Hi, My Daughter was recently sacked from her job. There were two reasons that were cited at the disciplinary, one was upheld and the other one, fraudulent claim of mileage wasn't. They realised it was a simple mistake. She signed on and started to receive JSA. However she has just received a letter from the benefits office as they look into the claim, as they do. Her employer has stated the two reasons why she was dismissed even though one wasn't upheld. She has the letter from the employer saying that the mileage claim wasn't upheld, for the reason stated above. Is there anything she can do? She's obviously going to respond to the benefit office and enclose the letter from the employer stating that the mileage claim wasn't upheld. In my mind they shouldn't have even mentioned it. Any advice please?

I'm in the same boat as you with Unum, been told that I have to deal with foc myself, never received a formal rejection letter and had to phone my supervisor before I found out that Unum had turned down my final appeal with them. I have been waiting 10 months for that decision with only my partners wage coming in. Seems the larger company has no idea how it works with Unum as they have just passed the buck on to me. Told me either I come back to work or I will have to leave or be sacked. They are just giving me a week before I have a recorded meeting with them to decide if I'm going back. can they just sack me?, force me back into work? even though it's still with them going to the foc. Where do I stand if lost job and foc rules that Unum should be paying me employers income protection money? Nightmare

If an employer is found liable for disability knowledge because the FHSO new of the disability but did not inform management (vicarious liability? )or undertake a risk assessment is the employer then by default liable for not making reasonable adjustments (obviously they did not as they claimed lack of knowledge of the disability).

Hi, I have been having problems with debt over the 2 years. I've now put myself in a position to climb out of the hole I'm in. I moved this weekend & my employer knows this and now wants to know my new address.. The problem is they passed on my previous address to bailiffs when it was request before.. Because I am unhappy with them disclosing this information I am going to refuse to give my new address but pass them my parents address as a C.O. As far as I am concerned, I will have notifications of any mail sent to me by my work, and my home will be my safe-zone. By that I mean I can live in peace without having to worry about random bullies knocking at my door until I have got my footing again and I'm able to gain a debt-free status again. I have recently set myself up with a DMP (Stepchange) who are starting to 'manage' my debts with me so I am on track to get things paid up.. What are my legal obligations to tell my employers my address..? Am I legally entitled to pass them a C.O. or PO-Box because I need to feel safe in my own home? What does this clause say I need to provide? Also, Who are they allowed to disclose my details too?? I assumed by doing that they were in breach of the Data Protection Act. Does this count for government requests (E.G Councils)?

Hi, despite me doing all the JCP asks of me in way of proving my earnings (B7 and supplying payslips on regular basis) JCP keeps sending an Earnings Enquiry form to my Employer. My Manager is extremely busy and is refusing to fill this in which I can understand as it is very in depth and takes time. Another member of staff doing the same work as me in the shop is working approximately the same amount of hours as me but my Manager does not receive a form for her. This form is complicating my life as JCP is refusing to pay my partner's JSA without the form being filled in. Why do some people have to prove their earnings in this way and some don't? Is the JCP correct in doing this? Can anybody give any suggestions about how to resolve this problem? I should add that my Manager is always very angry when she receives these letters and makes me feel uncomfortable at work.

Hi there, wondering if anyone can give me some advice on an issue I have at the moment I have been told today that I will not receive my overtime pay from july in my august pay due to a mistake made by my regional manager and will now receive it in September instead my question is can my employer withhold this pay for another month they are saying that nothing can be done as the cut off time for pay has passed but bear in mind that today is the 16th and I don't get paid until the 28th I find it hard to believe that this cannot be rectified in time for pay day any advice anyone can offer will be much appreciated

My ex-employer never used to provide me payslips printed in official stationary. They used to provide them electronically to my company's email account, to which I don't have access anymore. These electronic payslips are not accepted as proof of income by banks and govt. agencies. I contacted them to provide me the payslips in company headed paper or stamp and sign them. So I can use them as proof of income. However, they are not replying to my email and their HR seems unreachable over the phone. I really need these to prove my income of the period I worked for them and cannot do without them. I only worked their for 6 months during 2011-2012, so they only need to print 6 payslips. I also informed them in my email that, if there's a reasonable amount service charge to produce these payslips in company headed paper, I will pay that. I would really appreciate your advice.

