ESH

Good morning all,

I was hoping for some words of wisdom regarding the above matter.

Short story is that my girl friend has not been happy with her current employer so has voted with her feet and will soon be re-joining her old firm. Its most definitely an upwards step that would not have been offered whilst she was with them earlier this year.

She handed in her notice on Friday giving 4 weeks and all the nice things one should include in a formal letter or resignation. Her boss immediately threw his toys out of his pram and told her she was being unfair and this was not what was agreed when she joined the company (please see above for the reason).

The weekend passed and late Monday before she set off home her boss summond her into his office and this is his words now: "The general concensus in the office is that the majority of staff have issues working with you and it would be for the best if you left sooner. Can you hand ovver your accounts and make ready to leave in two weeks". Many other things were said albeit without HR being present. This being a very small marketing agency mean't there is no official HR person so was below belt to say the least. In fact he pressured my GF to agree to this.

Obviously I went spare at this act. I've demanded a copy of her contract a few times but have never pressed it due to my own demands from work however I did put together this email to warn him to tow the line. I've edited the company details FYI:

Dear Winton,

Having thought about your comments and proposal I'd like to make my postion clear.

As of Friday 12th I served notice of my intention to leave JM on the 9th November 2007. This has presented you ample opportunity (4 weeks) to weigh the pros and cons of my future with JM.

To date bar a few negtive comments that members of your team have made I have conducted myself and my business to the highest professional standards which has resulted in a mamouth quarter for JM. It could well have been the best quarter in the companies history!!

A number of reasons can be attributed to my decision to both "let you down" and part company with JM however my prominent reason is that I do not feel that your organisation matches up to my career ambitions. In a nutshell the role does not match what was offered however to have goal posts moved is not ethical nor professional. A sales animal sometimes needs to rise above common office culture so that they may excell in their remit. Lets say it can be a very solitary role and experience.

To my pressing issues:

I will not be pushed into leaving prematurely without a guarantee that my months wages are secure. I am contracted to serve 4 weeks and will only leave once this is either served under my current contract or a period of gardening leave is agreed for the remainder of my time with JM.

I've noted the unprofessional nature of your comments minus an HR representative and nominated representative of my choosing. This is not to continue. Any such conversations must be confirmed in writing and signed off in the same way as my notice.

I am more than happy to facilitate a fair and professional transition of my accounts to NC. As you know there are a number of opprotunites in the market that are poised to work with JM. We do not wish to miss these opportunities so we need to work together to pull these through. We do not want mixed messages on the clients side.

Finally. Any further conduct of todays nature will force me to seek professional advise or legal council if needs must. My time here has been most positive and I do not wish to taint my experience further.

Let us be amicable about my departure and let me leave with a "door open" attitude.

What do you think? This is option 1. In my book option two is ugly and I feel unnecessary but a very real option. I'm not standing by while some jumped up nonce takes advantage of my GF. I am trying to force gardening leave and would also like to ensure GF can get her full four weeks pay too.

Thanks in advance and I look orward to some very real advice.

Esh

PeteBrant

Was there any quesiton that he wouldn;t be paying her a full months notice? It;s not uncommon for people to be asked to leave before they work thier notice, but have to be paid for that notice period.

If her contract states she has a four week notice period, then her employer has to pay her for those 4 weeks - Regardless as to whether they actually want her to work it.


Before you send letters and what not, you need clarification as to thier intention with regards to pay.

WRX_Dazza

i would spell check the letter... then go round there and turn their office block into a carpark

good luck

ESH

A fair point Pete,

To clarify. His intention is to just pay her fort he two should my GF agree to leave in two weeks. The boss's PA was ousted in such a manner. He wore her down stating he wanted her out. She took a day off sick as a result and did not return. Was just paid up to that week ending.

I do believe he is trying to save some money by having her out of the business minus two weeks wages.

The letter was not sent by me but forwarded to her mail box and sent directly by her by email as an additional notice. I'll get involved if option 1 includes a nominated rep or option 2. We want this done as cleanly as possible too.

