I’ve posted a previous thread basically stating that I feel that I am being managed out of my previous position for no good reason.

I feel that I have found the motivation for this, a previous employee who is very good friends with one of the managers has lost her job and now looking for a new one….she used to hold my position….it turns out she has been coming in and doing some other work for her, under the radar which is not known about by the main HR department.

Thoughts? I’ve just been for an interview for another job and I feel that I might get it, I informed them as to why I wanted to leave and that they told me they would be happy if I got a reference from a previous employer. So if I do go, should I rock the boat a bit?

Make notes of everything, times, dates and details. Will come in handy later if you need it.

In the meantime, update your CV and start looking for something else. Even if they don’t get rid of you, it doesn’t sound like a good environment to be in.

good luck.

I actually can’t believe the stupidity, it’s like they’re goading me to take them to an employment tribunal. They must think I’m a **** moron or too nice. (I’m good at smiling and saying yes at work, even when I’m boiling over with rage).

I think what you’ve got there is “constructive dismissal.”

Document everything.

How long have you been in the position?

If you get offered the other job it maybe work approaching your boss and offer to be paid out as you are so hacked of with what is going on. Alternatively explain it all to HR and offer to take voluntary redundancy with no comeback on them.

If they want you out they will grab at it – you get a pay off and moved to a new job

How long have you been in the position?

This is key. it certainly sounds like constructive dismissal but payouts can be tiny if you have worked there a short time. I’d have it out with them straight and try and negotiate some exit money as a compromise agreement. ‘It seems you want me out and are trying to force me out, I would be willing to go and save you the hassle of a tribunal/court case for £xxx’ How much depends on lots of things but a month’s pay per year would be a reasonable figure.

Cougar – Moderator
I think what you’ve got there is “constructive dismissal.”

Document everything.

I’d speak to ACAS or a professional rather than take internet advice from a stranger on this.

If you’ve been in a post less than two years then you have no protection from constructive dismissal, only from discrimination on the grounds of a protected characteristic.

A tribunal is long and painful. If you have another job to go to (and sometimes even if you don’t) it’s better for you to just move on. Whatever the result of a constructive dismissal tribunal is, your employer will have an argument and that argument is going to be aimed squarely at all the reasons why you weren’t performing. It doesn’t matter whether they are justified or not in the way they prosecuted that claim, this will all come out and it won’t be pretty.

Honestly, from personal experience, I am not sure that vast majority of CD claims are at all worth it. Discrimination yes, but CD just has too much room for it actually being either your own paranoia or a justifiable dismissal.

You can try to negotiate an exit when you have something to go to, but I would be pretty surprised if you got anywhere with it. You would have to lie in order to make a good argument for them to pay you off and that’s never a good way of going about it.

Well, I told them I’m dyselxic and they have a head injured lab tech who’s been there for years who they give massive amounts of leeway.

I’m going to call in a favour with a lawyer friend from Oxford and hit the nuclear button. Tired of this now.

I’ve only been there for 6 months, as soon as the other girl who’s been coming in finished her sabbatical and came back, this started happening.

I’ve been part of an employment tribunal as a witness. The guy won his case and got a few grand compensation. The tribunal cost him £20k and he was not awarded costs. Quick note on GT’s point, CD is capped at £50k compensation, discrimintation is uncapped which is why people try this on if at all possible.

You say you’ve been there only 6 months, you’ve very few rights. I would imagine they know this either officially (ie with hr) or the manager just knows.

If the new job is better then move on. Once you have the other offer secured (ie signed) then I would approach senior management directly (with hr in attendance if you like) and explain your grievance and why you are leaving.

Good luck, don’t be bitter. Treat it as a learning experience and it doesn’t sound like the sort of place you want to stay anyway.

Sorry…

[video]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N4ODZK8J5T8[/video]

Well, I’m having my university forward on all my dyslexia documents to to the lawyer friend. I’m in the mood for a scrap now, balls to it.

Scrap is fine but get the other job offer first. You should understand your max compensation, you may be able to claim the dyslexia as a disability but do you really want to do that ?

Yes, for the hilarity factor. I have a long list of grievances as to how they handled this position, even down to how they advertised it. Yup, I’ll wait for the job offer. In the mean time I will grit my teeth, grin and pretend that I’m happy.

if you’ve only been there 6 months you’re on very thin ice IMO. what’s your probation period?

6 months. Of course I’m on thin ice, the point is that they have a severely brain damaged tech who they go out of the way to help, yet my position was an entry level position and I was never trained properly or told how long my training period would be. Along with the shit poor communication from my boss, I’ve had enough of getting it in the neck for their own inadequacies. I want to go somewhere that will actually coach/train me well and have a defined path for doing so.

Understand the anger but (having been screwed over several times at work to the point of losing my job twice) I really really recommend taking your energy and giving it to an employer who doesn’t play games with you. You’ll be much better off for it…

I hit the nuclear button, had a very solid case in terms of the dismissal action and had whistle-blowing so again uncapped damages.

The next 6 months were hell, it cost me a fortune in legal fees and whilst I ‘won’ for want of a better word only if I was properly shafted on a clear cut discrimination case would I ever go through it again.

I can’t go into detail as to exactly what happened but it ending up being the biggest shitstorm I have ever had to ride through and it nearly destroyed me mentally, physically and financially. These things consume your life and are rarely worth it.

Take the new job, leave quietly and get on with enjoying a brighter future. YMMV

If you’ve got home insurance check your policy – some cover legal fees for employment issues.

OP see what @danny said, it was a similar experience for my mate

seriously, if you do get the offer from the other job, I’d just take it & run.
The other guy is not a factor in how they’re treating you.

I once had a job that involved a 40-odd mile each way commute, but when I got there, they couldn’t spare the time to either (a) train me on the system I was supposed to be working on or (b) find me any actual work to do. Others there were kept busy enough. After 4 weeks I’d had enough; had an interview at another place, nearer to home, working on a system I already had 2 years experience of, and 25% higher salary. After another 2 weeks and a second interview the written offer arrived. I lasted all of 8 weeks at place A.
I’m still at place B, 14 years on.

Life’s too short

The other guy is not a factor in how they’re treating you.

I beg to differ, they don’t have time to train me so I figure they’ve decided to take that person back. But yes, I will run as the other place has a much higher reputation than where I am now. And by that, I mean there are only a handful of labs in the country that can compete with it.

I beg to differ, they don’t have time to train me so I figure they’ve decided to take that person back

I meant the guy with the brain injury

Oh yeah that, no that’s just evidence that they treat people unfairly within the department as the boss has tried to accuse me of not being able to follow written or verbal instructions. I have counter evidence showing that she cannot give clear written instructions and has then blamed me on numerous occassion for carrying out those instructions in a way that was counter to what she thought she wrote. So I’m going to then make the point that I’ve told them I’m dyslexic and that they treat the technician completely differently – which is against the law, if they can make room for her head injury but not make room for my so called “inability to follow poor instructions” then they are on thin ice.

@Tom – its not worth all this negative energy (been there done that), we are all trying to get this point across. It doesn’t really matter if you are right or not, its not worth it.

Yeah, I guess. Sorry, ranting over. I was going a bit cross eyed. Cheers jam!