manipulation of records

[FFSeverynameisused]

Some of you may remember my previous mentions of being off sick due to discrimination, harrassment, bullying and discrimination. I also mentioned that my manager had manipulated my online appraisal records to make it look like she had given me several 'warnings' over the past year when she had not.

I have NC again as this is potentially outing

Anyway, i was signed off for a month and have just had this extended by another month as matters are not resolved and my work related anxiety continues.

As I didn't take any screenshots prior to going on leave, I only had a little bit of evidence that she had manipulated my appraisal records. I therefore submitted a 'subject access request' to find the 'behind the scenes' information on when things were edited.

The DPO has gotten back to say that IT cant provide this information as the way the website has been set up means we can see straight away when edits were made? The way it is set up means I can go in and change any date. Yes it does say 'edited on' but I think this can be edited too because what was there before I went on sick leave, is not what is now on there.

I don't know what to do now. She is making me look awful and I can't seem to prove that its lies and manipulation on her part.

I also got the OH report back, which was fine. My manager's manager now wants to meet me (at a time and location that suits me). I'm nervous about this as first of all, I have no confidence whatsoever that the situation will change. I expect more promises that will only be broken again. Also, due to my anxiety and the fact that it is caused by work, I can totally see myself breaking down in the meeting. Due to my disabilities (eg visual) I will need support in the meeting but I cannot telephone as I am also deaf (they offered this option - another example of their ignorance!) I don't want anyone to come to my house and I'm not sure if I'm even well enough to attend, I am signed off sick after all.

Any advice on the above and how to handle it would also be appreciated.

My family are losing patience with me. They want me to get back to work because of money and for something to do. They are fed up with my altering between crying and shouting with anger at the whole situation. They want me to 'play the game' but I've been playing the game for years and I've had enough of playing it!

I just need some friendly MNers to talk to whilst this whole thing continues :(

*victimisation is what should be in the first line...

Try and build a picture of when edits have been made and try to eliminate the ones you can account for personally.

You could ask to go through the list of dates when edits were made and ask:

Who made that edit? (this should be easy to find out if you need to sign into the system)
Can you tell which field in the form was edited? (The data will be held on a database. Any halfway competent DB administrator should be able to date edits on particular fields e.g. appraisal information)
Can you comment on what that edit may have been?

Assuming that your holiday and sick dates can be accounted for, can you then correlate edits with appraisals e.g. if you had an appraisal in April and were neither sick nor applied for leave in November, can you account for the edit to the records at that time?

If you end up with a picture of a flurry of edits to your HR records at odd times that have no obvious reason you can start to back up your claims with data.

There is a risk you could go to significant painstaking efforts to catalogue all the changes to the records, and this will be in vain if your employer decides they're not having any of it, and push back to minimise the matter. Ultimately it will become a war of attrition with your word against your manager's.

Could you invest time in creating an account of everything you have successfully delivered in the past year, including a list of the performance ratings you achieved historically. This could be a more constructive basis for conversation with your manager's manager.

I'm not saying don't try to get to the bottom of the record changes, by all means raise it as a concern. However, I think you need to prove the reality of verifiable work you've delivered, rather that what's in a system as you may not win that argument,

They sound like they are trying to 'meet you half-way' in terms of meeting you at a place and time to suit your needs, but I'm certain they will want resolution in terms of knowing if / when you will be fit enough to return to work, even if a phased return. Could you request someone from HR or a colleague is present to support you in the meeting, as a reasonable adjustment?

can I ask another quick question? I'm trying to make sense of my work's attendance management policy.

It says "3 instances of absence in 6 months or 6 instances or absence in a rolling 12 month period."

I have just been signed off sick for a 2nd month. Prior to my first month, I took 7 days mental health self-cert time. Does this count as 3 instances?

I don't think that I have had 6 incidences in 12 months unless they count hospital visits (disability related) which I always request special leave for.

I'm just worried if I've triggered anything and if I'm at risk of disciplinary? Its a non departmental government body.

If your employer defines "instance" as an unbroken block of time, then your current period of sickness (1 month + 1 month) is one instance, provided it is continuous (maybe covered by 2 separate monthly Fit Notes from your GP?), so provided you haven't been into work at all for that whole 2 month period. Your previous 7 day self cert is another instance. So my interpretation is 2 instances.

Can you ask them to clarify the policy when you have your face to face meeting? Or are you still undecided whether you will be able to attend it?

Presumably the 7 days Self Cert was also within the same 6 month period as your current sickness absence?

yes it was

I think attendance at a sickness meeting would depend on where, when, who with and any adjustments in place (part of the reason I'm off is a failure to make them!). I can't use a telephone and they won't do email. (potentially outing myself)

I worry that attending such a meeting would either make me appear 'well' or lead to another panic attack! I can see myself getting very upset and/or very angry.

They say it's just to talk about my health but I can't talk about my health without including the bullyiing and discrimination! They just don;t seem to be interested in what's been happening to me. They seem to be accepting my manager's (false) version of events.

It is reasonable for your employer to want to hold a meeting to discuss your sickness absence from work. It will be stressful for you because of the nature of your sickness and that they are taking your manager's perspective into account more than your's.

Have you put in a formal grievance to give your version of the situation in writing, so at least they have something factual from your perspective? If so you could use that as the basis for your discussion at the meeting.

It would also be good to get some RW legal advice as your case is complex and it's tricky to give reliable advice to you when all the facts aren't known.

I worry that attending such a meeting would either make me appear 'well' or lead to another panic attack!

Provided you have a current Fit Note from your GP, they don't get to arbitrarily judge that you are 'well'. Your GP is the only qualified person in that regard.

Do you foresee there will ever be a time when you will be well enough, and motivated enough to want to return to work for them? Have you thought of the longer term, because the longer this goes on, the more it will take its toll on your health.

I haven't submitted a formal grievance yet. I want to, but my rep and family are discouraging it because of the additional stress it creates and the potential repercussions. We have a 4 stage grievance process (I think its 4 stage) so informal has to be exhausted first (which I think it has as this has been going on for years) but my DH says "play the game"...a game I keep playing but never win....

I do want to return to work but I do not envision anything getting better. Ignorance and discrimination is rife throughout the company and my line manger is a big part of the problem so she either goes or I do and I don't want to go so ideally same job, different line manager from the department.

What "game" is it that they think you should play, and can they see the impact it is having on your health?

going through the process, giving them a chance to fix things (make false promises again IMO), see what they say etc.

Exhausting the informal approach (which I already have) is what they want me to do. I need their support to get me through this, especially my union rep's support. Without it, I don't know if I have the strength to take things further but they are not disabled, they can't possibly understand how it feels to go through this daily. They even challenge me when I say it is daily as it cannot possibly be daily discrimination. It bloody is!