job offer withdrawn

angel1987

hi all,
im in a difficult situation.
i went for an interview for a team leader position and was told i could not be offered that position however they could offer me a sales advisor position. i agreed to this. the manager then sent me an email confirming pay, hours, induction, etc. i recieved a phone call from the trainer to confirm my attendence which i did. and them later that same day i recieved a phone call from the manager saying she could no longer offer me the position due to over recruitment by 1 person and as i was the last to be recruited i was the one who could not have job! she was also saying something about someone leaving and coming back.
i sent her an email the next day saying i believe her to be in breach of contract and she did not reply. then on the saturday i recieved an induction booklet. so i turned up for the training on monday and met her and she again said induction booklet sent out by accident and could not offer me position, no spaces.

the contract was only for 19hours a week, and its a big company so they could have found me an alternative.
does anyone have any experience of this etc?
i have been to citizens advice who have referred me to an employment lawyer but they havent been in touch yet.

is it legal for a company to withdraw an offer like that?
i have been extremely depressed since this happened. i also have a 10month old baby, and it just seems so unfair that a company can do this!

thanks inadvance

Googlewhacker

unless you can prove they withdrew it for discriminatory reasons such as sex, gender etc then there is very little as far as I am aware you can do about it. They can effectively dismiss you for any reason (except discriminatory) in the first year and you have no comeback.

Sorry its not what you want to hear, I suggest putting your effort into looking again.

angel1987

i found this on direct.gov website
What happens if an employer withdraws a job offer?
If the offer's withdrawn before you have a chance to accept, or because you haven't met the conditions (for example, providing a satisfactory reference), you can't take any action, unless it has been withdrawn for reasons of unlawful discrimination.
Find out more about discrimination
However, once you have accepted an unconditional offer, and the prospective employer withdraws it, you can claim for compensation for breach of contract.
More about breach of contract

so surely i am right in thinking they are in breach of contract.

the idea of looking for another job and going through whole process again is too stressfull. i have a long term history of depression and due to the stress of this situation i was given olanzapine which is a anti psychotic. so its not so easy for me to just start again!
i suppose i want them to be punished for what they did. as i believe it to be unethical and immoral!

anamenottaken

Googlewhacker wrote: »

unless you can prove they withdrew it for discriminatory reasons such as sex, gender etc then there is very little as far as I am aware you can do about it. They can effectively dismiss you for any reason (except discriminatory) in the first year and you have no comeback.

Sorry its not what you want to hear, I suggest putting your effort into looking again.

And to add ...
unless you have written particulars which state longer contractual notice, they don't have to give you any notice until you have been there a month.

McKneff

So they made a mistake, what else could they do. If there are 9 people and 8 jobs.

Googlewhacker is completely correct, they can employ whoever they want.

The time has come to square your shoulders and move on,

For the sake of your baby, who will pick up on your moods, who is far more important than a lost job, I'm sure you'll agree then
you have to just get up and get on with it.

Sorry if that sounds harsh but that's life.

And if you do want a job you dont have any choice but to go through the whole process again.

Go on, you can do it, you did it once, you can do it again.

You never know, one of the employees may drop out and they may get in touch with you seeing as you went through
the interviews etc and were found to be a suitable employee,

Good luck.

Googlewhacker

it was a mistake....have you never made a mistake in your life? It sucks but move on you won't get much by ploughing your energy into this.

minicooper272

Honestly, try to look for the positive! You applied for a job and out of all those people that applied, you got an interview. You're interview went really well and you were offered a job! You must be a really good candidate to get a job when so many other people are struggling!

It's a horrible feeling to have it withdrawn but your best bet is to move on and not dwell. You're not doing yourself any favours.

bluenoseam

Quickest way to ensure they don't hire you - take this further!

Welshdebtor

Copied and pasted off a HR Website.


Where there has been an unconditional offer and the employee has accepted the offer there is a binding contract of employment, even if the employee has not yet started in his or her first day of work. If the employer wishes to withdraw the offer once it has been made and accepted, this is in law a breach of contract. The employer would then be liable for the consequences of that breach, for example notice pay (subject to any duty to mitigate loss on the part of the individual).
When the contract has been formed by an unconditional offer and acceptance, the employer should also take care with regard to the reason for subsequently wishing to withdraw. If the reason is a freeze on recruitment the risks are not nearly as high as if it is due, for example, to the fact that the employer has found out that the employee is pregnant or disabled, in which case discrimination claims might ensue. If the reason is pregnancy the employer may also face a claim for automatically unfair dismissal as no qualifying period of service will be required.
Where there has been a conditional offer of employment, for example one subject to satisfactory references, and that condition has not been satisfied, the contract has not been formed and the employer is able to withdraw. Care should still be exercised if the job offer is subject to health clearance since, if the employee is disabled, the duty to make reasonable adjustments will apply.

GothicStirling

I think you did an expert job of shooting yourself in the foot.

They obviously liked you, but didn't realise they couldn't afford another staff member in their budget. Who knows, a month down the line their could have been a vacancy for you. But because you screamed 'breach of contract' they won't touch you with a barge pole again.

MrsManda

Did the email state that it was an unconditional offer and did you accept it before getting the phone call saying the offer had been withdrawn?