Publicly Supsended

hyubh

Seanicus said:

My contract does not have a non-compete clause which, whilst important for avoidance of doubt and legality, is irrelevant as I don't have a conflict of interest nor would I want my colleagues/staff to suffer from my departure by taking business from them (might sound naive, but it's an important point to me).

Not sure why this is irrelevant...? If you're leaving for a competitor, then it was up to your current employer when your contract was drawn up to protect against the possibility. Business is business - proper competition is in the customer's interests. If you're really so important to these clients sticking with your current employer, then your colleagues would do well to follow you out.

thebrexitunicorn

Undervalued said:

thebrexitunicorn said:

I agree that the way that the suspension has been dealt with leaves a lot to be desired.  It should not have been done publicly and staff should not have been informed of the fact that you are suspended.   I can understand why you feel you couldn’t go back. 

Potentially this could be a constructive dismissal (provided you have at least 2 years service) but before resigning you might want to seek a legal opinion from an employment law solicitor. Any claim will probably take around a year to get to hearing at tribunal.  I think a good outcome at this stage would be a settlement agreement (including agreed reference). 

"Potentially" lots of situations could be constructive dismissal but it is a very, very hard claim to win. Less than 3% that reach a full tribunal hearing are actually won. Obviously some others are settled before getting that far, but even so think long and hard before going down that route unless you would genuinely be resigning anyway.

Which is why I chose my words carefully.  Only a judge can say with accuracy  a situation ‘is’ a constructive dismissal.  An employment law solicitor, provided they have adequate information regarding the case, can provide an opinion.  More cases settle than proceed to full hearing.  

If the information provided by Seanicus is accurate then, as I stated, this could be a constructive dismissal. 

KiKi

Could it have been handled better?  Probably.  Is it really worth the time, effort, stress and impact on your wellbeing to take them to court for something that you're moving on from anyway?  Absolutely not.  These things are hugely stressful, and I can't stress that enough (excuse the pun). 

Companies and managers can be utterly incompetent; it's not against the law.  

General_Grant

hyubh said:

Seanicus said:

My contract does not have a non-compete clause which, whilst important for avoidance of doubt and legality, is irrelevant as I don't have a conflict of interest nor would I want my colleagues/staff to suffer from my departure by taking business from them (might sound naive, but it's an important point to me).

Not sure why this is irrelevant...? If you're leaving for a competitor, then it was up to your current employer when your contract was drawn up to protect against the possibility. Business is business - proper competition is in the customer's interests. If you're really so important to these clients sticking with your current employer, then your colleagues would do well to follow you out.

Fidelity is a common law aspect of an employment contract, it doesn't have to be written.