ET advice

DIN786

HiI have an issue that has gone to ET with my previous employers where I made rudecomment to a colleague/friend (whom was fine with the comment as that is our generalbanter), 2 days before I was supposed to leave. Someone in the office saw thecomment

andwas offended they then reported this and I was suspended. My ex employers dismissed me for my firstoffence in 3.5 years as the comment I made broke their policies. Even though I wasdue to leave in 2 days and as I had signed, a month before, a compromise agreement which would have paid me out £11,420for accepting early voluntary severance.

Icannot afford a lawyer and am well in debt that was why I wanted to leave in thefirst place as I needed the money.



MYET hearing is in July but I will need to provide them a schedule of loss by 11thMay.

Iam not sure how I go about doing this?

AsI was accepted to receive £11,420 voluntary severance after signing the compagreement. Yet as I broke the policy it breached my comp agreement. So I would receiveno money.



Iwas dismissed on November 17th on £26,500 approx. I got a temp jobover xmas on Dec 19th till 31st jan at £10 per hour and theanother temp job from 14th Feb till present at £12 per hour.

Mebeing a temp my hours vary so not sure what to put down for schedule of loss.Will that include all the 200+ roles I applied for? My bank statements to showmy debt? and if I received the £11,420 I would not have been in debt?

Iam not sure what I need to put down as I due to leave on 31st Octoberbut was due £11,420……

Cansomeone help asap….

debsue

If you are doing this yourself i suggest you get the book
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Employment-Tribunal-Claims-Tactics-Precedents/dp/1903307708/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1335957857&sr=1-1

Did you appeal the decision? As I think the ET prefer it if you tried all other avenues first.

your schedule of loss is whatever you are out of pocket which will be the severence pay only I think as you were leaving anyway.

I am no expert but I have been through a tribunal representing my partner and the book was invaluable.
Good luck
One other tip, if ACAS have been in touch, use them, but be careful what you say to them.They tell it is all confidential but in my experience it wasnt.

DIN786

Hi

Ihave done my appeal and the decision to dimsis was still upheld.
ACas have contacted us both and my ex employers did not want to settle out of court so had my ET cas discussion on Monday.

What evidence do i need to provide for schedule of loss?

marybelle01

I know you didn't ask but I am going to say it anyway - what makes you think you will win? You were still employed by the company regardless of the fact you were due for severance, you made an offensive remark which contravened company policy, and you were dismissed for it. The fact the person it was made to didn't mind or you thought they didn't mind isn't relevant to anything. Someone heard it, someone was offended, it still breached company policy and I can only assume on that basis that it was discriminatory. Your previous good record doesn't matter either - only whether it was reasonable to dismiss for the remark you made.

maninthestreet

I've seen this happen before - employee working notice, gets cocky because they think they are fireproof and can get away with anything as they have resigned. Then they are surprised when they get sacked for telling a customer to F-off.

DIN786

Thatis all true but does it seem fair to dismiss someone on their first offencewhen the comments were in a friendly banter.

Iwill be using examples cases similar to mine where the employees were notdismissed for breaking policies I was accused of. I do not have the full casepapers but is this something I can request from my ex employees to show on thebundle? As well as another card used by a white employee to a black employeethe comment was made which was offensive yet nothing happened to the employee. Thecard was removed and no action taken.



Myex employers also stated they had to consider that that my comments had animpact on the office (which is a lie as they provided no evidence) – I can getup to 25 people statements stating that my sacking had actually effected them? Isthis worth doing?



Theyalso stated that the card I bought was a ‘work’ card not a personal card (eventhough I bought it with my own money where it was to be signed by my immediateteam and no-one else) – I can get people in the office sating it was a workcard is this worth doing?



Theyalso stated that the vein of my comments were different to the other comments(yet I stated it was banter and my colleague whom I directed the comments athas backed that up) others can back that up to is this worth getting statementsfor too?



Alsoas if I was to get witness statements can I hide the identity of the currentemployees from their employer but provide the originals to the ET?

DIN786

maninthestreet wrote: »

I've seen this happen before - employee working notice, gets cocky because they think they are fireproof and can get away with anything as they have resigned. Then they are surprised when they get sacked for telling a customer to F-off.

but the difference here was my comments were in aleaving card to a friend I put in a little banter that my immediate team knowabout as we all talk like that.

Then that card some how got sent around theoffice for others to sign when it should not have.

Also looking up on the previous cases the accusedall stated it was banter within the office and none were dismissed where as inmy case I stated that as well as the other examples but I was still dismissed.

marleyboy

No its not fair, but life is never fair, had you managed to curb your banter for just 48 Hours more you would be high and dry, as it stands you gave them all the ammunition they needed to throw the book at you.

That proved to be one expensive message you posted.

DIN786

marleyboy wrote: »

No its not fair, but life is never fair, had you managed to curb your banter for just 48 Hours more you would be high and dry, as it stands you gave them all the ammunition they needed to throw the book at you.

That proved to be one expensive message you posted.

Yesbut would I not stand a chance as I can prove discrimination as employees whombroke the same policy for similar type of banter were not dismissed?

Alsocan prove discrimination in the employee stating that a racist type comment isless offensive than my comment.

Aswell as the other reasons they took into consideration which I can counterargue with witness statements?

McKneff

You really need to sort your 'space' bar out, your posts are very difficult to read.

DIN786

McKneff wrote: »

You really need to sort your 'space' bar out, your posts are very difficult to read.

sorry i just type to fast!