Work harassing me while on maternity leave

[Lilannii]

I found out I was pregnant April last year and after asking the home I work in to put me down for shorter shifts was declined I took my maternity leave ASAP. Since then they have made a list of bank staff and text them with available shifts for the week, but it's every single day. My little one is 5 months old now and these bloody texts keep waking him up! I shouldn't have to silence my phone all day every day. I never opted to be on this list, I even told them late December I had quit. I get about 8 texts a day, I have called them twice last week, the first time the person in charge was supposed to call me back and never did and the second time the receptionist was supposed to pass a message on, I have called them this morning and am waiting again for the person in charge of the list to phone me back. Does this constitute harrassment?? What can I do about this? It's driving me nuts. Especially when little man has been ill and only just drifted off to sleep them to be woken by work texting

[DottyDooRidesAgain]

Silthy really.

This is not targeted harassment.

This is not a member of management purposefully sending the texts to annoy this one person. It is an automated system.
It's not even like the texts are addressed to her specifically (which could be classed as harassment). They are blanket texts sent out to many people.

Annoying yes.
Harassment no.

The OP could solve this issue by blocking a number she no longer needs as she no longer works there.
But no, instead she is choosing to continuously whinge about it, allow it to disturb her babies sleep all because she wants to build a case.

A case for what I ask you?

[StillFrigginRexManningDay]

THE NEXT STEP IS TO WRITE A FRIGGING LETTER AND BLOCK THE FRIGGING NUMBER.

Christ on a bike do we need to sing it to you.

[slithytove]

lila

I don't think you are wrong or bu.

Call acas, stick it in a formal complaint letter, and go from there. I'm sure that is all it will take.

I would also formally resign just in case. Though I would assume if you are still employed, NI would be getting paid still so I would guess you aren't and it's some sort of admin breakdown.

still it is like any situation where person A is in the wrong, and person B can take steps to stop it but why should they? OP doesn't want to block the texts because she wants to see if and in what quantity they continue. And I agree, the company are in the wrong.

[slithytove]

dotty it doesn't have to be targeted.

There are strict guidelines on the contacting of an employee during maternity leave, the fact that she is being contacted regarding working shifts makes it even more unacceptable.

It doesn't matter that it is just an admin error. It's not like normal harassment under the eyes of the law. It is specific to maternity leave.

[Lilannii]

Slithytove thank you!!! That's exactly my point, everything you have just said is what I mean, I am awful at explaining things. I'm not after money.

[StillFrigginRexManningDay]

They will continue because they probably don't realise her number is on there ffs.

[slithytove]

www.advicenow.org.uk/advicenow-guides/work/maternity-paternity-adoption-leave-and-pay/while-you-are-on-leave,10192,FP.html

"Your boss has no right to ask you to work during maternity leave"

And it is worthy of a formal complaint. It is not fair for someone on mat leave to be reminded of work 10 times a day.

I'm surprised OP has been jumped on the way she has. She needs to sort the issue with the company (which it sounds like she will) rather than brush over the problem by blocking the number.

[StillFrigginRexManningDay]

Hes/Shes not her boss, she resigned.

[hobblebobble]

Email them, write if you want to. Call and ask for the person in charge if the text service. Put phone on different setting and move on. If there are issues from before June then sort them out too.
There is no case to build but a lot of harm for all can be done if people on mat leave create issues by not just being reasonable and sorting out mid communications. It gives everyone else a bad reputation.

[StillFrigginRexManningDay]

She can sort the issue by writing a letter.

[DottyDooRidesAgain]

There you go OP.

Slithy has given you the advice you wanted.
Build your case for harassment. Continue to have your baby's sleep disturbed it doesn't matter as long as your right and you build your case .

I'm done with this thread it has gone passed funny and in to ridiculous. Fuelled by further ridiculous.

[slithytove]

Write the frigging letter and write a frigging resignation letter too but don't block the frigging number because you want to know that it has stopped

Easy peasy and I'm sure it will stop with a polite request and gentle complaint that it is not acceptable while on maternity.

[EarthWindFire]

Write to your employer, formally resign and get them to remove the number. Why does it need to involve unions?

In my mind if the OP in the mean time is unwilling to block/silence her phone then it can't be disturbing jet DC that much.

[Boudica1990]

OP has resigned, she receives maternity allowance.

So her ex employers are more like a nuisance company not her employers, they aren't contacting her on maternity leave. No case.

[EarthWindFire]

Her not jet

[slithytove]

It's not ridiculous to have your facts straight before putting in a complaint or a grievance. Which is all building a case really is.

E.g. I was contacted on x dates x number of times. So simple. And the reason behind it is to prevent it happening any more and prevent it happening again - the company's admin procedures should be better.

[MiscellaneousAssortment]

Err, she's not covered by maternity leave laws as she's not on maternity leave - she said she resigned.

[slithytove]

OP is unsure whether the resignation was accepted as she is still receiving payslips hence why I put that direct quote from the website.

No one has mentioned a union to my knowledge, acas just give more specialised advice than Aibu I think

[DottyDooRidesAgain]

She no longer works there so why the hell won't she block the number?

This would solve the immediate issue.

Then she can write a formal resignation and asked to be removed from the mailing list. Easy.

No need for formal grievances just simple bloody common sense.

*Disclaimer I know I sad I was leaving but I cannot believe some folk are so stupidly bloody minded.

[flowery]

Slithy the advice on that link is out of date and in several places, simply inaccurate. Including your quote that bosses have "no right to ask you to work during maternity leave". That's just not the case. They can ask, the employee can say no.

Being placed in error on an automated text list for a couple of weeks is not harassment. There are no "strict guidelines" on contacting employees on maternity leave, and in any case the OP isn't on maternity leave. How much or what kind of contact is appropriate varies so much that strict guidelines wouldn't be practical. Some employees want no contact at all, some would be offended if they didn't hear from their employer a lot and would complain about being left out or ignored.

Yes, if contact was inappropriate, and persisted despite requests to stop, that might be unlawful, but the OP hasn't even properly requested to be removed from the database yet and she's talking about building a case. Unless there is way way (way) more to this, that's a disproportionate reaction.

[DottyDooRidesAgain]

said

[glasgowstevenagain]

Squiggly squid, there is nothing wrong with my mentality. The whole point of this post was to find out how I can take the next step as contacting them myself clearly is not effective. I am a bloody good mother to my son, and not a toxic mother. I have the advice I was after so why bring my parenting skills into question too?


Bloody good mothers dont let their sleeping babies get woken to allow them to prove a point.

I would suggest therefore that you are not a bloody good mother

[Nicknacky]

Steven, you know nothing about her mothering skills. Leave her alone!

[glasgowstevenagain]

I know she is prepared to let her baby awaken to allow her to prove a point.

Her words!

[Nicknacky]

You are telling it her she is not a "bloody good mother". I agree it's not good for baby but it's a far cry from abuse or being a bad parent.