NICS Grievance

pepper33

I have secured a post in another part of the organisation. But I am still not fit enough mentally. I want to go back to work, but I know that you cannot put things in a box mentally and move on, because that is what I did, and it turned out that I should have got out sooner, and talked about it. I was told that it is now not a good thing to just try and forget about it, as it comes back to bite you later on, which I have found out. The civil service is a very strange place to work, grades and things, I am used to being responsible for my work, and using my initative.... The grievance will go through, because I will be taking it to court, if someone isn't brought to book about this.... thank you for your feedback...

irishjohn

Hi there
Regrettably your period of sickness has been so long that you have moved into the half pay period of sickness and before very long you could find that period has also come to an end bringing you to a point where you will only receive SSP and then life will be even more difficult.

The position you have been offered could be the "medicine" you need to help you return to normality - maybe being at home all day gives you too much time to brood on your situation and possibly make you feel worse.

Unfortunately this situation may be very significant to you but to those in charge it may well be very insignificant in the middle of everything else going on. Maybe pursuing a grievance will help you get revenge for the treatment you have described but then what. In 6 months from now, when sick leave has expired and SSP is your only income and the current opportunity to change role and location may have also disappeared and all those events could place your health in a more precarious place. My advice is think seriously about the opportunity being presented, seek a gradual induction to enable you to start the job at your own pace and see how it helps - Then you may be in a better place to ask yourself just what will pursuing the grievance achieve for you - not for others - for you and you alone.

pepper33

I understand what you mean, but my confidence has gone, and I intend to get back to work within the next couple of weeks/months, providing my doctor lets me. I feel very guilty about letting myself be treated so badly, and yes I would rather be at work, because I know it would be good for me. But it is a fact that the nics caused this illness, and they do have a duty of care to their employees. I have been through an awful time, and was crying at my appointment with OHS this morning. I will be back at work soon, as I am definitely a changed person, and will get back my confidence.

irishjohn

Duty of care is a nice phrase but what does it mean? different things to different people - NICS may take the grievance through to a conclusion but it may not achieve what you hope it will achieve - because they will have an agenda of their own and you can be certain it differs from your agenda.

If you genuinely intend to be back at work before the end of September then you know what you need to do to make that happen and its in your hands only.

I have put an end date on it because I am afraid I cannot deal in vague time scales such as couple of weeks / couple of months - they are the refuge of those who won't make a decision.

pepper33

Unfortunately Irish John, I am sure you are not a doctor, nor a judge, and you havent (I don't know) suffered the hell I have been through. So please do not be so negative. By any chance are you a civil servant....

irishjohn

No I am none of those - Doctor, Judge, or Civil Servant - my entire career was in the private sector mainly with two worldwide brands - where they also carry out processes such as grievance management. I stand by what I say - Getting back into work lies entirely in your hands and ultimately your grievance complaint won't impact that. My suggestion is to deal with these two events separately and by all means carry on with your complaint, but don't allow it to hold you back from grabbing the opportunity to become part of the workforce again. The sooner you do that the better as it will only get harder as time passes. I have not experienced your hell as indeed you have not experienced mine but what is important is to recognise you have been through it and its now in the past so better to keep moving forward.

dktreesea

OP, my advice would be to keep the grievance formal. Of course the manager in question and the one above him/her want to keep it informal. Think about it. This grievance will go on their records as well as yours. The bullying manager will have a black mark against/his/her name, and the one above will also look pretty flaky because they should have known what was going on and didn't nip it in the bud, so will have a rep for not protecting employees from errant managers who are meant to be under their control.

Having said that, I do have a friend who has gone through a similar process. She went to court and did indeed receive a settlement. But the process really took it out of her. She was asked why it had taken her so long to bring the grievance. If she had been able to produce witnesses to the bullying, it would have helped her case. But of course people don't want to get involved, even when they know what is happening is wrong.

At the moment because you haven't gone back to the new job, in a way you are cutting off your nose to spite your face, financially at least. Irishjohn may well be right. If they have got you into such a state you don't feel like going back to work, then surely they have won? I am not saying "get over it". There are some awful experiences in life you may have to accept that you never get over completely. But it makes sense to learn to live with what happened - AND do something about it, as you are doing - but at the same time move on, and avoid a situation where the misery, not to mention financial loss, - keeps accumulating.

pepper33

I understand your advice, but I consider that when I feel well enough, which will be very soon, and I have been getting better bit by bit, but if my gp finds that I am not fit for work, the insurance for you to work is invalid, and the NICS will not let you work, unless you are signed off the sick as it used to be.
I feel I have already won somewhat, as I took a grievance, I know probably nothing will happen, as I just wanted it noted. I have witnesses, and I studied employment law at degree level, and I belong to the union. I don't want money, I want to get on with my life, and be able to do something else, outside of work, and not get bogged down with not being allowed to use my own ideas of improving my job or myself. I will get back and I will have won, because the investigation has already started..... thank you all for your advice, but I couldn't live with myself letting people like that get away with it. I am starting already to regain a feeling of a new start in life.....

mrsrwallace

pepper33, i just want to wish you well with whatever you do in the future and i just want to echo what irishjohn has said in his posts.

you have obviously suffered and are still suffering due to the bullying so yes i can totally understand your grievance and if i was in your shoes I would also push on with this til it reaches some kind of conclusion.

however, as i know you are also suffering financially and receiving no assistance as regards keeping the roof over your head i would strongly urge you to accept this other position in belfast and give them a firm start date to expect you in work. I say this as I know what it is like to have little to no income and to struggle on a daily basis. I also know that bad and all it is to suffer at the hands of bullies, it is extremely hard trying to exist on no income with no help and i feel that being in that situation would be disastrous for your mental health. i think that at least if you were back to your normal income then your finances would be one less worry and you would have a new focus in a new office where you can concentrate your mind on learning possible new skills, new routines etc. I think that yes push on with the grievance but do not let it ruin the rest of your life. irishjohn is right that you may not get the end result you want and the opportunity of this new position may pass you by and you could be in an even worse predicament. Are there not procedures in the NICS to gradually welcome you back into work after long term sick so that at least you would not be so overwhelmed and can be eased back into it?

Hope you can get to where you want to be. x

pepper33

thanks Mrs Wallace, I know you are in a bad position as well. I am going back to work soon, and looking forward to it. But my gp and consultant feel I am still not ready. I know my next job will be fine, as they are nice people.... but I still have to lower my medication, as I waken very early, and quickly fall asleep in the afternoon.
Mrs Wallace, I will keep posting, and if I can help in any way I will. I am feeling better, but not 100 per cent. I am very determined to get back to my job, but I will seek help for my mental health as I want to just be satisfied or just contented with life, not happy, just content......as wel all want to be.... Always in my thoughts..... hope things start getting better for you and the family.......