Job Dismissal - Advice

daparojo

I am wondering if anyone can advise. My son has a complex learning difficulty and easily exploited by others, and has been in employment for 6 months. He has always turned up on time, and has had no issues around his work or conduct. He has reported bullying on him from colleagues, where his manager has called him 'thick' 'mong' 'stupid' without any actions taken.

He does now and again smoke cannabis at home, never in work. Something he is trying to get help on, and something we have never approved on. 

Whilst working he was asked to be part of a scam by a work colleague that would involve stealing from the company. He refused, and was contemplating on how to report this to his manager. During the day, my son fell over after walking backwards whilst performing his job role, and ended being sent home as he thought he had broken his ankle. Whilst he was away, the colleague reported my son for smoking a joint during work, and the resultant was that he was summoned to a disciplinary for gross misconduct. There was no drug test, or evidence by anyone that he had done what was alleged.

During the meeting, the person representing the HR department said that my sons line manager had mentioned that he has turned up in work with his 'eyes all over the place' and 'smelling of weed'. My son also has had contructive surgery twice on bad squints, that has failed, and has made his eyes worse. This leaves his eyes shaky all the time and has a bad squint, that causes irritation. My son admits he does consume cannabis now and again at home, but has never used it in work. They also said he fell over due to taking cannabis due to cannabis staying in the system for 3 days.

But due to this hearsay by the work colleague, and the smell of cannabis on his clothes, he was instantly dismissed with a right to appeal.

He appealed and failed.

Due to his learning difficulty, he is distraught as he prided himself on his work, and loved his job. He knows that if he had done something bad, he would have to face the consequences, but cannot understand the decision or process and feels he has been a victim in this.

Is there any rights he can claim ?He isn't bothered about money, he is more bothered that someone has lied and tarnished his name. 

During the winter months he only was contracted to work 4 days a week, but received the same salary every month. To allow this 4 day a week, he worked extra hours in the summer to compensate this due to the nature of the job. The company haven't paid him, or will pay him for these extra hours.

Whilst having his disciplinary, he reported his colleague for theft, and that person was also dismissed.


Many thanks for your support.

tacpot12

I don't think there is anything that your son can do, other than stopping smoking cannabis. Cannabis does stay in your body for quite a long time and does impair your motor skills, which is why you're not allowed to drive with it in your system. 

In some respects, it sounds like he has been the victim of disability discrimination, but I don't think this trumps the fact that the employer followed a reasonbale process that concluded that he was under the influence of cannabis when he was at work. This is not a situation that can be allowed as it's not safe for his collegues (or him, as his fall shows).

It's unfair that his colleague reported him for smoking a joint at work when he did not, but he was not dismissed for this. He was dimissed for being under the influence from smoking cannabis elsewhere. (It's the disctinction between drinking at work and being drunk at work; there's really not a lot of difference from the employer's perspective).  

The decison and the process are both logical, so you will need to help your son understand them and move on. You can reassure him that his work ethic and fact he held down this job for six months bode well for the future, but he has to stop taking the drug because these make him unsafe at work.

If your son hasn't been paid for work he has done, he can ask the employer to pay him and can take action if they don't do so. He needs to act quickly. There are timelimits (which he may already have missed) to request his correct pay. He needs to be able to evidence that they haven't paid him correctly according to his contract. Perhaps you can help prepare this evidence to share with his employer and ACAS if necessary. Have a read of this link: Problems getting paid - Citizens Advice

daparojo

Thank you for your input, its appreciated, and it is something I have supported him with.  With regards to being under the influence, he wasn't when he fell - it is only a summation by the employer e of his eye condition which he can prove medically if required. He offered to provide evidence of this, but they refused.

They have accused him of smoking weed whilst in work, and that they have dismissed him on this. There is no proof, only hearsay. 

This is also a company that allowed him to work 3 months without a contract, despite him repeatedly asking for a copy.

In the long term he will be better away from this company, but he is upset that he has been accused of something he hasn't done.

elsien

How long has he worked there for? 

daparojo

Unfortunately 6 months. He just wants what is owed to him financially, but the main aim is to clear his name.

lincroft1710

As he had only worked there for 6 months, his employer could have dismissed him without reason.

General_Grant

Is there written evidence that your son has that the dismissal was on the grounds of smoking weed whilst at work?

daparojo

Yes it was what he was dismissed for as well as a high probability he was under the influence according to the letter.

There is no evidence or proof to back that claim, only hearsay.

TBagpuss

Hearsay can be evidence, but it is a bit of a red herring as disciplinary processes are not court proceedings. The employer only needs to have reasonable grounds to belive the allegation.
 It sounds as though in this case, thee evidence they had was
- someone making an allegation that he had nebeen smoking
- there being a smell of weed
- his falling

Those would be enough that a responable employre could believe that he had in fact been smoking weed / was still under the influence when working.

But also, as he has been there less thantwo years they can dismiss him for any non-discriminatory reason.

If they took into account his eyes then that's an error on their part as it sounds as thoug hthat's due to his health issues but it sounds as though it would not have changed the outcome. They didn't dimiss him becuae he has a squint or disabilities, they dismissed him because theyhd a reasonable belief that he was under the influence of cannabis. 

He may be entitled to claimfor the hours he worked - if the plan was to average it over the year and epecially if the actual hours he worked meant that he was paid below minimum wage - you would need to look at his contrct but if it was a fixed salary but with variable hours then he is unikely to have a claim unless the actual pay took him below min wage. Heshould be paid for any holiday he has accrued but hasn'ttaken. 

jj_43

I am not sure what advice you seek? You state he uses cannabis and he was dismissed for this. Yet you don't want to accept he was dismissed because this was smelt at work, instead he should have clearly been caught redhanded?
Instead put the focus on taking stock, learning from the experience and moving onto better things. Dealing with issues when they occur not after a current grievance is the best approach.