am I overreacting by resigning

SueC_2

elsien wrote: »

SueC, I've done some googling and found this summary.
http://www.thisismoney.co.uk/work/small-business/article.html?in_article_id=502545&in_page_id=10

Our company is going to have to change our recruitment policies - at the moment we're using the pre-employment health questionnaires, and no-ones yet mentioned having to stop doing it in this way.

Interesting. Thanks!

However, as far as I can see (and admittedly only on the basis of this article alone) there will still be nothing to prevent an application form from including:

- How many days absence have you had over the last year, and
- Spread across how many periods?

An employee's health may not be relevant to their ability to do the job, but surely to heavens, their tendency to actually turn up to work does?

elsien

With you on that one! I've just withdrawn a job offer (on the grounds of telling porkies) to someone who said they'd had 3 days sick in the last 2 years, when they're currently on long term sick leave and have been off for months. How they thought their reference wouldn't mention this.......
(And before anyone shouts at me they said they were fit for work, so if they weren't lying to me, they were lying to their current employer by still being off sick, so either way they were being dishonest.)

SueC_2

jdturk wrote: »

I can understand the reasoning for it behind it but what it is more likely to do I would guess is create worse sick pay schemes as companies cannot take the risk that someone they hire will not end up being long term sick and off for long periods of times.

It seems unfair on the employer to have to suffer any costs from hiring someone that may go on the long term sick.

It is a difficult one as alot of people that have been on long term sick are only on it once in their life and to have that and be made dismissed does make it harder to get employment again.

Frankly I'd be far more likely to employ someone who had one period of long-term sick leave, than someone who continuously took odd days here and there.

Setting the finances aside, it is far easier to re-organise the workplace to cover an extended period of absence than it is to repeatedly find yourself dropped in the poop for one or two days at short notice.

leemee

Thanks for all your comments. But I've come to the conclusion that my first instinct to resign was the right one.

I've been doing some reading on employment law and the bit about a complete breakdown of trust and confidence in the employer really says what I feel. I doubt that any constructive dismissal case would be winnable as from the things I've read they rarely are, but I'm going to give notice putting my grievances on the notice letter and take it from there. I really feel that with everything that has happened - much more than just data protection issues - that I can never go back there and that I have no choice. The issue with the GP was just the last straw really. A friend from work has told me that a colleague was shown my med cert because the doctor's writing could not be decifered. So here's the catalogue of issues for the resignation letter:

Unnecessarily stressful working environment
Falsely accusing me of misconduct and then when it was proven that the allegation was untrue, no action was taken against the manager in question.
Not paying me one month
Passing out personal information to collegues and about colleagues
Not keeping personal data protected
Destroying any trust that I have in my employer

thanks, everyone

Lee

lynzpower

Good luck with it Lee

I agree it does not look like a workplace Id want to return to.

I would call the Info commissioner as well, in case your greivances in your resignation can be backed with info from them.

ceridwen

Hi Lee

Have you taken into account that if you resign and need to claim benefit that you could be in line for up to 6 months disqualification from that benefit because you resigned (rather than having been made redundant or sacked)?

I would urge thinking twice before you resign - because of that fact.

I understand exactly why you wish to - but am not sure it's a wise course of action.

Is there some sort of legal injunction you can take out on your employer? - ie a legal letter from a solicitor specifically forbidding them to breach your confidentiality and dire penalties will ensue if they do so.

I think, in your position, that I would stay in the job and investigate whether I could get a solicitor to write such a letter to my employer. Hopefully that would "keep them quiet". If, by any chance, it didn't then you have the evidence that they were being totally unreasonable - ie them disobeying that solicitors letter.

I certainly wouldnt let the risk of gossips !!!!!ing cause you to leave a job. What sort of people !!!!! anyway? Answer - ones not worth giving the time of day to and that have no credence with any reasonable person.

lynzpower

What it is Ceri is thatr if thedata controller breas the DPA then they can be prosecuted for this.

the problem is if the OP doesnt want to take advice on this, then what can you do.