to cut a long story very short, My wife took Maternity in Oct 2011 received all her holiday pay up to and incl Dec 2011, before she was due to return to work she fell pregnant again and in between the end of her first maternity and the start of the second, (about May 2012) she went on the sick until she could start her second period of maternity. She did not return to work in 2012 at all. In the december of 2012, my wife requested her accrued holiday pay, her boss refused stating she couldn't pay it whilst my wife was on maternity, however she would continue to accure holidays - we have this in writing, our second daughter ws born in January 2013 and the subject of holiday pay got lost in the chaos of settling two small babies into the family. In June 2013, my wife had a return to work meeting with her ex boss which basically resulted in her ex boss making it plain that she would do nothing to accomodate my wifes childcare requirements and so my wife was forced to seek alternative work (very lucky I know) My wife ensured that she gave her employer in excess of a full 30 days notice of her planned return to work date. She then gave 30 days notice of her intention to leave. My wife left her employment within the frist two weeks of July 2013. We sent a letter prior to her leave date requesting her P45 and Holiday pay be sent via the post, then followed it up after he leave date with a letter requiring she provide P45 and Holiday pay within 28 days (as per advice from tribunal service). just really sounding out for options available.

Hello again Everybody, After a long absence I have returned to the site. I have two questions. How do I make a donation please? I received advice a long time ago and could never afford a donation. Not much better now, but a bit:) And I am being bullied at work by my line manager. She has extended my probation period under the guise of poor performance, but it's she who has prevented me from doing my job by saying no all the time. Has anyone else been bullied by a charity? I would appreciate any thoughts.

Hi all. Maybe I am being a bit over concerned here. A while back someone advised that I should seek a referral to Occi Health. Given that I have been on anti-D's for over 3 years now. I spoke to the employers nurse a few days later and mentioned this to her. She said she would mention it and asked for my permission to contact my gp for my notes, which I granted. Turns out my gp hasn't been contacted by my employer. On Monday I had a disciplinary for missing 3 days since January. In 2012 I missed 18 days in total (sick certificates have no bearing on whether or not you get a warning). Firstly they don't seem interested in helping to try reduce your absence, only reminding you that you need to turn up for work. Secondly, at the end of the meeting I mentioned the issue of my notes from the gp to the HR officer present. Her reply was, "You want us to see your notes?" Sounded to me like she was trying to make out I was doing something wrong. My concern is that by trying to avoid recognising that I am being treated for depression and therefore have a disability. Then they don't have to treat me as such. Whether that would mean more leniancy in regards discipline or whatever. Does this also mean that the duty of care they are so keen to talk about doesn't really exist! That is the impression I get. Thanks in advance for any help. Even if it's only to say I have nothing to be concerned about.

I received a parking ticket in London in march this year, the ticket was for parking in a restricted zone within restricted hours. I parked the company van in a parking bay right next to a small sign that i couldnt and didnt see at the time which stated restricted zone 2pm to 7pm. I parked there at 6.40pm which was a parking bay but a single yellow line also. I got out the van and walked around looking for signages. I went to the ticket machine and it stated chargeable hours 8am - 6.30pm and no other mention of a restiction till 7pm (which i later saw on google images). The council who issued the ticket sent it to my employer for the sum of £55 or appeal it within 28 days. My employer emailed me with a scanned copy of the ticket saying i have 5 days to pay or appeal or the company will pay it. They sent it to my old email address i havent used for 1 year so i was delayed in viewing this ticket. When i did view the ticket i appealed it within the councils allocated time frame. Supplying the council my name address and admitting i was the driver of the supposed offence. The council sent the rejection of the appeal back to my employer which again delayed me receiving the appeal forms as my employer emailed scanned copies over again. My employer gave me 7 days to pay it or they will and they will charge me a admin fee which the council stated i had 28 days to pay or appeal again to an independent adjudicator. The last couple of A4 sheets they scanned in were to appeal to a independent adjudicator which were not scanned correctly ie.. the last 10% of each sheet was missing so i could not read/print/use the sheets in the email. My employer said they will post them to me which i did not receive. During some of the time i was on annual leave and still i have not received the paperwork for the appeal procedure. My employer has now paid the ticket and added a admin fee ontop and now i owe my employer £190. I do not even work/cover london area and was doing so on the day as a favour to help out a manager. The call in question that i helped out with actually made the company £600 in profit. Im not saying that the money they made should be paid by the employer but what i am saying is the company have given me less time than what the law is set out in terms of the councils time lines and sent emails to my old email address despite me telling them a year ago the old email wont be in use. Now they are demanding i sign a piece of paper to allow them to remove £190 from my wages. my questions are this... 1. Can they take this £190 from my wages at any point? even if its the last payment before i leave the company? 2. If they do is there anything i can do? Obviously paying a ticket is classed as being guilty so the council presumably will no longer be involved in this issue. My employer insist the company reputation are on the line if a ticket is not paid within 5 days. Also how on earth can a council send the appeal decision back to my employer? i am the driver...i am the one responsible and not the employer... Thanks

