flexible working, appeals and control freak boss

[weeonion]

hi folks.

a long long story - it has lasted over 6 mths now trying to get my request for flexible work sorted so - to cut it short.
I live in glasgow, work in edinburgh. 2.5 hrs commute each way. the times i leave / return home dont correspond with dd's nursery times. boss = control freak with whom have had many many run ins in the past. my mat cover ( my assistant) handed in notice as couldnt work with him during my mat leave.

currently off on sick leave - have had AND & PND. due to go back on 14th april.

sorting out annual leave with boss - asked to have every monday off for 11 weeks when i returned to work. boss granted request.

made a request for flexible working with start dates clearly outlined, boss said no.
i lodged an appeal, sat in front of appeals panel and won. i said it was a hollow victory as boss was not happy that his decision was overturned.
appeals panel said on 15th Feb that flexible working was for a trial 3 months and boss and I to sort out start date and assessment criteria.
heard nought from boss so badgered him asking how we were gonna sort this criteria etc out. heard nothing.
boss emailed last week to say that as I am to have mondays off, the trial period cannot start until i am back in the office full time, after the 11 weeks.

my unworkable situation that meant i asked for flexible working has not changed.

in communication he keeps changing reasons, dates decisions reached, who were involved etc etc.
bottom line for me is that - i made a request and then won the appeal. i did not change the request and thought if my appeal was granted - it was on teh original request - not on something new with changed dates.

i need further advice on what the heck i am going to do. where could i go to for more advice - CAB?
any ideas??

[pinkteddy]

I think you might need to take out a grievance. Few things to consider - who was on your appeal panel, can you write to the chair asking for clarification? Do you have a HR department? What is your grievance procedure? Some helpful information here (you need to scroll right down to the section about appealing and problems) flexible working

[flowerybeanbag]

What was your flexible working request actually for? Do you really need every Monday off for 11 weeks as well as whatever the flexible working arrangement is?

It sounds as though your boss is a complete nightmare, I agree. I find it surprising that when the appeal panel decided that your flexible working request should be agreed, the start date was not agreed at that point.

Have you actually had a meeting with your boss, with all the information in front of you both, details of the original request, the (matching) appeal request and the ruling of the appeal panel? It seems to me that a discussion rather than back and forth you chasing him and him faffing about and putting you off with wrong dates and irrelevant details is what's needed.

Do you have an HR department, and have you asked them for advice? My suggestion would be to contact them, or possibly whoever was in charge of the appeal panel, say that following your successful appeal, you are finding it impossible to implement your flexible working arrangement and would like to set up a meeting between you, your boss, an HR person and/or whoever, to iron out remaining difficulties.

I don't think your boss is in the right, but I do have a some sympathy for him with the holiday thing I'm afraid. Agreeing to one day off a week for 11 weeks is a pretty significant chunk of time and if your actual flexible working request involves a further reduction of hours, as it usually does, then it won't really be truly representative of how it would work under normal circumstances. Is there any way you could compromise on this, not have every single Monday off, for example?

[weeonion]

my flexible working request was that i be based in glasgow 2 days / week. there is no reduction or change to hours.
I have asked to meet with him but he says that as i am on sick leave - it will have to wait until I am back in the office.
i would be willing to discuss the AL and change it but he has also now said that I am to lose the 24days AL from last year as i have been on sick leave.
we dont have an HR dept - a small charity with a Board of Directors. All Board members are personal friends of his - in teh past when there have been staff issues - they have backed him, after he has done his lobbying (by his own admission!)

TBH - in the next 2 weeks i dont know what i will do. i simply cannot get dd to/ from nursery as i have to leave home at 6.00am to make it to work on time.

[flowerybeanbag]

sorry weeonion have to go but will come back tomorrow am and respond

[pinkteddy]

I don't really understand what your request was - did you request to work from a different office 2 days a week?
Agree with flowery about contacting whoever was in charge of the appeal panel to say that you are finding it impossible to implement your flexible working arrangement in spite of your successful appeal. That was what I was trying to get at when I said to contact the chair in my rushed response earlier!

