Employer have said I have resigned - I haven't. Urgent help please!

[Titslikepicassos]

I have a loooong thread in AIBU and received excellent support but things have escalated.

Long story short, I went on maternity leave this time last year. I had issues at work throughout my pregnancy, being shouted at and sidelined and told to move locations. Sorted it all out informally.

In March I asked to return to work early from Mat leave due to financial issues caused by lockdown. At this point my boss attempted to move me again, that didn't work and she then went back on the hours she had given me and it messed up my childcare.

I raised a formal grievance and put a flexible working request in at the same time. The company failed to do anything with my request and the grievance process was mismanaged and a data breach occurred in the middle of it, where my grievance letter was upload to a public file and seen by others.

The grievance was upheld in parts but they again tried to move me to a new location which doesnt work due to childcare issues.

I requested mediation with my boss in order to go back to work as I'm still not back 7 months later.

Today the regional director has said that they won't honour mediation and I have now resigned.

My union rep has disappeared and I received this at 16:00 today so couldn't get hold of ACAS.

Any advice would be very welcome!

None of it makes sense - they've paid half my notice period
Haha, indeed,makes no sense!

how much are you asking for @Titslikepicassos? what have you put in your schedule of loss?

@Titslikepicassos does the figure reflect that it's a discrimination claim? What advice did your solicitor give you in the end?

I've asked for over a year's wage and yes, it does reflect the discrimination, with comparators.

However, the solicitors have still not got back to me! My rep is concerned that he could be underselling my case. I'm concerned that the figure is too high (for the company).

Just found an email from the solicitor in my junk box from Nov 30th

They have said, that in light of the recent developments (unfair dismissal), they are not surprised by an offer of settlement and asked for details of it. I've updated them about the PILON fuck up and ACAS EC.

I'm hoping that this means they are willing to take the case on.

are you still within the 3 months minus 1 day timeline OP? My union solicitor was very hesitant about taking my case on as some aspects were apparently out of time. However, my union official was really good (and quite impatient with the solicitors who were over cautious imo). My union official said we just won't tell employer that we have no intention of going all the way to tribunal and get a settlement for you. It was a bit risky as employer could have said no, but my official knows his stuff. He really was a hero. So anyway just watch your timings in case you have an over cautious solicitor like I did.

@Iwillneverbesatisfied

are you still within the 3 months minus 1 day timeline OP? My union solicitor was very hesitant about taking my case on as some aspects were apparently out of time. However, my union official was really good (and quite impatient with the solicitors who were over cautious imo). My union official said we just won't tell employer that we have no intention of going all the way to tribunal and get a settlement for you. It was a bit risky as employer could have said no, but my official knows his stuff. He really was a hero. So anyway just watch your timings in case you have an over cautious solicitor like I did.

Some areas are out of time from my pregnancy. However, ACAS and the union believe that it's an ongoing act of discrimination in order to force me from my role (which has now happened) so are hopeful that the ET would allow the entirety of my claim to be heard.

If not, I still have one discrimination claim that I'm in time for which is already logged with the ET. Along with failure to follow flexible working request policy, unfair dismissal and now breach of contract and withholding of wages.

ACAS have come back to us asking if the amount covers I've asked for covers everything - original claim and the two others.

I'm hoping this means the company is working with them. I assumed this process would be slow, fingers crossed not.

fingers crossed OP

and block everyone om LinkedIn

Sounds like you haven't asked for enough!!!

I am still fuming on your behalf.

Be sure and negotiate a reference.

Surely if they consider that you resigned, they wouldn't pay you your notice. Doing so would be accepting that you indeed didn't resign but got sacked therefore giving more substance to your claim.

Why would they not pay notice? Resignation isn't the same as dismissal. In OP's case, she didn't resign, her employer terminated her contract, without a valid reason, and therefore are required to pay her notice, as specified in the contract of employment.

@Titslikepicassos The results of your SAR should aid the settlement process - that's the whole point of requesting one. Please don't agree any kind of settlement until you, your solicitor and union rep have reviewed the results of this. If the SAR highlights further bad behaviour from your employer, this will strengthen your case and potentially increase your settlement (since your employer won't want the reputational damage of this being exposed).

Thanks all.

I won't be accepting anything at the moment.

@RandomMess - it's a concern!

