Is this Discrimination?

skibadee

I will go through everything and try to post that.

skibadee

Quick update, have had message left to contact them for induction, question now is.........do I even bother after all of the hassle?

zzzLazyDaisy

I am confused. They have asked you to come in for an induction, but they still have not told you when your start date is? Has an induction day been mentioned before this? Are they expecting you to take time off your current job, to work for them unpaid, before you start the job, or before they even give you a start date so that you can hand your notice in?

It is entirely up to you. I probably wouldn't bother. On the other hand, you did say they were advertising for a manager, so is it possible that the woman who has been giving you the run around has left? Did the message come from her, or from someone else? Just winding back - you were offered the position despite declaring your medical history at interview. After she withdrew the offer off her own back, she was told by HR to reinstate the offer and proceed with the position. It seems that all the problems have come from her, so maybe the working environment will be better for you under new management - if she has indeed left or is leaving?

If you are still waivering, I suppose attending an induction won't commit you to anything and could help you to suss out what the place would be like to work at?

Whatever - the fact is that they have kept you hanging on all this time, so you should not feel under any obligation to reply quickly, the ball is in your court.

My own feeling is that it would be useful for you to compile the timeline of events, and post it here so we can see exactly what has happened to date. It might also help you to clarify things in your own mind.

Dx

Uncertain

zzzLazyDaisy wrote: »

My own feeling is that it would be useful for you to compile the timeline of events, and post it here so we can see exactly what has happened to date. It might also help you to clarify things in your own mind.

I would certainly do that so that Daisy can assess your chances with a discrimination claim. However I have to say in your shoes I would want an incredible amount of persuading to give up your current job and go and work there now.

skibadee

Right here goes....

Job advertised 15th approx September
20/9/ job interview
22/9 / job offer

28/9 took documents for CRB/completed medical quetionaire to home.

2/10 job offer withdrawn....rang and spoke to manager

8/10 email to manager as no letter recieved re-offering job, had reply stating, '' have spoken to HR and OPs manager who say if we offer you 20hrs it will be subject to OH assessment

8/10 my reply '' do I have to wait for letter from OH ''

9/10 my email to manager '' am I being allowed to take position '''

9/10 managers repy '' yes because you will be on 6mth probation period, it just means if we have any concerns then OH will be aware and then assess you, hopefully this won't be neccessary, this is company policy and standard practice for all employees ''

26/10 my copy of CRB recieved.

29/10 contacted home re CRB said they hadn't recieved their copy

29/10 email to manager re CRB and start date....no reply.

30/10 email to their HR who confirmed CRB and would send confirmation to home.

6/11 email to manager re start date...no reply

12/11 email to HR... no reply

13/11 email to home...no reply

15/11 telephone msg to contact member of staff who interviewd me re induction

15/11 returned call, member of staff not aware that offer had been withdrawn etc., I said I was concerned after what manager had said etc., said the company works to equal oportunitys etc., I said I was concerned after what manager had said as I would have a hospital at in Jan/Feb next year also I had a holiday bkd for next Sept., she said neither would be a problem.
Wants me to contact her at weekend to arrange induction which will be for 2wks and aptly worked around my current working hrs....I will be paid for induction hrs, induction will not be at hoe but another one as no head housekeeper there at the moment.
Said I should now hand in my notice as everything had been cleared.

zzzLazyDaisy

skibadee wrote: »

15/11 returned call, member of staff not aware that offer had been withdrawn etc., I said I was concerned after what manager had said etc., said the company works to equal oportunitys etc., I said I was concerned after what manager had said as I would have a hospital at in Jan/Feb next year also I had a holiday bkd for next Sept., she said neither would be a problem.
Wants me to contact her at weekend to arrange induction which will be for 2wks and aptly worked around my current working hrs....I will be paid for induction hrs, induction will not be at hoe but another one as no head housekeeper there at the moment.
Said I should now hand in my notice as everything had been cleared.

Okay, before we go any further, we need to clarify some points, as it is not entirely clear to me what is going on here:

1 When you say you spoke to a member of staff who was not aware that the post had been withdrawn - What position does she hold? In other words is she in a position to over-rule or correct the manager?

2 Were you informed at the interview (or at anytime) that there would be a two week induction course before starting the job?

