Need Advice about Work

aldroidvshucks

Hello.

I work at a well known supermarket in the UK. I was recently disciplined for gross misconduct (discrimination) and was very lucky to have kept my job (thanks to that the fact that I am not a problem colleague and that I am respected and highly regarded as a valued colleague).

As with such things, the colleagues affected by this have managed to spread their side of events to a few colleagues, including one manager who is very close to them.

I, on the other hand, have apologised to the colleagues and have been rightly punished for what I have done. The very contents of my disciplinary hearing are confidential and if questioned by any colleagues, I should just say that the matter is private and it is now closed.

However, the colleagues I have offended are still awkward/upset with me which is fair enough and I accept that. I feel dreadful still.

HOWEVER, this manager (who is friends with these colleagues) was completely rude and out of line today with me. He came marching down to my department today, said some comment about me (I couldn't hear it but he was staring at me with an evil look) - my line manager and another colleague heard it however - and he then proceded to write down my shifts for the upcoming fortnight (I imagine so he can change his shifts so we don't work together). He then gave me another evil look and walked off. As I was leaving work, I had a joke with a colleague and walked away. As doing so, I heard this manager call this colleague's name and then just laugh.

It has disappointed me because before, this manager was friendly to me and now since my disciplinary (involving another colleague who he is close to), it seems like he is now going to act like an absolute **** to me.

The manager who carried out the disciplinary has warned me to "be cautious around some colleagues as they are upset still" but also advised me to inform him immediately if any colleagues create further tension. My manager and a fellow colleague both witnessed this today and my manager was equally upset with him.

The question is, what shall I do? I understand that the next few weeks are going to be awkward and challenging for me but it surely is not acceptable for a manager especially, who has only heard either one side of the story or rumours, to jump to conclusions and then treat me like so (in front of colleagues)? I imagine this manager is amazed (along with pretty much everyone else) that I have managed to continue my employment but that still does not give him the right to treat me like ****.

I really do need some advice.

Thanks guys!

MrHR

Do you have a HR Manager in store? If so I would certainly speak to them, Explain that you are well aware that things might be great for you for a while but equally on the other hand you have been dealt with through a formal process for what you done so certainly don't expect to be treated any differently by Management as a result.

Daedalus

Keep HR apprised, but really, you need to keep your head down for sometime, eventually most people will forget and move on.

aldroidvshucks

I know that I need to keep my head down but I expect this rift with this particular manager (who, to be honest, should keep his nose out of this as he has only heard one side/rumours) to be an ongoing issue.

harrys_dad

aldroidvshucks wrote: »

Hello.


The manager who carried out the disciplinary has warned me to "be cautious around some colleagues as they are upset still" but also advised me to inform him immediately if any colleagues create further tension. My manager and a fellow colleague both witnessed this today and my manager was equally upset with him.

I think you have your answer there. I suggest it might be better for you if your manager reported it themselves, but if they won't then I would report it yourself. You did nothing to produce this unacceptable behaviour, and it needs sorting by senior management.

FBaby

I would record absolutely everything said and done, time, name of witnesses, how it is affecting you etc... but not do anything with it unless the pattern continue. The outcome you are looking for is for this attitude to die down so you can move on and forget about it. Hopefully, with time, keeping the attitude you are demonstrating in your post, this is what will happen. It would be a pity to re-open the issue at this stage.

However, if it continues or gets worse, I would go to HR with your record.

dktreesea

If you do nothing, and then later try to do something, it will look odd, as in if it didn't bother you to do something about it when it happened, why are you doning something about it later on. I think you should say to your manager that it was out of line and ask him/her what to do. That's what "manager" means in part, taking on the burden if someone not on your staff's line management disrespects your staff.

If he won't do anything, because he doesn't want to get a bad rep among his management peers (i.e. the "us vs them" aspects of management), just go back to the manager who did the disciplinary. If it doesn't improve, put everything down in writing, as in something along the lines of
" As per our meeting of <date> where I informed you of <x's> treatment of me, nothing has improved, evidenced by the following incidents. Please can you tell me when this pattern of ongoing harassment is going to stop?"

You have to be tough and dispassionate to survive - and take appropriate action - this kind of harassment. Make a note of every incident. Every comment about you behind your back but in your hearing, any incident where someone has deliverately sought to disadvantage you compared to the rest of your colleagues (changing your regular shifts for no good reason would count, as would giving you shifts which you may not be able to do due to childcaring responsibilities. Workplaces are required by law to be flexible on this front if their shift allocations are sufficiently arbitrary that it allows them to be flexible. For sure supermarkets fall under the gambit of this particular workplace regulation.)

Make sure you get appropriate medications from your doctor, especially depression, and go and see him and tell him what is going on.

When it gets to the point when you can't take it anymore, take on the company for constructive dismisssal. As in yes, they have allowed you to keep your job, but have then instigated a campaign of harassment designed to make you resign.

I know you want to keep your job, but often the only decent thing to come out of this kind of situation is money, as in damages for constructive dismissal, so you may as well have it. Your manager is a spineless git. He should have told the other manager he was out of line and escalated this the moment it happened.

dktreesea

FBaby wrote: »

I would record absolutely everything said and done, time, name of witnesses, how it is affecting you etc... but not do anything with it unless the pattern continue. The outcome you are looking for is for this attitude to die down so you can move on and forget about it. Hopefully, with time, keeping the attitude you are demonstrating in your post, this is what will happen. It would be a pity to re-open the issue at this stage.

However, if it continues or gets worse, I would go to HR with your record.

Yes, good advice, but remember, HR are not there for you. They are there to protect the organisation in case anything comes up that could involve the comapny in a legal dispute.

By all means let them know, but don't expect them to do anything. They certainly won't be able to make the harassment stop, though they may advise senior management of the legal consequences if it doesn't stop, inspiring senior management to get involved.

Dealing with HR tends to be a form over substance thing. They are usually useless, but if you don't inform them at some point, it will point to the fact that you didn't take appriorate action at the time when you really come to the point when you want to do something about it.

dktreesea

And discrimination works both ways. Just because someone successfully accused you of discrimination and won, getting you disciplined, doesn't mean they or anyone else in the company gets to mete out that kind of treatment back to you.

Dogger69

Start looking for a new job. Given the apparent seriousness of the incident you were disciplined for, there will always be someone that knows and will be there to make your life difficult. HR can only protect you so much, best to get a fresh start somewhere new.

tonyalcock

Did you try to talk to this manager? If you say you were in good relation before the disciplinary, then there is a chance, he is eager to discuss this with you?