Thanks!!

mrtheedge2u2

As Pete says, when I left my old company I was immediately asked to leave and put on "garden leave"...... still pay you your notice period, and you get to enjoy it at home.....

Some companies, especially companies with very sensitive information do this as a rule.

The Zohan

What Pete said is spot on and exactly my thoughts on the matter

PeteBrant

Right, If it were me, I would do the following.

-Get a copy of my contract. Read it through, ensure that 4 weeks is stated as the minimum notice period.

-Go to see my boss with said contract and point out that the minimum notice period is 4 weeks. I am happy to leave in 2 weeks, but he must pay me for 4.

-If he refuses, I would say that I have no option but to take the matter further. Keep everything nice, don't tell him any more than he has to know, and certainly don't justify your decision to leave any further than you already have. It's your choice to go, you don't owe him any further explanation.

-Go to a solicitor specilising in employment law.

Trout

iTrader: (1)

Whatever you do, DO NOT send that letter. It is asking for more trouble than either you or your girlfriend want.

If you want to send anything then something along the lines of...


Dear Winton,

thank you for sharing your views in our recent discussion. I confirm that I am happy to leave the office after the two week period you have suggested. I have checked my contract and also confirm that I have a four week notice period and I expect this to be honoured.

If you have an questions then I am happy to discuss this further and if this is the case I would ask that there is an HR representative of the company present and that, if appropriate, I can also have a nominated representative present at my discretion.

I wish you and xxx company, all the very best in the future.

Yours faithfully,

xxxxx

Scooby Snacks 23

Second the spell check suggestion, and also lose the 2 exclamation marks after Company's (not companies) history.

ESH

Thanks for all of your swift responses.

Yes, yes spell check!! Sorry all. Was done in hotmail and sent with hotmail. I could not load up word at home to dump it into and check.

I will be reading over the contract this eve. What I did see was the offer letter which statd the minimum notice. I dare say the contract will have more caveats contained within.

Rannoch: Too late bud. Was se furthert last night. I will add that the letter of resignation was very profressionally put together and praised the said organisation so this was more a counter to yesterdays underhand meeting.

Hope this clarifies things further.

davegtt

Rannochs suggestion is the best IMO. Asking politely for clarity of the situation but also stating your own personal wishes without stiring up more trouble

davegtt

Doh, just read that youve already sent the email then. Hmmm, Good luck, bit late asking for advice now youve already done the deed. Expect some ruffled feathers this morning if I was you

Drunken Bungle Whore

I have to agree with Rannoch. Your letter - especially the last part - is too vindictive to be constructive. It will cause your GF more problems right now and could count against her should she need to pursue this through a tribunal.

billythekid

So long as her months pay is secure I would not worry, however get this in writting - and not from the "office manager" get it from a director or HR person.

When I left my job I was escorted out less than an hour after giving in my notice to a waiting taxi! Ok so I had access to sensitive info but even I was not expecting that!

AJF

iTrader: (1)

how long had she been with the company

Adrian

Trout

iTrader: (1)

All I can say is good luck.

If I was the employer I would use the acceptance of poor performance implied in your letter to chuck her out with no pay at all. As a short term employee she would have little protection in the law.

I would put this down to experience and suggest a rule that I learned years ago. When you write and angry email wait at least one sleep, preferably 24 hours before sending it or you will always regret it.

ESH

Thanks again but whats done is done. We do not yield to bully boy tactics especially in the work place. Yes the notice is aggressive and rightfully so!

FYI its a small marketing agency and does not have an active HR person day to day. The ocmpany is made up of the MD, operations, IT and Client managers. Oh and accounts. In all about 10 people.

Trout

iTrader: (1)

PS My best was resigning and being asked to leave after four weeks with a six month notice period! That was a great holiday!

Trout

iTrader: (1)

An eye for an eye only makes the whole world blind.

Any company of that sort of size will have someone who will have legal responsibility for HR matters.

