part 1 of Grievance, part 2 of the saga - my last post was a while ago

[Mojomummy]

I have had an ongoing saga with work which has resulted me being off sick since Aug 07.
I have raised a grievance with a) discrimination - job withdrawn due to pregnancy (2003) b) mismanagement of manager c) bullying
A) has been disregarded due to time ( over 5 yrs) B) is being investigated again C) The person concerned was shocked, expressed her concern for me & stated she was 'over attentive' so she is being believed.
All of the above are linked.

I am unhappy because I feel I am being treated like a little girl who doesn't know where she wants to be in 5/10 yrs time. I am also cross because when I asked in the person investigating my case had asked her about several incidences, was answered by 'what, you want me to cross examine her on everything?' - I thought this was the idea - rather than baseing his decision on body language & the fact she was shocked when he arranged his meeting ? I have several episodes of her bullying/intimidating/undermining etc me. She only 'managed' me for about 4 mths & in the end I had to tell her I didn't want to talk to her as I found her so unhelpful. I told her this on the phone ( I was at my wits end & about 3 weeks before going onto maternity leave) & I never heard from her again.

The grievance officer is now going off to investigate something he failed to check out earlier & then will be concluding the investigation.

In our conversation today, he was very keen to tell me that no-one knew where I wanted to be in the company, asking me did I know where I want to be in 5 /10 years time - is this relevant ? If so, how ?
BTW There is no role for me at the moment & I've been told I won't go back to the department because of the above. Apparently I have to let them know what I want to do, where I want to do it & they'll find something

It just all sounds like nonsense...

Oh one more thing. As soon as I went on maternity leave, my position was defunct. One of these 'absorbed by the business' jobs. I have asked why I wasn't offered redundancy & the answer is, I was off for a year. Well, not at the time I wasn't, the date my role went, was before my daughter was even born. This ties in with b) & the mismanagement.

This is all going round my head & I feel I am being, or about to be shafted....

Hi mojo

Asking what you want is very reasonable of them. If they are going to resolve your grievance to your satisfaction they need to know what you want. Asking where you want to be in 5/10 years time is a bit of a crass way of doing it, but you should be able to have a conversation about what you want from this. If they are asking what you want to do and where you want to do it and saying they will find something that sounds extremely positive to me.

Regarding the redundancy, it's not for the employee to say that they believe their post is redundant, a company has no obligation to offer redundancy to anyone, as long as they are happy to continue employing and paying the person. If you were not there for a year and they felt sure there would be something by the time you came back or they would be able to pay you when you came back, there was no need to make you redundant.

Now you are back, if they are satisfied that they can find you a job, with your cooperation in finding something suitable, there's no need to consider redundancy.

Thanks FBB I am tying myself in knots about this, & I posted last night in a mood (!)

What I want - & have asked for & they know this - is a fair review of the what has happened.

I met with the guy yesterday & I explained that, due to being on anti-depressants (am signed off sick) I can't think straight about the end of the week. I feel that until this is fairly resolved, that I will remain unable to answer the 5/10 question. I feel he was saying this for me to think that I don't want to work & the company & then for me to just resign. I don't believe they want me back - it's just lipservice.

With regard to the redundant post - who is the person that decides this ? I understood that a company had to keep the person's role open for 6 mths - they didn't do this.

I also find it hard to understand why they are focusing somuch on what I want to return to do - apparently I won't go back into that department, so is someone just going to create a 24 hr a week role for me ? Wouldn't it be easier for them to say this is what is available, take your pick ?

With regard to the bullying, I feel that this is being disregarded because she said she cared for me - the woman hounded me & really was the final nail for me. Surely that even if she didn't do it intentionally, she can realise that something very wrong has occured ? Apparently she shouldn't even have been managing me.
If this doesn't read quite right, it's because I'm in floods of tears

Mojo I think you need to stop thinking about redundancy - it's not an issue. Yes they should keep your job open for 6 months, and if they didn't, that was wrong, and that's one of the reasons you've put in a grievance. But that doesn't mean they should have offered you redundancy, and you are not redundant now if they are happy to pay you and find a job for you. Whether to make someone redundant is the company's decision, they should always try and find suitable alternative work before doing so, which is what they are doing.

They have done wrong, and what they should be made to do is put it right. You need to give them the chance to do that. You may be right that deep down what they really want you to do is resign, but the bottom line is if they are prepared to find you a job that's suitable and are prepared to listen to all your suggestions/input on what you want to do/what that job should be, then they are not doing anything to force you to resign at all, so your opinion on what they really want is not relevant. It's their actions and words that are important, not what you think they are thinking, even if you are right.

Yes you are right to ask for a fair review of what happened, and you should obviously push that, but it is also fair of them to ask what you want going forward in terms of your job. At the moment what your job is is one of the things which is not clear, so to resolve the situation that's one of the things that needs sorting out, and they need your input into doing that.

Have a constructive think about what you feel you could/should/want to do. Then you could put that forward, but also say you are more than happy to consider any existing role which could be suitable as well.

When you get the final report of the grievance outcome, you will be given the opportunity to appeal; if you believe the bullying question is not being resolved properly, you should appeal it on that basis.

I'm sorry if any of that sounds harsh, it's not meant to. Sometimes you just know what's really going on, but you need to take what their saying at face value because it's only your instinct that you have to go on to indicate anything different.

Try and cooperate as best you can, give them the chance to put the situation right. If they can't find something suitable, address it then, but they need to be given the opportunity to do so first. When you get the grievance report, if you feel the decision about the bullying is not right, appeal that.

I hope that helps.

thanks - FBB - no doesn't sound harsh - just good honest advice so thank you.

Yes will take on board what you are saying. I think the trust has broken down so much that I am completely suspicious of everything they tell me.

Ref roles, it seems very odd to me that they are willing/able to create something - I will turn it back to them & ask about existing roles that are available.

Thanks for advice - I expect I'll be back & if anything else comes to mind, please let me know as i appreaciate down to earth advice !

Mojomummy i dont know your full story but have you tried ACAS they give very good advice on employment issues. I have rang them in the past and they have given me losts of advice over the phone. Good luck with sorting things out.