3 Is the Manager at the home still the same person who withdrew the job offer?

4 Earlier you said that since offering you the position of housekeeper, the home had advertised again for a housekeeper - was that the same job that you applied for, or was that a different job? Or do they have more than one housekeeper?

5 The vacant position of head housekeeper - is that the job you have been offered? Is it the same job that was recently advertised?

6 What do you want to do about this job - go for it, or not?

I have to say I am uncomfortable about relying on phone calls given the background to this. In your shoes, if I still wanted the job, I would want written confirmation of the post before handing my notice in, and I would be putting my concerns to HR in writing before I started the job.

As for whether you have a claim for discrimination:

>> The early comments and conduct of the home manager and withdrawal of the job offer were clear discrimination.

>> The delays in dealing with the CRB check could easily be put down to procedural delays and/ or internal incompetence and in any case the fact that HR offered you the job in the first place knowing your history, tends to suggest that the discrimination is not endemic at company level.

>> Whether the continuing delays in dealing with this once the CRB was sent to the home amount to further discrimination by the manager (in law) will depend on the facts and it is impossible to know at the moment - if you took this further, the manager may say that the reason for the delay was short staffing and admin delays - she is unlikely to admit that she deliberately delayed because she just didn't want you working there. So it all depends on whether she is believed or not. You might as well toss a coin.

Basically, what I am saying is don't let the issue of whether you have a claim for discrimination against the company make the decision for you.

If you decide not to take the job, you have nothing to lose by making a claim - which you should win on the earlier conduct of the manager - but tribunals are stressful and you won't get megabucks in compensation, so this should not be the main consideration at the moment.

First decide if you still want the job.

skibadee

1...I think she is Clinical lead.

2. No I wasn't informed of induction.

3. As far as I am aware the manager is still there at the moment.

4. They have 6 housekeepers plus head housekeeper, position that I was offered was withdrawn from website once second offer had been accepted by me, they are still advertising for a Relief.

5. No it is not the head housekeeper job.

6. Yes I think I still want the job.

The person I spoke to today seemed quite shocked about withdrawal, she has asked me to ring her at the weekend as she is on a 12hr shift to arrange a induction.

I am trying not to base my decision now on the managers previous comments, and I accept that the process can be quite lengthy due to CQC procedures.

I will discuss things at more length I think when I ring at the weekend.

zzzLazyDaisy

It is quite possible that the ethos of the company is good as far as disability awareness is concerned, and that this Manager is a bit of a loose cannon. But of course you are going to be working directly for her, not the bods at head office.

In some ways the fact that the induction is to take place at another home is a good thing, as your training and induction will/should be impartial.

However, I suggest that when you have your chat at the weekend, you might want to ask for the first induction day to take place at the home, so you get a feel for what it is like to work with this manager, and what it is like to work at that particular home. You should explain that the reason is that you are concerned about the fact that the manager not only withdrew the job offer, but when you questioned this, she then came back and said that she had spoken to HR and said that the job offer was conditional on you passing a medical with the OHA. It was only later that you were informed that this was not necessary and the job offer was reinstated. All the indications are that the Manager does not want you working at the home, so it is a reasonable request that you have an opportunity to see what it is like to work with her, and to make sure she is happy for you to proceed with this appointment. Hopefully, the person you speak to at the weekend should not have a problem with this.

I know that they have said you can hand in your notice now, but you might also want to delay doing this until you have had at least one or two induction days. Once you have handed your notice in and this has been accepted, your current employer MAY allow you to withdraw your notice, but is not obliged to. Also bear in mind that a job offer can be withdrawn for any reason as long as it is not discriminatory - so if for some reason your work is not considered satisfactory during the induction period, the offer could be withdrawn for that reason (hence my comment above, about the training being impartial)

Uncertain

I'm sorry ladies but you both clearly have a more charitable view of human nature than me!

Maybe that does you both credit but I can only repeat my comments from post No. 65.

If you do go for this job then I can only sincerely hope I'm wrong and it works out well.

Sambucus_Nigra

Uncertain wrote: »

I'm sorry ladies but you both clearly have a more charitable view of human nature than me!

Maybe that does you both credit but I can only repeat my comments from post No. 65.

If you do go for this job then I can only sincerely hope I'm wrong and it works out well.

And me - I wouldn't touch this job with a barge pole.