@Smallgoon - I asked today for the data controller to ensure my SAR was completed by the deadline, otherwise I'll be complaining to the ICO. It's due at the end of this month.

Reference has been asked for as part of any settlement @ilovemydogandMrObama - This is stopping me applying for jobs currently, as I'm concerned about what any reference might say!

@Iwillneverbesatisfied

fingers crossed OP

and block everyone om LinkedIn

I've come off of it for now - I'm getting the rage seeing the company's posts about their pretend values and ethics----

ha ha, I know that feeling very well. Glassdoor is your friend (once you get your settlement). You can be honest anonymously (but throw in one or two untruths to make it less obvious it is you eg I pretended to be male).

I got an email today from the very person in HR who fucked up and contributed a large part to my breakdown. I said I didn't want any contact from her. Granted she was just sending a list of things I needed to return but they have a huge HR department - make someone else do it.

Resignation isn't the same as dismissal. In OP's case, she didn't resign, her employer terminated her contract, without a valid reason, and therefore are required to pay her notice, as specified in the contract of employment
I expect their argument is that they offered what they deem 'acceptable' alternative to OPs old role, and that by refusing these, she has by default resigned. It might be that the period they deem this to have taken place meant that she was subsequently paid for the notice period.

The issue is that although it is perfectly acceptable to consider that someone is deemed to have resign by not agreeing to 'reasonable' new terms of contract, in this instance, there might be a question whether these were reasonable or not (offering the old local job but new hours/days of work), but more importantly, they seem to have failed spectacularly in following correct processes.

Good grief! I have been in this situation... you need a crystal bloody ball! In my case, it was an airline, and my injuries were a lot more extensive than I thought, so in retrospect, I settled waaaay below where I should have! (Also, lawyers took three quarters)

@dontdisturbmenow

Resignation isn't the same as dismissal. In OP's case, she didn't resign, her employer terminated her contract, without a valid reason, and therefore are required to pay her notice, as specified in the contract of employment I expect their argument is that they offered what they deem 'acceptable' alternative to OPs old role, and that by refusing these, she has by default resigned. It might be that the period they deem this to have taken place meant that she was subsequently paid for the notice period.

The issue is that although it is perfectly acceptable to consider that someone is deemed to have resign by not agreeing to 'reasonable' new terms of contract, in this instance, there might be a question whether these were reasonable or not (offering the old local job but new hours/days of work), but more importantly, they seem to have failed spectacularly in following correct processes.

This isn't quite how it happened anyway - I was told that because I hadn't agreed to any of the outcomes of the grievance offered to me, they deemed me to have resigned, effective immediately. However, I had accepted one of their outcomes - to return to my original role with mediation. RD clearly hadn't read the grievance outcome meeting notes.

Not a single thing they've done here, makes any sense!

@justilou1

Good grief! I have been in this situation... you need a crystal bloody ball! In my case, it was an airline, and my injuries were a lot more extensive than I thought, so in retrospect, I settled waaaay below where I should have! (Also, lawyers took three quarters)

Yes, very difficult to know if you're selling yourself short or asking for too much I'm just thankful I won't have legal fees to pay at the end of this.

Sorry you've been in a crappy situation too!

Thanks @Titslikepicassos... was nearly 20 years ago now. I think we can both imagine that it could also have been a hell of a lot worse, too. 😱 Nobody could have foreseen the long-term consequences of the soft-tissue injuries I received, and you are not dealing with that kind of situation, thank goodness!

Any good news yet OP?

@eclipsechips

Any good news yet OP?

Nope - all quiet.

I've had my SAR back - it's crap, 40 emails - not sure how it took 3 months.

So it doesn't reveal anything?

Have you asked for a copy of your HR record? If not, put another SAR in asking for a copy of "all HR records and files that mention me"

I bet they are withholding things.

@Iwillneverbesatisfied

So it doesn't reveal anything?

Have you asked for a copy of your HR record? If not, put another SAR in asking for a copy of "all HR records and files that mention me"

I bet they are withholding things.

Nothing at all.

There is only one email there that I haven't already seen.

There are countless email exchanges that they have left out.

I've drafted a second SAR asking for everything from my personnel file, any HR records and files that contain my name and anything else that pertains to my dismissal from the company. I've not sent it yet though.

Can you actually say it's clear that many emails have not been handed over due to the lack of volume of emails from x y z covering the topics a b c?