Hi All I recently left a company due to the unreasonable behaviour of my boss, however I agreed to work my notice to keep things sweet. I worked my notice and finished after completing my notice as normal, admiteddly I did take my foot off the gas and spend some time on the BBC website as they took my work off me and gave me filing to do. I had taken some exams paid for by the company however there was nothing in my contract to state i had to repay them if i left nor did i sign any agreement to repay them. I did state that if they were difficult I would take them to court for constructive dismissal (i have written evidence of this) and we agreed to shake hands as the boss was known for this type of behaviour. Anyway 4 weeks ago I got a letter from my former boss telling me i had breached my contract by emailing a spreadsheet home with a formula on i has come up with, it did not contain client or company information and was a simple calculator based on information available on the public domain. I therefore replied to them in kind but as a gesture of goodwill i deleted the file and considered things closed. Imaging my surprise today then to receive a call at my new employer from my former boss stating that if i did not repay the exam costs they would take me to court for breach of contract. Although he did not state the grounds for taking me to court other than breach of contract, I can only assume it is because i spent time on the internet during my notice period. I did not browse any inppropriate sites nor download client information. My first question is, do they have grounds for this? as i am no longer an employee excessive internet use cannot be sued for. secondly are they allowed to contact me at my current employer? I am tempted to take them to a tribunal for the constructive dismissal to spite them but I cannot see what they are trying to achieve by behaving like this other than to salve their damaged pride and harrass me. many thanks in advance

I have worked for an employer for 6 months. They appear unable to meet there obligations. They appear unable to pay a contractor who did some work for us, and other organisations are phoning about unpaid invoices. there are 3 permanent staff. If an employer is unable to pay wages (due to be received by employees mon/tues next week) when should they notify the employees? What legal rights would i have if my employee is unable to pay my salary next tuesday. I believe the situation is as follows - we are working on a project which is supposed to go live at the start of next month. The client receiving this will then be due to pay a significant sum putting the companies finances on a level playing field. But I need to understand my legal rights if they delay or don't pay on the 25th of the month. I am looking for another job - but I need employment and a wage until that happens.

Employee with 9 years service, no disciplinary's, no absence who has recently been signed off with a seriouse injury. Unable to drive which is a major part of her job (Sales Executive), employer contacted her doctor to confirm injuries, then sent her to their own occ Health Doctor who confirmed her own doctors diagnosis. However, the company had her followed by a private detective who filmed her being aided from the house to the passenger side of the car to pick up kids from School. The company then called her in for an "informal meeting" whereby they tried to force her to sign a consent form for the Private investigator. She declined and they got nasty with her. The Company has no Surveillance / Monitoring Policy whatsoever, and under the circumstances they had no reason to have had her followed. They have clearly breached the Data Protection Act along with the Human Rights Act. This is nothing short of constructive dismissal. I know for a fact that the Company has been looking for excuses to get rid of this employee for several years. She is an extremely hard worker, who meets targets and there is no complaints. What can she do?

Hi Team Odd one to ask , can you request your full personal file from a previous employer to see what details they hold on a person up to and including the reasons for dismissal ? A colleague who has been through the above can not get any form of reference for new employment from them. Is there any standard communication that she could send ? Thanks AG

I have just been offered a fantastic new job, which I worked hard to get. The only problem s they will require a 5 year checkable work history. Which wouldnt normally be a problem, but I was suspended from a previous job while investigations were being made. It caused me that much stress that I ended up handing my notice in as I really wasnt up to dealing with it at the time. Looking back now I should've seen it through, but its easy now to say that. That was 12 months ago, and I worked there for 5 years, so really that job takes up 4 years of my 5 year checkable history. What do I do?? What will the future employer ask for, is it just to confirm that I worked there or will it be more in depth. I really need advice!