I personally 100% agree with Uncertain, and I know that there is a major issue here that Lee wont get the support that they need.

Lee IMO should take advice and write to the employer stating all the reasons why they feel anxious and depressed ( if that is what is on the sick note, even in part) and what the employer has done to make lee feel this way, and why thier behaviour makes it very difficult for Lee to consider a return to work at this stage.

Eg

I feel very anxious and worried as I know that you have breached the Data protection act part XYZ by sharing my medical notes with other members of the team. As the data controller you should be aware that you need to keep this data confidential as a legal minimum and therefore you have breached XXX of this act. Having spoken to the Information Commissioners office they have advised me that this is sufficient for them to be making an investigation into your conduct as a data controller and they will be in contact with you in due course. Clearly sharing my sensitive medical information with the team has made me anxious depressed and worried and this has manifested itself in eg lack of sleep etc.
In the event where you falsely accused me of XXX, and did not apologise or set this straigh t appropriately, I feel that this is buillying behaviour.I feel this as XXX
As you have chosen not to pay me for XXX I feel that I have no option but to -pursue this via the small claims court track and you shall recieve summons for this in due course.


just a few thoughts. Uncertain shuld be able to help you out here on how best to word it to gently invite a ca.
Difficult to know waht to advise though as if you have not got any mental or emotional illnesses or effects on your drs note, it is difficult to tell.

Uncertain

leemee wrote: »

Thanks for all your comments. But I've come to the conclusion that my first instinct to resign was the right one.

I've been doing some reading on employment law and the bit about a complete breakdown of trust and confidence in the employer really says what I feel. I doubt that any constructive dismissal case would be winnable as from the things I've read they rarely are, but I'm going to give notice putting my grievances on the notice letter and take it from there. I really feel that with everything that has happened - much more than just data protection issues - that I can never go back there and that I have no choice. The issue with the GP was just the last straw really. A friend from work has told me that a colleague was shown my med cert because the doctor's writing could not be decifered. So here's the catalogue of issues for the resignation letter:

Unnecessarily stressful working environment
Falsely accusing me of misconduct and then when it was proven that the allegation was untrue, no action was taken against the manager in question.
Not paying me one month
Passing out personal information to collegues and about colleagues
Not keeping personal data protected
Destroying any trust that I have in my employer

thanks, everyone

Lee

As you say constructive dismissal cases are an uphill battle.

Only you know how you feel but resigning leaves you.....

Without a job

Not accruing paid holiday

Maybe unable to claim JSA (i know you said you are claiming ESA but I will come back to that in a moment)

With no control on what may be said in any reference

If you feel you are within a inch of this why not just do nothing at all? They may look to "manage you out" via a CA without any prompting. If they don't they will have to dismiss you on capability grounds. This will mean there are no benefit claiming problems and potentially a much easier ET claim as you are not claiming constructive dismissal.

Putting a string of complaints (however justified) in a resignation letter will achieve nothing at all even if they go through the motions of treating it as a grievance.

Regarding JSA / ESA. Getting ESA beyond 13 weeks relies on passing a so called medical run by ATOS for the DWP. All over the net you will find horror stories of how difficult this is and how people with really serious medical conditions are being turned down. OK you can appeal but otherwise you then have to claim JSA.

Best of luck whatever you decide.

leemee

Thanks for everyone's advice, I am thinking seriously about all the advice given and you've given me a lot to think about. I'm going to call acas and information commissioners office - when I find the number. I keep see sawing over a final decision as you can probably see! But everything you have all said has been really helpful.

ceridwen

Data Protection Act - ah...yes...I'd been overlooking that one in this context - but it sounds like a good one to quote to the employer:D

Hmm....something maybe along the lines of "May I remind you that, under the provisions of the Data Protection Act, that all personal details relating to my illness must be kept confidential at all times by yourselves". That should hopefully serve to keep your employers mouth shut about your personal details. If they still started "mouthing off" about you - then you have the copy of this letter you will have kept to give you a bit of "leverage" to deal with them.

Hopefully - a letter reminding them of this Act on its own would be sufficient though.