Potential dismissal

enzolondon1

Afternoon all, 

Posting for my niece for some advice who started working in an opticians 6 months ago. At interview she explained she didn't have one of the particular skills and asked about training and she was told she would be offered on the job training. This training has been very scarce and she has mentioned this to her employers who have said this particular aspect of the role takes time to learn. 6 months in she still isn't feeling confident at this aspect of her role and is worried she may get dismissed if she makes an error. She is considering leaving and doing some agency work. She is 31 with 2 small children and single and had a clean employment history. She was meant to have probationary reviews every 6 weeks but has only had one. Her final probationary review meeting is in 2 weeks. Any employment/job advice out there for her? cheers 🍻 

Undervalued

enzolondon1 said:

Afternoon all, 

Posting for my niece for some advice who started working in an opticians 6 months ago. At interview she explained she didn't have one of the particular skills and asked about training and she was told she would be offered on the job training. This training has been very scarce and she has mentioned this to her employers who have said this particular aspect of the role takes time to learn. 6 months in she still isn't feeling confident at this aspect of her role and is worried she may get dismissed if she makes an error. She is considering leaving and doing some agency work. She is 31 with 2 small children and single and had a clean employment history. She was meant to have probationary reviews every 6 weeks but has only had one. Her final probationary review meeting is in 2 weeks. Any employment/job advice out there for her? cheers 🍻 

"Probation" is virtually meaningless in employment law. It may give her some contractual benefits if she is deemed to have passed but she has virtually no protection against dismissal until she has been there for two years.

If she feels it is not working out but would like to try and stay then I would suggest she continues to proactively work with the employer to learn the more difficult parts of her job.

Otherwise, start looking elsewhere. It is generally easier to find a job whilst employed rather than unemployed.

TELLIT01

If she generally enjoys the job but is concerned about this one aspect, she needs to raise it again at here next review meeting.

Ms_Chocaholic

Has dismissal been mentioned or is this just your niece worrying.

enzolondon1

She enjoys it to an extent but i know she is looking elsewhere as she is an experienced support worker but struggled with the hours with childcare etc. Dismissal hasn't been mentioned before by the way and they have been pleased with her is my understanding.

diystarter7

Sadly stuff like this happens in small businesses.
Look for another job and then leave.
No point in getting stressed over a useless employeer who many only want her as a dogs body (no offence) and they
can't be bothered to pay for training etc as she meets their needs as they stand.

gwynlas

She is best off staying where she is if the hours and salary otherwise suit her. Any problems that arise due to lack of training in one area would be minimal if remainder of role manageable. Opticians staff are hardly run off their feet as opposed to other retail staff nd longer period in role looks better on job history.

cymruchris

You're both imagining 'the dismissal' aspect of your worries. It sounds like a typical retail environment - get them in - get them working - they'll pick it up as they go along. She's obviously got some concerns around a particular procedure - so if she's asked for support in regards this, and it's not been forthcoming - she might want to put it in writing that she'd like it addressed. If they'd wanted so dismiss her, I'm sure there would have been signs of this well before now. It's more likely that they are busy doing other things, and aren't prioritising staff development (and then they wonder why people leave).

It doesn't have to be narky in tone - but something along the lines of:

'I've been working with you all for around six months, and in general I'm really enjoying my time here, and am surrounded by a great bunch of people. There's an aspect that does worry me though, and I'd like to address it to ensure I can deliver to the best of my potential in this role. (Say what the area of development is - then:) I have made a verbal request a couple of times previously, but appreciate it's been a bit hectic, so no doubt it's not been easy to set aside some training time, but I'd feel so much more confident in what I do if was able to strengthen my understanding in this area. Would you be kind enough to put together a plan that will help me develop my skills, so that I can both enjoy my time working here, and also be confident in what I'm doing is the best for our customers.' 

enzolondon1

Thanks all. I will let her have a read of the responses. She is generally in employment for long periods so I am sure if she decided to call it a day it wouldn't be frowned upon and I have told her this. She is capable of earning more so it is up to her as it sounds as though the fact she isn't up to scratch with the main key aspect of her role it could have implications not mentioning the stress it seems to be bringing to her.