Advice required regards employment situation rights - location of work

FlyMeSomewhere79

The site I worked at was closed last summer and I got offered a redeployment but it was a 2 hour round commute away which wasn't a pleasant commute and working from home was at the managers discretion and I was allowed one day a week at home but it was still too much for me especially after a car ploughed into me near the job and wrote my car off. I took my redundancy after 6 weeks of the redeployment.

The trouble is looking at other threads on this jobs board, there is an issue of people taking up roles in offices that are a long way from where they live based on fairly vague agreements that can eventually be changed by the employer. I have recently been offered a new role and it's 20 mins away, at 45 myself I'm absolutely happy with where my career is at and just want a job I can settle into and be happy and I made sure not to apply for anything too far away from home even if home working was listed as a perk because it's clearly open to interpretation and change. 

As for playing the stress game, I worked with people in the past that did that and it didn't go down well, the rest of us got fed up of picking up their workload on top of our own. You get a bad reputation around the company you work for because it's obvious that you went off sick the minute you didn't get what you wanted. It doesn't bode well if you want a different a job in that company or want to be employable beyond now - trust me on this because I'm on boarding for my new job and the outside screening company are going through my work history of the last three years with a fine toothed comb and contacting HR departments, so if you had to face this starting a new role and you have going off with stress for being asked to attend the office more on your record, you can see what's going to happen.

Mistermeaner

i wouldnt sweat behaviour at prior jobs; when your employment is eventually terminated it should be done under a settlement agreement which would be confidentially binding on both parties. All any HR department should do is confirm the dates you worked there and nothing more

FlyMeSomewhere79

Mistermeaner said:

i wouldnt sweat behaviour at prior jobs; when your employment is eventually terminated it should be done under a settlement agreement which would be confidentially binding on both parties. All any HR department should do is confirm the dates you worked there and nothing more

For me I have a good work record and previous managers willing to give a glowing reference but if somebody has being off with stress and issues being asked to come to the office more, there's always a chance that a future employer wants an actual reference that details work performance. Also if a person goes off with stress for months and especially gets severed due to ill health, that's something that has to be explained at an interview because they'll ask about stuff like that, they often do especially if there's an employment gap.

Grumpy_chap

Mistermeaner said:

Strange attitude to work IMO - every employees objective should be to get as much money as possible from their employer at the least cost (generally time) possible; why on earth would anyone do anything else?

It doesn't mean acting like a complete richard all the time as  short and long term this would likely be detrimental to your money making prospects but folk should absolutely recognise the game for what it is and exploit the rules to their advantage.

I disagree.

Employment is not about the employee screwing over the employer to get as much as possible for as little as possible.
Nor vice-versa.

First and foremost, employment is where / how most of us spend most of our time.  We have to work to make that time as satisfying as possible otherwise we simply become bitter and screw ourselves over with poor mental health.
There simply needs to be enough revenue generated for the individual to meet their needs plus reasonable wants.

Secondly, everything in life really comes down to personal relationships (on a professional level).  In the workplace, developing good personal relationships (professionally) means people will assist you when asked to do so, and maybe there to support your next career move as and when that point arrives.  Shock! Horror! You might even develop personal relationships (professionally) that means some of the colleagues actually become friends whom you mutually choose to spend time with outside the workplace.

The attitude of simply getting as much money as possible for as little effort probably does mean "acting like a complete richard all the time" and I have no doubt just leaves you feeling totally jaded with the whole workplace idea and sufficiently demotivated that by the time you reach your mid-40's you are simply not bothered with it anymore.

For many others, life only begins at 40 and it is the opportunity to embark upon whole new ventures with vigour and zest!