Hello all, hope someone knows what to do!! I worked for a company for 1 week and 2 days but due to many reasons (mostly to do with the boss) felt really uncomfortable and told him that I was leaving. I wrote to him asking how he wanted to sort out wages due to me, and he tells me that he is appointing a solicitor to deal with me and that his solicitor will only deal with my solicitor ( I have told him that I won't be appointing a solicitor as can't afford it ). I spoke to ACAS who advised writing a letter stating that I am pursuing an unlawful deduction of wages which I have done, but I don't know what to do now? Any ideas gratefully received

I am off work at the moment with depression. My spouse took the sick note in and my boss started launching into a conversation about how useless I am at work, and how I will be having disciplinary procedures started against me soon amongst other more personal criticisms. Also my boss told my spouse that I could give less than the required level of notice if I wanted to leave and if I left now I would leave with a good reference, but if I went onto the disciplinary procedure my reference would be compromised. I have been bullied by my boss for months and now other colleagues are seeing me as incompetent due to the way I am portrayed by my boss and I just couldn't face it anymore, i was having panic attacks and was really depressed and my husband refused to let me go into work one day and took me to the doctor. I have a sick note covering the absence but after only a few days off a note has come home telling me that I have to fill in a form to allow the insurance company at work, access to my medical records. I didn't want my spouse being told all of the ins and out of work, now he feels very involved and upset. Is it legally ok for my boss to discuss me and my work in this way without my permission? thanks for any advice.

Hi I got a letter from Mr Lender payday loans asking for £250 or they will make a personal visit to collect to my work place ( Can they approach my workplace? What do I do if they do?

Hey guys back again, Need some advice please. My work makes us arrive to work 10 minutes early (Normal procedure I know) However they have been making us start work 10 minutes before. I arrive 20 mins before my shift and when it gets to 10 mins before I am due to start I am told to get on the shop floor and start! Along with this they always make me clock out a few minutes before the whole hour is complete. We are paid in 15 min intervals so I loose around 10-13 mins pay most nights. This combined with the 10 mins before my shift is starting to add up. At first I got on with it as I thought maybe that would show commitment and maybe they would be lenient on a few mins rest between orders but no they dont let you stop. I do them favours all the time ie come in early, stay late even do more more then im required to do and while doing this they are robbing at least 20-30 mins a day from me. Thats a lot of hours over the year! Is there anything I can do about it? I wouldnt mind if it was lets say 8:50, 5 mins is nothing but it being 7:57 and them forcing you to clock out and not letting you do a little extra cleaning or just wait a few minutes in pure out of order especially after how many favours they ask from us all. Admittedly I only do them "favours" now because I know if I dont and I need some overtime I wont get it. I also think the manager honestly thinks he is doing us all a favour by making us stay late all the time. He is young and I think he forgets that some of us have children etc. Im will stop rambling now. Thank you in advance

Ok, this is a unique one so I think requires reason and rhetorics, rather than jurisdiction knowledge, as such. I started working as a bike messenger for a company as one of their in house couriers just under a year ago. At the time of starting, I was told that I would be responsible for the costs of running my bike. This I accepted at initial face-value. Since then I found out that the drivers get their cars provided and paid for. I accept this as just one of those negotiations I missed out on, like pay raises. Over the course of the past year, I kept my bike safe to ride spending somewhere around £400 (that's what 30 miles a day of city riding does!). It all came to ahead yesterday when I tried to tell them that, to make my bike safe to ride (therefore my health and safety secured), £200 would be needed to be spent on my bike and I could not afford it myself. They offered £100, I refused and asked why they pay for the drivers costs but not mine. They explained their legal obligation to do this if they wish to keep the cars on the road. I explained their obligation to keep my work vehicle in good working order due to my health and safety needs, regardless of legal requirements for MOTs, tyres etc. on cars versus cycles. They blank faced me. I handed my notice in and refused to work my notice period, due to my bike not being safe to ride due to ware and tear. My question are: Do I have a case under the HSE's requirements for them to make my, already insanely dangerous, job safe by providing funds for keeping my bike in good working order? Does this take presidence over the contract that says I will be responsible for paying for my bike to remain safe? I doubt they even risk assessed my job, should they have done? I guess if you risk assess a bike messenger's job, you'd never employ one! I know I have not worked there for 2 years, but do I still have any rights under civil law? If they offer me my job back, would I be reasonable to refuse to work for a company that foregoes health and safety in the name of cost and claim compensation instead? Thanks, in advance.