[NorthernLurker]

You can't lose your a/l because you've been off sick surely? What about if you take all that a/l in a block - so 5 weeks - takes you up to mid/end of May doesn't it - and then started back fulltime but with the flexible arrangement as agreed? What a nightmare you're having - I do sympathise - my return to work isn't exactly full of singing birds and fluffy bunnies either &

[weeonion]

pink teddy - i work in edinburgh. in my request i asked to be based in glsgow on a thursday and friday so i can do nursery drop off / pick up. he turned this request down so i went for an appeal. it was granted.
Prior to this the annual leave one day was agreed by him.

there has been no discussion with me re the annual leave and it being a condition of the flexible working, until now.

what bugs me is that the appeal committee granted my appeal. now when it comes to implementing it - he has decided that it cannot happen until the arrangement re annual leave is finished. in communication - the appeals committee said the start date and criteria for the trial period were to be agreed between him and me.
now he says that they have agreed it and have set the criteria. i have not been informed of any of this and this is contrary to what they said in the only communication i received almost 2 months ago.

the unworkable situation that i needed the flexible working for still exists re childcare. the flexible working would have resolved this. i have now 3 months of the unworkable situation to manage until the flexible working starts. i can see no way out of this than to resign, with no job to go to.

he is our human resources dept, in fact everything in the office to do with personnel. if i take out a grievance - it will be him i have to go through, even though he is hte one i will be taking it out against. even if i do take a grievance - i still will have to leave as i have noone to do the nursery run. i feel he has forced my hand, and has got the result he wanted in turning down my original request.

arghhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh

[flowerybeanbag]

You need to make contact with the appeal committee urgently to discuss this situation, if something has been agreed it should have been notified to you.

Regarding taking out a grievance, you will not have to go through him, that would be completely inappropriate. You would raise a grievance with whoever his boss is. Obviously normally whoever is responsible for HR would assist, advise on process etc, but under no circumstances would you raise a grievance about someone with them. Whether your grievance procedure says they should be raised with him is irrelevant, in the case where a grievance is about him, it should be raised with someone more senior.

What's the deal with your holiday, losing last year's entitlement? Were you off sick the entire year, or on maternity leave? If someone's off long-term sick the jury is still out about whether they continue to accrue holiday, but it's different with maternity leave.

[weeonion]

good morning FBB.

i have been on mat leave from April last year. It ended early jan with me using annual leave to the beginning of Feb and have been on sick leave since. he says that as i was on sick leave - i cannot carry over to this year that i accrued whilst on mat leave.

thanks for this folks. i do appreciate this.
it has been a nightmare for teh past 6 months. i really dont feel that what i have asked for has been unjust. he knows that i work so hard for my project and have always had glowing reports broke back to the project. i have never taken sick leave before, do hours way above my contract, meet all deadlines etc etc. i am so committed to my work and hate the thought that i may have to leave. It really hasnt helped the PND - i probably feel as low now as i ever did. i didnt want to go back to work on a low ebb.

[flowerybeanbag]

What is your holiday year? If it's Jan - Dec and it had been agreed that you could carry forward last year's entitlement, some of which you presumably used Jan - Feb this year when you were 'back' from mat leave, then you ought to keep it, unless a condition of it was that you were to take it by a certain time?

Your request has been agreed, focus on that, it means that what you want is definitely not unreasonable or unjust. Sorry to hear you are feeling so low about it. Do try talking to the appeal panel/someone senior about getting this sorted. It sounds as though they wouldn't want to lose you.

[pinkteddy]

Even if he is the most senior member of the charity there must be a Chair and/or Trustees? Usually a grievance against Chief Exec of a small charity would be dealt with by Chair and Trustees. Do not resign at least make sure you have exhausted all other channels first.

[weeonion]

thanks pinnkteddy.. i have just been speaking to ACAS who also suggested i speak to the CEHR. very helpful.

i emailed boss askignto check copy of grievnace procedure. he emailed back to say that he wont be in the office til late next week so i cant have a copy til then

[flowerybeanbag]

weeonion if you want to raise a grievance do so, write to this person's boss, whoever that person is. The grievance procedure might tell you who'll deal with it, timescales etc, but nothing stopping you putting it in. Otherwise your boss is again able to delay things.