Mistermeaner

So….. this thread is not done yet 

Had a call with my boss this week : senior guy that is not my boss has been in my bosses ear about ‘Issues’ with me and my team, nothing specific when I asked for examples and my boss thought it was all strange. My boss seems ok with me and what I’m doing. There have been other strange things with invites from folk at the site to discuss various ‘issues’ about things that are genuinely not issues. When I’ve asked for specifics in advance of these meetings they’ve been cancelled 

it’s also been brought to my attention that senior guy who isn’t my boss has asked someone to pull details of my attendance at site and login data etc. This has communicated this to a number of people on site which is how it’s got back to me. Other folk on site have warned me that I’m being talked about and apparently no one knows what I do and “he’s got to go” has been mentioned 

I have a face to face with senior not boss guy next week 

clearly things are going to start to happen 

not sure of best way to play this - my boss is on my side in terms of performance. My attendance on site won’t look great as I work at home more than I should. The way they’re going about this is probably grounds enough for a grievance already 

I’m inclined to have this face to face and see what happens but basically say he needs to talk to my boss as far as I’m aware there is no issue with my or my team’s performance.

as for the attendance and working at home I  am the distanced site more or less as verbally agreed but I haven’t been in the close office much - various reasons car broke down medical appointments severe weather plus my condition does cause debilitating dizziness and tiredness…. I haven’t discussed this stuff with anyone including my boss as as far as I was concerned my work is fine I manage round it and have never needed to discuss it. In my view we have implied flexibility arrangement as I’ve been working this way for years and never been an issue.

welcome thoughts 

thanks 

Wonka_2

Mistermeaner said:

welcome thoughts 

Honestly - between this and your other posts it comes across that you value yourself more highly than they do and you feel entitled to a payoff. 

In your circumstances (and I have been very recently) I’d be making sure I was above reproach in every way - no car breakdowns, no migraines, no ‘working from home more than I should’ and, given these, no rocking the boat with grievances. 

If you want out then find an appropriate, positive moment to float it with your boss - and get your ducks in a row in case the ‘how much ?’ question gets fired back at you. 

Personally though I’d be reigning in your views about how likely it is to happen in the way you’re wanting 

Grumpy_chap

I agree with @Wonka_2 - the OP's latest post comes across as the OP feeling very entitled and superior and this leading to the OP receiving some large payoff.
I read it rather more as though the OP is facing some disciplinary and may well be suggested to resign first. 
 
Perhaps the fact the OP can't be bothered with work is coming through in the OP's standard of performance.
https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/6579930/can-t-be-bothered-with-work-any-more/p1

As nice as it must be to have the financial choice by mid-40's to work or not to work, I think I'd really find it quite unrewarding to leave the treadmill entirely, though could see choosing something with a more societal value as a worthwhile option / alternative (maybe charity / third sector work, or Magistrate, or CAB advisor, or politics, or similar).  None of those seem aligned with the "can't be bothered" status.

Savvy_Sue

The other thing is that if no-one knows about the migraines / dizziness / other reasons for WFH, then they won't take them into account. How can they?

Mistermeaner

Thanks for thoughts appreciated 

I think 1st thing to do , other than see what happens next week, is to be open with my boss about my health and the impact on me 

its Something I’ve been reluctant to raise as (a) we just don’t have that sort of relationship , I haven’t seen him face to face for years and at most we speak 30mins a week but he often cancels our 1:1 and also (b) I am genuinely living somewhat in denial about it - I have a serious and degenerative condition and (c) I’ve always managed my work and team around it - my performance reviews and feedback will evidence this, attendance at specific locations aside my performance is good. When at home I do work hard and legit long hours 

Mistermeaner

Also please be assured I am under no illusion that all of this could result in dismissal - however I do not believe anything so far can constitute gross misconduct and therefore instant dismissal so they would as a minimum need to start with verbal / written warnings and or a PIP which would give me chance to rectify behaviour or take more nuclear options - unless I am incorrect? Any such dismissal will require them to as a minimum pay my contractual notice which is 6months again unless I am mistaken 

on another note do you think it may be worthwhile me submitting a flexible working request citing my health condition and asking for reasonable adjustments around hours, location and travel - justification of no impact to company is that I’m doing it already and my performance reviews evidence work is being done without issue 

thanks