Hi I have recently been having problems with my employer. I have been HIV+ for 4 years now and my employer has known all the time. I have consistently had higher than average absence due to being more susceptible to colds, infections etc. in January my team manager set me a target of no more than 6 days off across a three month period, which was an 'informal improvement plan' Whilst I didn't see the need for the plan to be in place, I pretty much agreed to adhere to it and indeed I have. I have since had two days (this tuesday and wednesday) off absent due to a viral throat infection. My team manager has today now said that my absence is unsatisfactory and I should not take any more than 12 days off in a year (the trigger for a person without a disability is 10 days) and the previous plan is no longer on the table and I am not to have any more time off in the next three months. I feel this is unreasonable in terms of a 'reasonable adjustment'. i don't take the decision to be off sick lightly and go in when I am under the weather etc. What do you guys think? Any test cases you know of?

Evening all, wondered if anyone could offer some advice on a DPA breach by my employer? The facts are these: I have a disability I work for one of the 'big six' energy companies My manager keeps a folder with my data in it - as to be expected The folder contains things such as letters from my consultant so therefore gives my addresses, sick notes, occupational health reports and emails. One of these emails categorically states that I have HIV The problem is this: My manager has been keeping this file on his desk for months, in a building which could be accessed by 500-1000 people. It has never been locked away. I have raised a grievance citing various issues, this being one of them. I have also raised this with the data protection officers within the company. My question is that this is clearly a breach, do I have any further recourse against my employer and/or my manager personally? He told me today the reason he doesnt keep the file locked away is because he doesn't have space for it!

My wife was on maternity leave with the NHS for about 6 months before we moved to the US. It turns out, due to a cock-up their end, my wife was overpaid for those 6 months. Anybody who is a nurse/doctor would appreciate that payslips for shiftwork can be confusing and variable, so it wasn't obvious that she was being overpaid. It was only when she sent her notice in that they found the error and demanded nearly £10k immediately - this was in May. Words cannot describe the feeling. My first response was to ask for proof of the overpayment and to offer £10 per week for a year. Rather cheeky but it's expensive moving to another country, especially on one wage. For whatever reason they didn't get the letter so they wrote again - I just sent the same letter again. Then a couple of months later they again demanded nearly £10k/ I'm pretty sure the figure was slightly different from last time. No breakdown of figures was received. Quite frankly the tone of the letter was nasty and they ignored the offer I made. I wrote back again, repeating the same offer, but noting that my wife was unemployed and we were short of money so - if anything - they would have to accept a lower figure the longer they drew it out. Finally, today - six months after the initial letter - they wrote back again. They provided a breakdown of the overpayments and guess what? It was "only" £3.5k. They rejected the offer and said that if agreement could not be reached then they would pass the matter on to their debt recovery team (note: I think that's internal, not a debt collection agency). Again, the tone of the letter was condescending and accusatory. However, the problem I have is that we don't have that sort of money. My wife is still unemployed and I'm self employed, and we are eating away at the little equity I have left from selling the house in the UK - and that will run out at some point. She would be employed but it's taken months and months for the local nursing board to get their backsides into gear with her qualifications and NCLEX (exam). I doubt she'll be employed for a couple more months yet, and even then only if she passes the exam which is pretty tough. I'm not saying we won't pay this debt - I have made an offer twice which they have rejected, albeit for a lower figure. I really can't afford to offer them any more than what we already did, though of course I could pay it off over several years. The latest letter hinted that they would demand a change in repayment if my wife became employed - is that reasonable? My other concern is whether the NHS would try to sell the debt (is it a debt when it's an overpayment, compared to like a credit card or loan?) to the US. They know where we live unfortunately. I did think whether there might be an Ombudsman for the NHS who could mediate if we reach a stalemate. Personally I feel like writing to the local Trust and higher for the nasty tones of the letters, how long it's taken so far, and how they could cock up the amount owed by 3x the value - twice. Any ideas/tips much appreciated!

I am due to start my hearing, in a few days. I was assaulted by my employers and have had months of intimidation and have found out my witnesses are being threatened too. The police are investigating. I think I now have definitive proof of ex employer's lies, plus proof of extreme criminal intimidation. My question is... do I tell the ET this now? Do I wait until I'm in Court next week? And also, what is likely to happen? What penalties can my ex employer face? Also, last night, I was phoned by their solicitor, saying, basically, if I continued, not only would I have to pay costs, but they'll get to see all my medical records. I actually felt like that was another threat. In what circumstances can they have complete access to medical records? (This is separate post from a previous question I asked months ago and would like it kept separate please.)