Constructive dismissal

[bluetack]

Something very serious is about to happen for my husband with his employment and we really need some advise.

He has worked for a large, high profile company for 10 years now and loves his job. He has never taken time off sick apart from the odd day, no more than 10 days in the whole 10 years and has never had any work issues such as any disciplinary action etc.

 

 

Everything was fine until about five months ago when the company brought in a new manager for the sales team and my husbands position was altered. He took on his new role and performed well. There were rumours that this new boss wanted to replace the sales team - he wanted to bring in people he had previously worked with. Anyway, he started to micro manage, picking holes in everything my husband did and making his life unbearable. Things came to a head at the beginning of December when my husband had lost so much sleep with worry that he had to see his doctor, he was signed off for two weeks with work related stress. On Friday 18th Dec he was called into the office for a meeting with this manager. A member of HR was present to take notes. He was basically told that the company didn't think that he could handle his job anymore and that they were going to put together a severance package to pay him off and that he would have 10 days to accept. They said that if he refused the package he could still return to work but not in the same roll.

We believe that the offer will be very small so that it will be rejected forcing my husband to accept another roll within the company but in the same team, in other words he will still have the same boss who we think will then start disciplinary procedures which will lead to the dismissal he wants.

My husband is nearly 60 so will find it almost impossible to get another job, especially with this type of thing on record. We thought he'd be with this company until retirement.

 

 

I think my husband needs to see a solicitor but he is reluctant to spend any money knowing he'll soon be out of work.

I don't know very much about this sort of thing but it sounds like constructive dismissal to me, can anyone help please?

[unclebulgaria67]

Something very serious is about to happen for my husband with his employment and we really need some advise.

He has worked for a large, high profile company for 10 years now and loves his job. He has never taken time off sick apart from the odd day, no more than 10 days in the whole 10 years and has never had any work issues such as any disciplinary action etc.

 

 

Everything was fine until about five months ago when the company brought in a new manager for the sales team and my husbands position was altered. He took on his new role and performed well. There were rumours that this new boss wanted to replace the sales team - he wanted to bring in people he had previously worked with. Anyway, he started to micro manage, picking holes in everything my husband did and making his life unbearable. Things came to a head at the beginning of December when my husband had lost so much sleep with worry that he had to see his doctor, he was signed off for two weeks with work related stress. On Friday 18th Dec he was called into the office for a meeting with this manager. A member of HR was present to take notes. He was basically told that the company didn't think that he could handle his job anymore and that they were going to put together a severance package to pay him off and that he would have 10 days to accept. They said that if he refused the package he could still return to work but not in the same roll.

We believe that the offer will be very small so that it will be rejected forcing my husband to accept another roll within the company but in the same team, in other words he will still have the same boss who we think will then start disciplinary procedures which will lead to the dismissal he wants.

My husband is nearly 60 so will find it almost impossible to get another job, especially with this type of thing on record. We thought he'd be with this company until retirement.

 

 

I think my husband needs to see a solicitor but he is reluctant to spend any money knowing he'll soon be out of work.

I don't know very much about this sort of thing but it sounds like constructive dismissal to me, can anyone help please?

 

Best advice is to get hold of all paperwork regarding the role he is performing and all the performance stats. Go through his targets for the year and what performance he has to deliver, to see whether he is performing the role to the level expected by the company. If he is doing so, it would be difficult for the company to argue that he was under performing and therefore not be suitable for the role he is employed for.

 

Suggest that he takes a trusted colleague with him to any meetings for note taking and any advice. Don't let the company railroad him into a less well played role. He should also request a full copy of the companies HR handbook on such disciplinary issues and ensure that there is a full written record of all meetings. No meetings without a full minutes being taken, which your husband should be given a copy to sign to confirm accuracy.

 

If he visits the ACAS site, there is plenty of useful info and they have a helpline.

[donarebun]

 

 

I think my husband needs to see a solicitor but he is reluctant to spend any money knowing he'll soon be out of work.

I don't know very much about this sort of thing but it sounds like constructive dismissal to me, can anyone help please?

 

One your husband can talk to the Citizens Advice Bureau, they offer free advice but I don't think it will be very detailed

 

Two, there are a lot of organizations offering pro-bono services he could speak to one or two of them.

 

Three and my favourite, and this is what I do most of the time, he could speak (on an informal basis) to several solicitors and they will give him little advice and tips. (Solicitors offer free 30mins discussions initially)

 

Finally there are a lot of no win no fee employment lawyers but I don't think they will want to represent him at this stage.

 

Constructive Dismissal is when a person is forced to resign because of the behaviour of his/her employer. I wouldn't advice it at all since it is very difficult to prove.

 

Your husband has a lot going for him since he has been with the company for 10 years.

 

He could get in touch with ACAS to resolve issues but again I don't think your husband does a lot of research into his legal right and so they might be able to wriggle themselves out of it.

 

So my advice is this: He should do his research, ask a lot of question to legal people and finally talk to ACAS.

[donarebun]

 

I think my husband needs to see a solicitor but he is reluctant to spend any money knowing he'll soon be out of work.

 

I did a little bit of research after my last post and found out that the Employer have to pay for the employee's solicitor in a Settlement Agreement (the new name for Severance Package).

 

Please do your research and you will find a lot in your husband favour. He has 10 years and that is a lot.

 

I don't think I'm allowed to post link to other website but if the moderator agrees I will send the link.

[becky2585]

Hi bluetack,

 

It sounds as though the employer has exercised their right to have a protected conversation (or confidential conversation) with your husband. That being the case, you can't mount a constructive dismissal case on the back of that conversation, as its inadmissible in court (except in exceptional circumstances).

 

Pragmatically speaking, if your husband can negotiate an agreeable severance package, it could at least serve to alleviate his stress. If he can't, then he would have to go back and attempt to do the adapted job, and potentially face tribunal litigation if he is unfairly dismissed on capability grounds in the future (which would take 3-6 months).

 

The other point is that a basic contribution towards legal advice on a settlement agreement won't usually cover advice on the value of any potential claims (or sometimes even whether the deal is reasonable). If your husband does want to leave, it could be wise to instruct a solicitor to negotiate on the settlement agreement and try to increase the package on offer.