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Work

I whistleblew at work and now I'm being bullied for it

42 replies

wearenevergettingbacktogether · 03/03/2019 11:12

Long story short, my line manager was misappropriating funds and I raised this with our board of directors, who basically didn't do anything about it until I whistleblew officially.

LM was investigated, is now gone and my 'allegations' have been proved correct.

The problem is, I appear to have upset the board of directors by making them aware of something they should have had oversight of themselves, and by pushing the issue when it looked like they were going to bury it.

I am v v junior and I think I have upset some egos. I am now being treated differently to my colleagues at work - attacked during a team meeting and I've been told emails are going round about how to punish me for whistleblowing (I've put in a subject access request for the emails).

I've now raised a formal grievance, although I'm not hopeful it will solve anything. I've evidence of being punished for whistleblowing and I know I could take this to a tribunal but have to sit out this grievance process first.

Any tips? My house insurance has family legal cover and I'm waiting to hear back about that so a little bit in limbo at the moment.

OP posts:

Report

iklboo · 03/03/2019 11:22

There is some guidance HERE.

Contact ACAS as well for advice. Good luck.

wearenevergettingbacktogether · 03/03/2019 11:24

Thanks iklboo, I spoke to ACAS and they advised me to do the formal grievance process first so Im a bit stuck waiting for that to go through. It's all quite tense, really. I wish i didn't have to go back.

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EvaHarknessRose · 03/03/2019 11:58

You should be proud of yourself for doing the right thing. Most people don't. Stay professional and look after your stress and mental health. This process will move on and you can hopefully put this behind you in a new job in due course, when you are ready and not because of bullying. Maybe you will gain some allies there.

wearenevergettingbacktogether · 03/03/2019 14:22

Thank you Eva, I feel completely burned out by this. I've been off with stress and come back to more bullying

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Tomtontom · 03/03/2019 14:26

How long have you worked there?

You do have legal protections for persecution as a result of bullying, but whether you have the strength to go down that route is another thing.

Have you looked at other jobs? You shouldn't have to leave, but you do need to look after your own health and sometimes walking away is the only way to do that.

wearenevergettingbacktogether · 03/03/2019 14:32

Five years, I've looked at other jobs but right now isn't the time for me to change - I've stuck with this job because of the flexibility it offers me as I have other (caring) responsibilities. So finding one on the same terms will be difficult.

I'm not going to walk away. I'm going to fight them.

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Tomtontom · 03/03/2019 14:37

If you've been off with stress then you're not winning the fight.

Are you in a union? They can support you.

wearenevergettingbacktogether · 03/03/2019 14:45

Tomtontom Sun 03-Mar-19 14:37:39
If you've been off with stress then you're not winning the fight.

Sorry, this isn't the kind of advice I'm looking for.

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wearenevergettingbacktogether · 03/03/2019 14:46

I don't mean to be prickly but I've had weeks of being bullied over this and forcing me to walk away with nothing is exactly what the bullies want to achieve.

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wearenevergettingbacktogether · 03/03/2019 14:51

And no, getting another job right now, with a child in and out of hospital and not likely to improve for 6 months and having the stress of having to be the new person somewhere else and get to know a brand new job is not an option for me right now.

Trying to find a new job in my current circumstances is going to cause me much more stress than letting a solicitor fight this for me.

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Sardonicsnape · 03/03/2019 14:54

hang in there, whistleblowing is such a hard thing to do and I admire you having the guts to do it. Sounds like you're doing the right thing.

whatifI · 03/03/2019 14:57

Are you in a union? They can support you.

^
This
If you are with a union, contact them asap

wearenevergettingbacktogether · 03/03/2019 14:59

Are you in a union? They can support you.

^
This
If you are with a union, contact them asap

Sadly not.

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iklboo · 03/03/2019 16:16

I don't think there's anything to stop you joining one now to ask for help and advice.

wearenevergettingbacktogether · 03/03/2019 16:33

Thanks Iklboo, I've tried them. They won't hep with any pre-existing issues.

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iklboo · 03/03/2019 16:39

That's a shame. I wonder if there are any other advocacy services. Maybe THIS?

wearenevergettingbacktogether · 03/03/2019 17:01

Iklboo that one looks good, thank you, I'll try them tomorrow.

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neverknowinglynormal · 03/03/2019 20:27

I did a tribunal while remaining in the job, not for whistleblowing but similar - victimised for complaining about being discriminated against. I also did it through household insurance, the legal cover thing, and they have been amazing. You need to call them now though so that they can guide you through what to do next in case you need to bring a claim.

I felt like you: refused to be bullied out. Has been (and still is) very hard but felt unfair for me to lose my job when I had done nothing wrong.

Good luck, and call insurance people tomorrow.

wearenevergettingbacktogether · 03/03/2019 20:53

Thank you neverknowingly.

Can I ask, is your tribunal over now? Did you win?

I spoke to the house insurance people yesterday and I have to wait 5-7 days for them to get back to me to confirm that they cover this kind of case. We have family legal cover with Legal and General and our policy states we are covered up to 50k and this includes on employment contracts so I am hopeful that I should be covered, but the delay in finding out for sure is stressful.

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neverknowinglynormal · 03/03/2019 21:09

I had two hearings and part-won both. Waiting for remedy hearing now. It's taken years, unfortunately.

My insurance company had to assess the case and see if there was 51% chance or more of success before they'd fund it, but they have been fantastic once it was accepted.

wearenevergettingbacktogether · 03/03/2019 21:19

That sounds really stressful neverknowingly, I'm sorry.

How long did it take for the insurance company to assess your case? I'm fairly certain they'd assess me as having over 51% of winning as I have witness statements and emails to evidence the things they've said to / about me.

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AuditAngel · 03/03/2019 21:39

You haven’t mentioned the industry tha5 you work in, there may be a reason for this.

Do you have a copy of your employer’s whistleblowing policy?

Sadly many are weak, including my employers. I am concerned for someone who blew the whistle on their boss within my firm. I am also in the process of monitoring a potential problem

wearenevergettingbacktogether · 03/03/2019 21:40

I do have a copy of the whistleblowing policy, yes. It mentions the PIDA and that bullying and harassment will not be tolerated.

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wearenevergettingbacktogether · 03/03/2019 21:54

Our whistleblowing officer is in my grievance.

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neverknowinglynormal · 03/03/2019 22:10

It didn't take long once they had all the documents. Less than a week, I reckon, with a few long phone calls first.

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