ESH

8 months.

Cheers again Rannoch but her conduct cannot be faulted in her time with the company. She has gone above and beyond her call of duty to make the business alot of money in a very short space of time. In speaking to the small team there this morning comments made by the MD were a lie. I can understand him being dissapointed in loosing a vital asset but to go to these lengths to push someone out earlier with little jusitfication is wrong hence the action.

No more tryin to justify my actions more what can be done regarding their being no HR function. An agreement needs to be made how is this best done now?

ESH

Precisely. We wish to identify this person and close things off in a more positive fashion.

MikeCardiff

iTrader: (2)

It does sound a bit like the boss has got his **** in his hand, and wasnt happy about her leaving ( I can see his point a bit, if someone was working for you and handed in their notice, leaving you in the lurch, then would you want them still hanging around the office for a month ? ) so just wants to get rid of here asap.

TBH, if she has another better job to walk into, then for the sake of losing two weeks pay she may be better off just agreeing and going. Does she really wants to put herself through the stress and hassle of a tribunal for the sake of a few hundred quid ?

Leaving on good terms wont make a lot of difference as its unlikely the company is ever going to employ her again or ask her to come back, so it may be time to cut her losses.

ESH

FYI all. She calls me babe AWW

"Hi babe

I've just spoken to him in front of Sam and he reckons that he cannot guarantee that he can provide a written confirmation response for my 4 week notice period. They then asked me if i've spoken to JB about starting early i told them that it has nothing to do with JB and that they are happy for me to start back in 4 weeks as agreed to honour the terms of my notice period.

I told them that i expect to be paid for the full 4 weeks notice period and i am happy to work this period in the office or at home. Sam asked me to state the outstanding campaigns that i am working on which equate to 4 including one ongoing due to technical web site building for the Spyro online quiz.

He is now sat in the office chatting to sam"

What do you think?

mrtheedge2u2

Contrats are binding unless they can prove gross misconduct, if it states that she has a 4 week notice period then they have to honour that.

As you sent an arsey email, do not be suprised if they are either going through everything with a fine tooth comb to find a way out of it, or maybe you can expect them to make your misses final 4 weeks as miserable as possible.

AJF

iTrader: (1)

sorry for all the questions

Is she due any holiaday


Adrian

ESH

To answer the last 2 points.

Yes contracts are binding. She will continue to carry out her contracted duties until her four weeks are up. Her bonus is not linked to her sales activity (I won't go into that) so their won't be any sales. She does not need a reference from this company either so it boils down to protecting her income. Which we are fighting for. If they wish to make things very difficult for her I will move to option 2 making life for him infinitely more difficult. The contract should protect both the employer and employee.

Two days remaining Adrian.

Drunken Bungle Whore

Unless they put something in writing that's incorrect, you will find it hard to find a lawful way to make their life 'infinitely more difficult'. The problem meeting took place behind closed doors with nothing recorded and no witnesses.

What did you have in mind?

Should you pursue them through any sort of tribunal rest assured your email will surface and be used in their defence to demonstrate aggressive behaviour on your part.

I'm not having a go - I'm just letting you know what's likely to happen.

AJF

iTrader: (1)

can she not start for the other company early


due to the fact she will poss have to work in an office while having to watch her back at every move due to the fact they want her to go 2 weeks early

Adrian

ESH

[quote=Drunken Bungle *****;7334723]Unless they put something in writing that's incorrect, you will find it hard to find a lawful way to make their life 'infinitely more difficult'. The problem meeting took place behind closed doors with nothing recorded and no witnesses.

What did you have in mind?

quote]

I'm not going to spell out my intentions but you've hit the nail on the head. We are attempting to reason with this bully by fair means but I've not ruled out taking this to the playground.

ESH

We'll let today run its course and examine things further once he's responded.

Thanks a bundle for all of your views on this matter

If anything its highlighted the aggressive stance we have adopted. We are gambling he will cave in so lets just see.