Appraisal changed

[Itoldyouthatmum4]

I had an appraisal recently with deputy line manager. All went well. The appraisal was emailed to me a couple of days later. I printed it off, read it through and signed it. I sent it in internal mail to deputy line manager who signed it and forwarded it on to line manager. A couple of days later I received a copy and noticed that line manager had added another paragraph stating that a topic had been discussed and brought to my attention. This definitely did not happen. I am shocked that it was altered after I had signed it, and that nothing was said to me, I just noticed it when glancing through before taking it home. Can appraisals be amended without notice after the employee has signed it?

No they can't.
You need to show the discrepancy over the copy you kept when you downloaded it as that was what you'd signed, and find out why it's been added.

Thank you.

Given that there is no law on appraisals, I am surprised anyone can assert that they can or can't be changed. They can be whatever the employer says. The actual issue is really that a matter has been raised and you want an opportunity to discuss it. So you should ask for that and not get sidetracked.

Whilst there is no law on appraisals, if an altered appraisal was subsequently part of a decision to dismiss, the fact it was altered could support an unfair dismissal claim.

The purpose of getting someone to sign a document is to show their agreement that the contents are accurate. Altering the document after it is signed undermines that.

That's making an awful lot of assumptions though. We have absolutely no indication what the change is or what the employers process is. If the employers process is that an appraisal is initially signed off between the individual and the first line manager, then submitted for amendments and or approval to the next line manager, then actually that is the process and perfectly fair. That process might even also then say that the amendments are to be discussed with the individual. Yes, that's also a lot of assumptions, but I recognise that I am assuming. Another assumption might be that the amendment is negative - actually the OP doesn't say that and the manager may have written "Itoldyou is the greatest hire I ever made".

So I would prefer not to make any assumptions at all. Including assuming that a change cannot be made, because that is an assertion that is not supported in law. Which was my point. People should not be told something can't happen when actually, it perhaps can. We don't know. And until the OP clarifies these points explaining what the amendment was, what consequences there may be and what the policy actually says, then it is all guesswork, with the exception of suggesting that they ask for a discussion about whatever the amendment is.

No need to get sidetracked on the law around appraisals OP. Although I agree with posters above that needs to be fair and transparent. Just stick to the facts for now and create a paper trail. Question the addition in writing to the parties involved- so your LM and other reviewer/approved. State that this was not actually discussed as the new record suggests and ask for a discussion. Then ensure notes are taken from that meeting that you are happy with and the final appraisal record is agreed by all with any amendments etc.

Try not to appear defensive, your approach should be open to feedback and welcoming any support.

TBH your LM has already broken one guiding principle of a good appraisal which is that there should be no surprises.

I find it highly unlikely that the OP has come on to question whether it is ok for a manager to amend an appraisal to add an additional line to say how amazing she is 🤣

So do I. But my point is that making assumptions leads to poor advice. And she did come for advice.

We have absolutely no indication what the change is or what the employers process is

We do know what the change is. From the OP:

line manager had added another paragraph stating that a topic had been discussed and brought to my attention

OP says this topic was not discussed at all. We may not know the employer's process, but there is no way a statement like this should be added after the OP signed the appraisal. It allows the employer to say that the OP has agreed the form is an accurate record, even though the OP says it is not.

Whilst there is no specific law on appraisals, altering a document after it has been signed in this way is potentially an offence under the Forgery and Counterfeiting Act 1981. Whether it is actually an offence depends on how the document is used, but if it is used in a way that prejudices the OP by claiming that she has agreed that this subject was discussed, that is an offence. It is unlikely the employer would be prosecuted but it is an offence nonetheless.