employees being treated detrimentally. Jemima jumps in. We've never been accused of throwing new members of the team in
A STORM IN A CARDBOARD BOX Trauma as KFC runs out of chicken
RAISING CONCERNS A chain of poor HR calls drives a case officer to tribunal
JEMIMA FLOATS IN Our new Peace of Mind Intern keeps afloat
Your weekly bulletin of wit & wonder in the world of…
Wg Employment Issue 589/February 2018 We are on the edge of the abyss. It started on Monday… Day One… it was funny. On Day Two it was still funny but slightly worrying. Day Three, and we started to notice a real difference in our daily lives. Day Four… today… THE FABRIC OF SOCIETY IS BEGINNING TO RIP ASUNDER! People are roaming the streets, dull eyes staring, pressing their desperate faces to the windows, whimpering, ripping cardboard boxes into shreds, gnawing on cold, bare bones and wailing into the skies… WHERE IS OUR CHICKEN? WHERE IS OUR KENTUCKY FRIED CHICKEN? Who knew how dependent we had become on the colonel’s top secret blend of herbs and spices? When I was growing up, a box of Kentucky Fried Chicken was a rare and thrilling treat. We didn’t have the chance of building up an addiction because we just didn’t eat it that often. Seriously – we used to eat burgers at a Wimpy Bar… on a plate! But this week, as the chicken supply crisis deepens, the depth of our breadcrumb coated dependency in 2018 is being laid all too bare. Around half of the KFC outlets in the UK were closed this week and many still are according to the BBC website which said: Last week the fried chicken chain switched its delivery contract to DHL, which has blamed "operational issues" for the supply disruption. Earlier, a KFC spokesperson expected the number of closures to fall in the coming days as teams "work flat-out all hours to clear the backlog". I for one, am deeply shaken. In years to come I will be telling my grandchildren where I was when I first heard the news of the Great KFC Supply Crisis. Where were you? And how are you coping? Please share your thoughts on our FACEBOOK page. Or share your KFC popcorn if you can get any…
Good grief And speaking of crisis brings me to the case of Ms Bickerstaff v The Royal British Legion and a series of poor decisions which will leave you tutting. Ms Bickerstaff was employed by the Royal British Legion as a Case Officer. Issues in the workplace began when another member of staff went on long term sick leave. Ms Bickerstaff was concerned that she would be unable to cope with the increase in workload. Due to these concerns Ms Bickerstaff emailed her line manager, Mr France, stating that another member of staff was needed to cover the increased workload. Mr France’s reply was seen as confrontational and unsupportive by Ms Bickerstaff, and she was warned that should she give lesser priority to an important task, she would need to be prepared to justify her actions should an issue result. Following Mr France’s unsupportive actions Ms Bickerstaff felt it necessary to raise the issue of her workload to HR. Her email to HR was marked as confidential as she feared there could be repercussions for going above Mr France’s head. HR disregarded the confidential nature of the email and the email was then forwarded to Mr France.
EVENT SEASON 2018 EMPLOYEES MAKE THE WORLD GO ROUND Wednesday 7th March
MENTAL HEALTH CHECK Tuesday 10th July
SEXUAL HARASSMENT IN THE WORKPLACE Thursday 7th June
PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT Wednesday 17th October
PULLING A SICKIE Wednesday 5th September
To book onto any of our events email Karen Clarkson or Gina Spampinato at
[email protected]
Peace of Mind Do you want to save your business time and money, and reduce stress?
In September 2015 Ms Bickerstaff had a meeting with Mr France and another colleague during which Mr France was confrontational and aggressive. Ms Bickerstaff raised further complaints relating to two other members of staff not working the hours they were contracted to work and spending too much time on Facebook. This claim was dismissed by Mr France. Ms Bickerstaff was then signed off work on long term sick leave. Whilst on sickness absence the HR department asked whether Ms Bickerstaff wanted to raise a grievance. Ms Bickerstaff confirmed she wished to raise a grievance and that she did not want Mr France to deal with her when she returned to work. On her return Ms Bickerstaff raised further concerns over signed blank cheques being left in an unlocked drawer. Ms Bickerstaff was told by Lizzie O’Sullivan, her replacement line manager who had signed the cheques, not to come into the office or attend meetings until the matter had been resolved. The case has been heard at the Employment Tribunal who found that this disclosure was a form of whistleblowing and so Ms Bickerstaff should not have faced any detrimental treatment due to her disclosure.
“We signed up for Peace of Mind a few years ago and have been very impressed by the service and advice that we have received.” Contact us today on 02380 717717 or email
[email protected] to find out how Peace of Mind can help your business.
Ms Bickerstaff was then signed off sick in May 2016 and later resigned from her employment in December 2016 after no resolution had been discussed to allow her to return to work. The Employment Tribunal found in Ms Bickerstaff’s favour, stating that “she was ostracised by those with whom she worked by reason of that disclosure and that was a detriment.” The ET found that “there was such a breach of mutual trust and confidence, and that the appellant resigned in consequence of it and in good time. There was, as she stated in the beginning of her resignation letter, no way she could see that she could return to work.” This case highlights that a business’s HR department needs to be impartial when dealing with grievances and should be giving advice to staff about what whistleblowing means in order to prevent employees being treated detrimentally.
Jemima jumps in We’ve never been accused of throwing new members of the team in at the deep end, but if we did, we’re pretty sure our new Peace of Mind intern, Jemima Johnson, would cope.
Are you following us on Facebook? If you haven’t liked us already, follow the link below…
…and after liking us on Facebook, why not follow us on Twitter?
Jemima, a history graduate with a decade of experience in museums, libraries and cultural events, is also a keen kayaker and flatwater marathon racer. We’re not sure how this helps in her quest to learn about employment law, but we all have to paddle upstream from time to time in the legal world. Our new intern is on loan from immigration specialists Davidson Morris, a law firm based in London. Jemima will be working within the Peace of Mind team, assisting us with document audits and employment law issues such as disciplinary and grievance procedures and so much more…! We hope you get to chat to Jemima at some point during her stay with us – and maybe take the opportunity to get historical with her. (Not hysterical. Historical.)
Contact the team Sarah Whitemore (Partner) – 02380 717462 Howard Robson (Partner) – 02380 717718 Lisa Joyce (Associate) – 02380 717447 Emma Kemp (Associate) – 02380 717486 Natalie Rawson (Solicitor) – 02380 717403 DISCLAIMER While every effort is made to ensure that the contents of these diaries are up -to-date and accurate, no warranty is given to that effect and Warnergoodman does not assume responsibility for their accuracy and correctness. The diaries are pr ovided free of charge and for information purposes only. Readers are warned that the diaries are no substitute for legal advice given after consideration o f all material facts and circumstances by an experienced employment lawyer. Therefore, reliance shoul d not be placed upon the legal points explained in these diaries or the commentary upon them.
UNSUBSCRIBE If you do not wish to receive future editions of this newsletter, please simply reply to this e-mail and include the word "Unsubscribe".
Simply click on the logo to start following us and see our daily updates.
COPYING THESE DIARIES ON TO OTHERS While the author retains all rights in the copyright to these diaries, we are happy for you to copy them on to others who might be interested in receiving them on a regular basis, provided Warnergoodman is acknowledged as the publisher of the diaries and provided those persons register directly with ourselves, so that we are able to send future editions to them direct. No charge will be made for doing so. Alternatively, simply send us the e-mail contact details for anyone who wishes to receive the diary and we will be happy to add them to the circulation list. Unless expressly agreed by Warnergoodman in writing, nobody has authority to copy or use these diaries, or extracts from them, for any promotional or commercial purposes.
