Promotion and maternity leave - can anyone help?

[HidingInTheShed]

I shall try and keep this short as i can!

Due back to work next month, employed over three years through a merger and tupe, worked directly with colleague X. Went on leave this time last year, had baby, all went fine. No contact at all from employer (aside from payslips via mail). Was with this employer from march to june after tupe, then went on ML.

In my absence, X has applied for, interviewed and been given a senior role. I would be a candidate for this role, however i was not told at all that it existed, or that i could apply. X is now my senior when i return after ML.

I feel that assumptions have been made here by my employers, and more so that they have directly disregarded my rights under the equality act by not telling me about a job which would have been a natural career progression. I do not want to go back to be managed by my old colleague.

Does this amount to constructive dismissal?

Can i resign and continue to pursue my claim for discrimination?

Has anyone gone through this and can advise on how it went?

Thank you!

I would separate out the personal from the professional. If you had been at work and you'd both applied for the vacancy, the other person might have got it and you'd be faced with being managed by your old colleague. That's how things go.

However, my opinion is that you should have been informed of the vacancy and given the opportunity to apply - I believe that's correct procedure but those more knowledgeable will be along to clarify.

You've had no keep-in-touch days with your employer in the last year?

Nothing at all. My manager went and no-one told me anyway. I know my new managers first name only...

I know im being a bit emotional about it, when im in correspondence ill obviously omit that bit ;)

You're going to struggle to claim that not notifying you about an internal vacancy amounts to constructive dismissal. The fact that you would prefer not to report to your colleague is neither here nor there in terms of a legal case.

Do you have particular reason to believe that you were a much stronger candidate than X and would/should have been offered the role?

I thought they have a responsibility to inform me of vacancies? I checked around with other friends on ML and theyve all received communication about jobs coming up etc

Yes they do have an obligation to inform you. But that doesn't mean if they don't do that it's constructive dismissal.

So does that make it straightforward discrimination?

Discrimination is rarely straightforward.

I understand you are angry but unless there's a lot more to this I think you need to slow down just a little.

Do you have reason to believe the role should have been yours? I'm trying to establish to what extent you are in a worse position than you would have been had you been notified of the vacancy.

Do you have reason to believe the fact that you didn't receive details of the vacancy was malicious in any way, or could it have been an error? Doesn't mean it's ok if it was an error but in terms of whether its worth taking legal action over it's relevant.

Is there more to this than you say? Something like this as a single incident is one thing, when you put it together as part of a pattern of discriminatory ill-treatment, that's a bit different.

Have you spoken to anyone yet about this, asked why you weren't notified? What answer were you given? Again, whether something is worth taking legal action over will depend on the employer's reaction when the issue is raised with them. In this instance, you'd need to ask them about it. If you are not satisfied with their response, you need to raise a grievance. If you are not happy with how they address your concerns during the grievance process and grievance appeal process, you could consider bringing a tribunal claim.

You will need to decide whether not being told about a vacancy is enough to make all that worthwhile. The answers to my questions above will be relevant in deciding that.

I absolutely see your point. Ultimately I do have to balance what I expect to achieve by this against the stress it will undoubtedly bring me. I have talked with my union about this who said that my employers have not left themselves in a good position with this. I have made my decision that I am not going back anyway, and in my resignation letter I have raised the issue.
I really appreciate you taking the time to respond to me.

Well, they haven't left themselves in a good position, no. But unless you have lots more to go on that you haven't mentioned, or have good reason to think it was malicious in some way, that doesn't mean you'd be successful with a discrimination claim, or that bringing one would be a good idea.

Anyway, what you've done sounds sensible, if you're resigning anyway, drawing the issue to their attention in your resignation letter, just to flag up their mistake which should hopefully ensure they are more careful about making sure all employees on maternity leave get notified of vacancies in future.