Primary employer trying to force me to leave second job

Undervalued

t0rt0ise said:

There is no conflict of interest. People are redefining the term to suit. And they can't make you redundant or sack you for no reason as you have employment rights. I'd ask them on what legal grounds they are asking you to choose jobs. It'll show them that you know what's what.

I don't agree. As I said back on page two there are arguments both ways here and I am far from sure how a tribunal (if it got that far) would rule on this.

I certainly wouldn't suggest taking an "I know my rights" attitude with a well resourced employer when you clearly don't! If the OP has union membership, or legal cover as part of their home insurance, I would take some proper advice before the OP risks their main job.

Even then it doesn't stop them being dismissed, a tribunal claim could take a year or more before it is heard and compensation (even if they win which is far from certain) is generally far less than people imagine.

Savvy_Sue

Undervalued said:

I certainly wouldn't suggest taking an "I know my rights" attitude with a well resourced employer when you clearly don't! If the OP has union membership, or legal cover as part of their home insurance, I would take some proper advice before the OP risks their main job.

Even then it doesn't stop them being dismissed, a tribunal claim could take a year or more before it is heard and compensation (even if they win which is far from certain) is generally far less than people imagine.

I agree: I'm hoping the OP is in a union (I've never understood people working in the 'people professions' who don't join!) and can get proper advice. 

Given that many care homes are taking the view with agency staff that 'you work here and nowhere else, or you don't work here' in order to prevent Covid being spread from one setting to another, it doesn't seem unreasonable for them to take the same view wrt other jobs. 

yellow1231231

im not a lawyer but logically you working in a pub is no different to a colleague thats been socializing every night mixing household sand doing other activities that could be considered high risk to catch covid 

xiodene

yellow1231231 said:

im not a lawyer but logically you working in a pub is no different to a colleague thats been socializing every night mixing household sand doing other activities that could be considered high risk to catch covid 

But the employer doesn't know if an employee is out breaking the rules socially every night. But they do know that the OP is working in a pub.

It sounds to me like there is a conflict of interest here. The care home have to prioritise the welfare of their residents. It seems pretty reasonable to me.

Barny1979

For those who are saying it's not a Conflict of Interest, how would you feel if an elderly relative died from Covid in a care home due to the OP spreading it through the home as a result of working in the pub?

bradders1983

Barny1979 said:

For those who are saying it's not a Conflict of Interest, how would you feel if an elderly relative died from Covid in a care home due to the OP spreading it through the home as a result of working in the pub?

How do you know another member of the care home didnt catch it from having a meal out in Nandos?

Inpossible to play the blame game.

Barny1979

bradders1983 said:

Barny1979 said:

For those who are saying it's not a Conflict of Interest, how would you feel if an elderly relative died from Covid in a care home due to the OP spreading it through the home as a result of working in the pub?

How do you know another member of the care home didnt catch it from having a meal out in Nandos?

Inpossible to play the blame game.

Doubt the solicitors would see it that way.

bradders1983

If people were easily able to prove who they caught it from then we would have seen the "no win no fee" vultures pop up by now, and I havent seen a sausage.

Solicitors cant work on "assumptions" in this case. Absolutely no way if proving how someone catches it but I can understand why the nursing home is reacting in the way they are doing. Are they telling all their other employees never to visit pubs?

shellyboot

Barny1979 said:

For those who are saying it's not a Conflict of Interest, how would you feel if an elderly relative died from Covid in a care home due to the OP spreading it through the home as a result of working in the pub?

Whether I work in a pub or not.... 
Every member of staff is a conflict of interest when it comes to a virus that is literally everywhere. So have been advised that if they were to down the conflict of interest route then I could go to tribunal for unfair dismissal and discrimination.
If covid ever got into a nursing home I don't think anyone would be able to point a finger in anybodies direction for blame, it can be transmitted in so many ways. 
As I have said before, I dont enter the main residence of the home, just enter the kitchen, work and go home. I'm not saying that I couldn't take it to the nursing home, but so could a member of staff that only goes to work and their home but decides to go to the newsagents for a paper one day and catches it. It's impossible to trace and predict in many ways. 

Undervalued

shellyboot said:

Barny1979 said:

For those who are saying it's not a Conflict of Interest, how would you feel if an elderly relative died from Covid in a care home due to the OP spreading it through the home as a result of working in the pub?

Whether I work in a pub or not.... 
Every member of staff is a conflict of interest when it comes to a virus that is literally everywhere. So have been advised that if they were to down the conflict of interest route then I could go to tribunal for unfair dismissal and discrimination.
If covid ever got into a nursing home I don't think anyone would be able to point a finger in anybodies direction for blame, it can be transmitted in so many ways. 
As I have said before, I dont enter the main residence of the home, just enter the kitchen, work and go home. I'm not saying that I couldn't take it to the nursing home, but so could a member of staff that only goes to work and their home but decides to go to the newsagents for a paper one day and catches it. It's impossible to trace and predict in many ways. 

Advised by whom?

Unfair dismissal - possibly, as I said earlier in this thread. Given time there are bound to be some similar cases to this and I wouldn't like to say how they will be resolved.

Discrimination - No, unless you can claim it is on one of the few legally protected grounds (gender, religion, race etc).

Either way any claim would take ages to reach a tribunal and in the meantime you would be out of your main job. You might (or might not) win, and even if you did compensation is usually far less than most people imagine.

I sympathise but that is the harsh reality.