Work Related Stress - Sick Leave – Redundancy

A bit of background…
Have worked for current employer for almost 10 years. Since start of 2005 I have been in an unhealthy situation with regards to my managers, I feel they have been trying to manage me out of the company. Moved (without any input from me) to a new team/role I have been denied training, any assistance and whilst the company has a formal two step performance review process (Set expectations then later review against expectations) this process has either been denied or only partially completed and abused. Other nonsense has taken place over this time. This has resulted in my absence from work for most of this year due to work related stress. Redundancies have now been announced for August and let’s face it this will include me. Since 13 weeks, sick pay has been withdrawn and I fear I must return to work on financial grounds rather than medical.

I have an appointment at the end of this month to discuss what legal options I have with regards to the abuse I’ve suffered over the last 3.5 years but feel free to chip in with any suggestions on this front.

As far as I can see I have 4 options now and I’m trying to weigh up the pro’s and con’s.
  1. Remain on sick leave and resign
  2. Remain on sick leave until made redundant
  3. Return to work, resign when it gets to much again.
  4. Return to work until made redundant
Which do you recommend?
«13

Comments

  • If it were me, work until redundancy. I do appreciate how hard it can be to suffer under those circumstances, but you have to think of the next step - having a proven track record of employment and no reason for your employer to try and diddle you out of anything.

    See the redundancy as a light at the end of the tunnel!
  • dmg24
    dmg24 Posts: 33,925 Forumite
    Have you ever put in a formal grievance?
    Gone ... or have I?
  • going2die_rich
    going2die_rich Posts: 1,378 Forumite
    Or you go back to work, keep your head down and look for a job else where. Take as much of your staff with you as you can when you do :)
  • McKneff
    McKneff Posts: 38,816
    Name Dropper First Anniversary First Post
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    return to work, see how it goes.
    go off sick again if you have to.
    Wait for redundancy - no point in throwing away at least 10 weeks redundancy pay.
    make the most of it, we are only here for the weekend.
    and we will never, ever return.
  • BOB_BOB_4
    BOB_BOB_4 Posts: 10 Forumite
    dmg24 wrote: »
    Have you ever put in a formal grievance?

    I have raised these issues with HR repeatedly over this time, including a formal appeal against my performance reviews for 2005 & 2007.

    The company even provided counselling and ordered me to attend (mid-2005), who found I was being "bullied, marginalised and intimidated" which when fed back to the company was dismissed as "just one persons opinion".
  • Got2change
    Got2change Posts: 613 Forumite
    Just a little contribution -
    Are you well enough to look for another job? The thing is that the stress that is caused in a hostile and poor working environment CAN be mitigated by finding another job.
    Don't let the barstewards grind you down or affect to you any longer term that you already have, if that's at all possible for you.
    If you can, I would suggest best plan is to go back to work, follow all procedures that you can to protect yourself (i.e. greivance, appeals et al) - bearing in mind that any HR bod will be interested in protecting the employer from litigation, not you (sadly).
    Brace yourself for redundancy (check out all your rights on this - with the help of here/ACAS/CAB ETC) and again, make sure that prodecures are followed - consultation, fair selection etc etc.
    In the meantime, make sure that you can present yourself as a good candidate for other jobs - sadly, that will mean preferably being in employment/made redundant/having (reasonably) resigned, rather than getting into (if at all possible to avoid) a situation where you are fired.
    I wish you lots of luck and strength. Take care.
    x
    Blonde: Unemployed: Bankrupt.
    What do I know?
    :confused:
  • Horace
    Horace Posts: 14,426 Forumite
    Hi Bob Bob and welcome to the forum.

    I know exactly where you are coming from because I was in this situation last year. You need to make a formal grievance against the perpetrators of the bullying, keep all evidence of bullying, write a timeline as to when the bullying started right through to present time and keep it going.

    See your GP and he/she can sign you off with work-related stress. Hang on in there if you can and force them to make you redundant. I did this with my last employer, they kept dropping hints about the job not being suitable and suggesting that I should leave if I didnt like it - I had no problems with the job per se just my boss. Eventually I was made redundant in August 07 and am now taking them to a tribunal for unfair dismissal, unfair selection for redundancy, disability discrimination. My solicitor has told me that I did a good thing in keeping all the evidence and even obtaining further evidence in the form of emails that had been sent inter-department about me after I had left (I made a subject access request under the DPA).

    As you are having problems with your current employer, do what you can to find alternative work - use newspapers, register your CV on the internet etc. etc and do what you can to get out.

    It will be difficult, however to bring a case of constructive dismissal (which is what it would be if you just chucked your job in) if you haven't gone through the grievance process.

    HTH and good luck for the future.

    PS. If people ask why you are leaving your current job, say that you need a new challenge.
  • BOB_BOB_4
    BOB_BOB_4 Posts: 10 Forumite
    AN UPDATE

    Thanks for all the useful input thus far.
    I have a meeting with a CAB Employment Lawyer next week.

    I planned to return to work (to get back to full pay) and stick it out until the inevitable redundancy. However, having contacted the company I was told that I'm not allowed to return until my GP signs me off as fit for work. This is going to be difficult as I'm returning for financial not medical reasons plus I'm not sure I want to make any statement that I'm 'well' again.

    Any advice?
    Should I get signed off as fit for work? Not sure how this will affect me with regards to any claim/grievance.
    If I wait a further 2 weeks when my current sick note runs out, will I still need to be signed off to return or can I just simple return at that point?

    Thanks
  • CFC
    CFC Posts: 3,119 Forumite
    BOB_BOB wrote: »
    AN UPDATE

    Thanks for all the useful input thus far.
    I have a meeting with a CAB Employment Lawyer next week.

    I planned to return to work (to get back to full pay) and stick it out until the inevitable redundancy. However, having contacted the company I was told that I'm not allowed to return until my GP signs me off as fit for work. This is going to be difficult as I'm returning for financial not medical reasons plus I'm not sure I want to make any statement that I'm 'well' again.

    Any advice?
    Should I get signed off as fit for work? Not sure how this will affect me with regards to any claim/grievance.
    If I wait a further 2 weeks when my current sick note runs out, will I still need to be signed off to return or can I just simple return at that point?

    Thanks

    When your sick note runs out, you should be able to just return to work. However doubtless you will be asked when you return whether you feel fit enough to return or not, so you need to consider how you will answer.
  • Got2change
    Got2change Posts: 613 Forumite
    As far as I know, you have to be "signed off" by your Doctor before going back, so your employers are right on that score. Even when the sick note expires, I believe that your Dr has to confirm that you are OK to return; whilst it is implying that you are well enough to return, you don't have to sign any declaration.

    This protects them more than you I think but you still have to do it. You can't be at work and signed off sick, there are bound to be implications.

    (A few years ago, I was off sick with work-related stress/anxiety - yes, bullying and my poor reaction to it - and when I said I was OK to go back [and got a Dr's note that over-ruled the one that had signed me off (wrongly) for six months], we "all" had a meeting and I was fired...)

    Being off sick shouldn't necessarily affect a grievance - apart from you still being seen as the victim of something.

    Hope this isn't bad advice - most of it is based on my own (awful and lose/lose experiences)......
    x
    Blonde: Unemployed: Bankrupt.
    What do I know?
    :confused:
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