grievence help

[K1T1F1]

hi
ive put a grievence in against the MD of the company i work for. i have proof of this and the HR department has addressed it as bullying and victamisation, i have a meeting next week regarding my side of things. i have worked at the company for 15+ years and was expecting to be there until i retired. im 60 yrs old. im under the doctor and very low and scared about my future, i will find it hard to find employment that matches the salary im currently on. ive already been asked what settlement figure im looking for what i have witheld as im annoyed that i have been of work with work related stress due to this and nobdy has bothered to contacy me to ask after my well being until i sent a grievence and they have jumped all over me since. im asking you guys what would be a acceptable settlement?

Have you had legal advice?

You need legal advice.

The only thing I’d say is that typically an employer will not contact you to check in when you are off with work related stress, it can be seen as harassment and they can quickly find themselves in hot water so they do tend to avoid it so I really wouldn’t take that personally.

Seek proper legal advice, speak to your union and take a rep to any meetings if you haven’t been already. They are in the best place to advise. Nobody here can say based on the information you have given what you would be a fair settlement.

You need proper legal advice, please speak to your own employment solicitor who can give you some impartial advice.

You might have a home insurance policy which may cover the cost of this.

Alternatively, have you contacted ACAS, or possibly citizens advice? They can help with mediation steps, but won't be able to maximise a settlement amount.

thanks for your advice - also they have said my sick pay exhausts in a weeks time can they stop paying me if my grievence is against my MD that is causing the stress?

Yes they can. Your contractual sickness entitlements are not influenced by the circumstances. They could choose to continue to pay you - but that is very unlikely.

I assume you are not in a union, because if not I agree with others here - you really need a solicitor and one who knows what they are doing. With respect - and you seem to be something of a realist, so this is probably not going to come as a shock - it appears that they have no intention of you staying in your employment, and the chances of getting a settlement anywhere near 6/7 years wages (until you retire) are very low. And that is assuming that your proof is (a) very clear and (b) evidence of an unlawful act. Unfortunately I often find that what people think is obvious evidence may not be as strong as they think, and that even if the employer is doing something "unfair" or "nasty" it often isn't unlawful. So good advice is really important.

Agree with previous poster re. settlement. Typically in this situation you’d be looking at 3-6 months gross salary, with a good solicitor and strong evidence you could argue for higher but of course a good solicitor will come with their own high costs so it may be that with a solicitor you can double the settlement but then lose nearly half of it by paying fees.

It also does depend on how much and what quality evidence exists because if you can’t agree on a settlement and the employer (and their legal team) thinks that they could avoid paying that amount if they take it further then you could find yourself at tribunal and walking away with less, if anything, plus costs.

Really can’t stress the importance of good legal advice.

Sorry to hear this OP. Have you put in a formal grievance? Are they following their own timescales in trying to resolve the grievance?

Have they offered any adjustments to help you back to work? A different area, role, hours -anything where contact with the person is limited and you don’t have to be off sick?

Have they offered any occupational health support to you?

Have they been following their sickness policy? You are off with work related stress but they should still be checking in with you and seeing how to support you and your wellbeing

Have they done a stress risk assessment?

Have they offered mediation?

if they are a good employer they should be looking into all the above. I think you need to discuss with ACAS or a union rep if you’re in one.

If they haven’t done the above then you could ask them why and see if they can out anything in place

In terms of an acceptable settlement, for an answer to this you do need a solicitor. Although if that’s their line they should really be offering something and paying for a solicitor for you so you can decide if you want to accept a settlement.

They do sound a bit of a shit company if this is the only action they have taken to resolve the issue.

it might be you could have a claim for constructive dismissal if they aren’t following their policies but to know if this would be a viable argument and something to fight for you really do need some professional advice

You really need some good advice from a solicitor that specialises in employment law. They will negotiate on your behalf and ensure your employers are following the letter of their policies and the law. Contact one today if you have not. Your employer may contribute towards the cost as part of the settlement.

If your employer is now determined to get rid of you, don't set too much store in the grievance. Many years ago I was being made redundant as part of a larger programme. My solicitor in that case thought I had good grounds for action for unfair treatment. However, they advised against simply because the the amount of any award as a result was unlikely to be more than the redundancy package we were being offered and you had to factor in how stressful it would be.

Also, if you are in an occupational pension scheme, it may be possible for them to enhance it in some way as part of the settlement. Again, a solicitor can advise but there were also some people with very good knowledge about this on the MoneySavingExpert forums a few years ago when a relative was dealing with this.

Without knowing what the MD has done, which can be evidenced, there's no way to estimate a settlement figure.
What I will say is that the tribunal system is a minefield, it will take minimum of a year to get to a hearing. So bear this in mind.

If they have said your sick pay is to run out on x I would email to request (marked WITBOUT PREJUDUCE) that, as a gesture of goodwill, they extend this by 2 weeks, to enable reasonable settlement discussions to take place. They can only say no.

You definitely need legal advice as it may be best for you to resign ... a tribunal might look more favourably on your case if you do ,(it evidences tve seriousness of your grievance) and it might force the hand of your employer regarding settlement.

If the MD wants you out I'm afraid it's likely you won't be returning to work.

You definitely need legal advice as it may be best for you to resign ... a tribunal might look more favourably on your case if you do ,(it evidences tve seriousness of your grievance) and it might force the hand of your employer regarding settlement.

No it doesn't evidence the seriousness of a grievance if you resign. If it did then everyone would be resigning. It's actually the opposite - the tribunal expects you to use the processes available to resolve the situation so that you can stay in work, and would only consider accepting resignation as a legitimate action if there was either (a) an extremely serious breach such that continuing in work / with a grievance was utterly unreasonable (so something like an assault), or (b) the employee had exhausted all the avenues otherwise available such as a full grieavnce and appeal. Even then very very few claims of constructive unfair dismissal win. It's the hardest claim to win of them all.