Can I get fired for this?

[canigetfiredforthis]

Please be kind I'm extremely stressed right now.

I started a job in relatively senior position to be told 5 weeks later I was at risk of redundancy (no fault of my own). I've been extremely stressed due to this as I was at the last place for a very long time.

Anyway I stupidly sent an email to my boss late one night (drinks had been consumed) basically saying there are loads of issues and you've messed me about massively basically. No swearing and not abusive in any way.

I recalled the message soon after I'd sent it but obviously unsuccessfully.

Anyway now they are saying they are going to fire me for gross misconduct! Can they do this?

They haven't made her redundant they have put her at risk of redundancy. Yes it's likely part of the criteria used will be length of service but that might not be the only criteria and she possibly could have survived redundancy but not after her childish email outburst.

Also it must have been a fairly dramatic change of circumstances causing her role to be at risk of redundancy as no one in their right mind recruits to a role knowing it is going to be at risk of redundancy less than 2 months later. It is just too expensive.

It was a big mistake op but I'd want my notice paid if I were about to be out of work so I'd probably call their bluff on that one. Without an investigation they can't really claim gross misconduct, less than 2 years service they can part company with you at any point but your notice period that they must give you as per your comtract still stands,

Just check the notice as usually the notice you need to give them is longer than what they need to give to you to terminate

I'm not in HR so happy to be put straight by someone who knows better. Not trying to get OP's hopes up and I am aware that so early you can be let go quite easily. However, if they're saying this is specifically gross misconduct then wouldn't there need to be an investigation? Whether or not your email would amount to gross misconduct I don't know, but wouldn't that need to be proven, with OP getting the chance to state her case, involve a union rep etc?

Are you in a union OP? I'd speak to them or ACAS about next steps, explain the full situatio, show them the email. I'm not sure you can just be 'pushed' for gross misconduct without an investigation, presumably without notice or any redundancy pay (if any). As I say, happy to be put right by someone who knows HR better but surepy there's a difference between being let go early on and being dismissed for something as grave as GM. Look into this properly.

I can understand your frustration if you took on a new job in good faith only to be told a month later you were to be made redundant.

I'd ask for redundancy/ to be paid my notice they are trying to get out of what they owe you. You haven't done anything wrong. An email that's not abusive isn't a reason to not pay notice. I've sent emails to line managers before saying I'm upset and stressed by work and not been fired. You can leave the job off your cv if they're threatening to say you were dismissed and say you had a short time off between roles as a job offer didn't work out.

Less than two years working for anyone redundancy allowances dont apply, its a weeks notice and that's that!
I've just made 1/4 of my workforce redundant this morning (not pleasant ) but due to working less than 2 years they leave on Friday.

Get Job hunting ASAP. Don't really see you coming back from your email, you are in a tough position.

Especially if you are still in your probationary period

Lot.of crossover there, mine was mostly in response to early replies saying just leave without notice. I wouldn't rush to do that, certainly seek advice and go through the company handbook and policy first.

This

It is a very dramatic change, I have no idea why they hired me because they must have known. Which is one of the reasons I'm so annoyed!

They have revoked access to everything online but I've asked for all my docs to be sent to me so I can review the handbook etc. there is nothing i can see in my contract but there is a separate disciplinary handbook.

Definitely most stressful day ever! I have brought it all on myself but think it's quite clear what their motivations are.

Most contacts employment state gross misconduct is summary dismissal, so no notice or PILON.

Do a subject access request and ask for all information and data, emails etc about you.

Apart from anything else this will be massively annoying for them and give you a sense of where you are.

I agree, get Union or ACAS advice. Don't jump!

Don’t resign - could you summarise what you wrote? Sisal to ACAS before you make any decisions -sounds like they are trying to get out of paying you notice. gross misconduct needs to be significant avoiding the verbal or written warning stage.
Y leave the job off your cv!
clearly they need to make savings.

ACAS: "If you think you’ve been wrongly dismissed for gross misconduct, you can apply to the employment tribunal for the notice pay you should have got. This is called ‘wrongful dismissal’. It doesn’t matter how long you’ve been employed."

One thing for the future, once you send an email and it has gone, you can’t actually recall it to make it disappear from the recipient’s inbox. It just sends them a message saying ‘ * wants to recall this email’ so all it does is just bring attention to it 🙄😁

I would not resign. Let them go through all of the drawn out investigations into putting together a case and get paid for the gardening leave while they’re doing it. They’re trying to frighten you into resigning so they can get rid of you as cheaply as possible. I would just leave this job off your CV.

I'm confused with the replies guys

With the business less than 5 weeks

In line for redundancy, why after 1 email they would go for gross misconduct, makes no sense.

Less than 2 years employment you really do not have many rights.

They should have stuck with the redundancy route, 7 days notice end of

Your story isn't adding up here to me?

God what a stupid thing to do OP. What on Earth were you thinking?!

I’d just walk in your shoes OP, your notice won’t be that much anyway and if they dismiss you for gross misconduct there won’t be any notice payable by them. As to whether it is actually GM none of us can tell you that but they can do what they like and leave you to try and take legal action for the notice pay, which is hardly likely to be worth doing.

They can do what they like, you’d need to prove it was a wrongful dismissal in tribunal to get your notice pay. They may well have fucked out around but as others have said you gave them an open goal.

Is the company having some finance issues that they’re wanting you to forfeit your redundancy pay for? Out of curiosity, how are you managing to get a “not insubstantial” amount of redundancy pay for 5 weeks work? I’d have thought you weren’t entitled to much at all with the little length of time?

Well yes but surely they can't just say 'this is gross misconduct. You need to leave now- we can either call this dismissal or redundancy. Up to you'.

If they're waving that term around surely they need to have investigated the issue and proven that it meets the criteria and then give the employee the option of jumping or being pushed.

Maybe if it was something very serious and the outcome was clear a company might give, say, a longer term employee the option of just leaving without putting them through an investigation and having a marked card, but an email outlining frustration after being threatened with redundancy? Unless OP is really under playing what was written then I can't see it's so cut and dried.

I cant help but suspect the company is looking for an easy way to cut down numbers here.

This is my take on it too and I’m surprised so many other posters see the email as such a terrible lack of judgement. We’re only human and in my experience a decent business and line manager would show some compassion (and cut some slack) for someone in a situation as difficult and stressful as this. Based on the email being non-threatening and non-aggressive, of course.

The whole thing paints the employer in a very poor light and I’d be seeking guidance from the likes of ACAS before meekly agreeing anything.

I've known plenty of Directors and senior managers make up rules as they go along. HR is there to protect the organisation from the staff, so they usually help to cover tracks.
From personal experience, where I sent a completely innocent e-mail to explain why one Director had misunderstood a situation, my Director who has a drink problem went off at the deep end and ultimately persecuted me until I left.
If you can possibly avoid it, not send e-mails out of hours, there's little or no upside and plenty of downside.

Yes well I've learnt that the hard way haven't I!

I don't really want to summarise the email on here for obvious reasons but it was only a couple of sentences and definitely in no way threatening or abusive (but can see why it might have pissed them off!).

I've got 3 months notice, if it was a week I wouldn't be bothering.

And yes they are having financial issues.

I'll call ACAS in the morning and hopefully get my docs sent through.

Thanks! Mixed bag of feedback but gives me hope that some of you think it sounds a bit off.

I don’t think it sounds like gross misconduct.