job she can prove it wasn't her fault.

 

And by the way telesales is not a proper job. Don't expect any human rights form these clowns.

[Janice1]

Thanks for the input/advice. Essentially I think my daughter has two choices, and I don't particularly like either of them:

 

a. Shut up and put up with it, or

 

b. Leave.

 

I suppose high unemployment has always made it easy for bad employers.

 

Thanks again.

[assisted blonde]

san-D telesales is not a proper job? of course it is and there are many reputable companies around.

 

Just a quick question for the OP is this your daughters 1st job ? as it may be that part of her problem is settling in to a working environment.

[altobelli]

Janice, your daughter doesn't have to put up with what is happening. Requests like coming in half an hour early for unpaid training, working away from the rest of the team, and being available on Facebook in the evenings are not part of a normal working enviroment and could be construed as bullying. I wouldn't say that telesales is not a proper job, but telesales companies are notorious for providing very poor working conditions, such as those you describe your daughter having to endure. I would say approach the manager in the first instance, but don't be afraid to escalate the matter, perhaps it will turn out that the manager is a known bully.

 

You're right, the current job market allow bad managers/bullies to get away with a lot, a situation which has been made worse by recent changes to employment tribunal rules. This means that if your daughter leaves or is sacked she can't claim for unfair dismissal (this rule is particularly unfair on women, who are statistically more likely to have been employed for a shorter period of time). But you can still claim for stress or, if your daughter is being treated differently because of her gender, discrimination.

[altobelli]

The following link gives details of typical bullying problems experienced in call centres:

 

http://www.bullyonline.org/related/callcntr.htm

[dreadpiratesteve]

Is she friends with anyone that works there that are on Facebook? If so, I would remove them, including her manager. I would also advise checking her profile settings and make sure it is set to Friends Only.

 

Facebook should be a private thing IMO and not business related, unless you want it to be (and usually set up as a new profile). Just ensure she doesn't post anything about her job in the meantime!