Should I sue my company then.

coley

coley

Active Member
This question is for anyone who has had to sue their workplace.

I am in a dilemma at the moment. I work in the mornings as a delivery driver for a firm just around the corner from my house. Its minimal wage stuff but allows me loadsa time to get my other stuff done and most times I work only 6 hours a day and sometimes even less even though I get the full 40 hours pay.

Back in August I slipped and landed on my back and done myself quite bad. I was put on light duties for a bit but when I went back to the full swing my back started canning me. Thing is they dont pay sick pay but here is where it gets dodge.

My dad died in August and they would only give me 2 days grievance leave.:eek: For those of you who lost your dad you will know its a massive kick and shock when it happens and they wouldnt spare me not even a week to get back on my feet again.

Also when my daughter was born I had to use 2 weeks of my hols to help my wife who had a C section as they wouldn't pay me paternity pay:eek::eek::eek: WTF.

I had 4 days off this week on docs orders and they said they wouldn't pay me even though it happened at work. They use this we pay you 40 hours for a 30-35 week stance as a way of justifying them acting like that yet they are millionaires over and over.

My only option is to sue them for damages when all I want is my pay for the week.

Should I go ahead and sue them and if so what are the ramifications?
 
Should you sue ? ( I presume Blame`s direct or the like)That depend`s on if your employer was genuinely negligent ? If they were , Yes
Were they fair or within the law with your father and baby and are they sticking to the rules now ? That is very questionable, I would suggest a call to the below people, They are very good and will tell you straight where you stand, I believe they will also back up what they say with a call to the employer, If requested. (A warning)

cut from http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/Employment/index.htm

The Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service (Acas) offers free, confidential and impartial advice on all employment rights issues. You can call the Acas helpline on 08457 47 47 47 from 8.00 am to 6.00 pm Monday to Friday.

Have a good one
Tim
 
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coley said:
and if so what are the ramifications?
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They might only pay you for the hours you actually work. Are there any other little perks they give you that you may have forgotten about? If there are you can bet they have certainly not forgotten about them.
 
They can not change any part of your job for wanting your rights, Another page to have a look at , http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/MoneyTa...editsAndOtherSupport/Illorinjured/DG_10018786 there is a link to your paternal leave entitlement on there aswell, I think they may have broken both of these rules
Talk to ACAS before you do anything, I used to use them as an employer, they also helped some of my staff with problems with previous employer`s, very helpfull
 
First stop Citizens Advice its free.

They will tell you your position and advise on the next step.

Sounds like you work for a right bunch of gypsies.
 
Warren D said:
They might only pay you for the hours you actually work. Are there any other little perks they give you that you may have forgotten about? If there are you can bet they have certainly not forgotten about them.
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Hello Warren.

Again it works both ways so if I work over 8 hours (always without a break) I still only get paid the 8. Plus I start at silly o clock sometimes without any premium rate. They still believe I work only 4-5 hours per day which is how it used to be years b4 I even worked there.

They are a big company but still run it like a small set up.

Hello Buckley squire. I did check out the rights on paternity and it is what you said but to meet those conditions of eligibility I had to notify them weeks before the birth to claim.

I just assumed (silly me eh but where's the compassion:twisted:) that they would give me 2 weeks full pay seeing at that stage I had been there almost 2 years without taking single day off or being late.

Its just down to morality vs law and they operate to the letter of the law when it comes to protecting their profit margins but then quickly take the moral high ground of psychological guilt jerks when it suits their agenda.:rolleyes:
 
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I'm not sure about employment laws in the UK....but I was just wondering what the actual reason was for you getting fired? Did they claim it was performance based (like was there one specific incident directly related to your job duties that they let you go for), or was it more a culmination of all your hardships that they didn't want to be responsible for anymore? I think that could make the difference in what kind of case you could have.

Sorry to hear that they didn't let you go for your father's death or child's birth....I can understand how you could be upset over that. Also, about getting injured on the job: if they admitted to the liability in the first place and did the proper reporting and took care of you when the injure first occured, then they should have the responsibility to see through any other medical costs that come up because of that injury. I've worked in housekeeping management for hotels and when our housekeepers got hurt on the job, you bet that we took care of ALL their costs because that IS the duty of the employer and it prevents potentially costly litigation on behalf of the employee in the future. Legally employers have the duty to take care of hurt employees, and they are required to find you other work while you are in recovery. We had one housekeeper who was hurt for 4 months just sit in the office and fold towels all day because of her injury.

Anyways, I would take the advice of the above posts and seek out some more professional advice. Good luck to you and let us know how you proceed.
 
First of all you need to stop confusing the different issues.

Your hours of work will be governed by your employment contract, so leave that to one side for a minute.

If you haven't followed the correct procedure to claim your paternity rights, then, yes you are at fault. Unless they failed to clearly inform you of your rights when you enquired.

If you have injured yourself at work then you will be covered by your employer's "Employer's Liability Insurance". So make a claim.

You are entitled to statutory sick pay.

Often Employer's offer further sick pay, but this can be discretionary, again check your employment contract.

From what you say, it would seem that you do not have any grounds for any further claims, other than out of frustration for working for an employer who does the bare legal minimum for its staff.

Unfortunately this is becoming increasingly common.
 
My query is the should I claim as I am unsure what can they do in retribution.

They did not inform me of my paternity rights when I had to take 10 days of my holiday entitlement.

Ultimately I just want what is right and that is 5 days full pay for being off this week due to an injury sustained whilst doing my job. I don't want to sue them as the job can be a touch with the hours and it allows me time to build my own business.

Its just that I know they can get ****ty when it comes to paying up and I cannot afford to be losing cash I need to support my wife and daughter. Ambivalence is my current mind set on the whole issue as on one hand I don't want to bite the hand that feeds but at the same time I don't want to have to keep having time off unpaid with a dodgy back.
 
It appears, as cr4p as it may seem that the working hours/benefits trade off has this time landed against you.

Do you have a contract (in writing?)

If you claim against their EL insurance, they will only be paying the excess on it - your not suing them as such.
 
agentundercover said:
It appears, as cr4p as it may seem that the working hours/benefits trade off has this time landed against you.

Do you have a contract (in writing?)

If you claim against their EL insurance, they will only be paying the excess on it - your not suing them as such.
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.... and probably a huge hike in their renewal fee as well as reducing their chances in shopping around for alternative quotes and other knock on effects such as losing contracts because of a poor H&S record.

It's important to remember that a quick buck for you can result in many other lives being indirectly affected.
 
Just let it go and work for a better company, forget about it, you'll feel much better.
 
Is it wise to be rocking the boat in the current jobs climate?

I know this is a terrible way to look at things but it does sound like your firm are not big on empathy and could easily find a reason why you are no longer required?


gl whatever you chose to do.
 
WeLuvIbiza said:
Is it wise to be rocking the boat in the current jobs climate?

I know this is a terrible way to look at things but it does sound like your firm are not big on empathy and could easily find a reason why you are no longer required?


gl whatever you chose to do.
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Yep that's exactly what is causing me the headache...

If my back doesn't hold out then they are not going to help that much if at all and if I am ok in a few weeks then I do know that as you point out they can find ways of letting you go:confused:
 
Drew said:
.... and probably a huge hike in their renewal fee as well as reducing their chances in shopping around for alternative quotes and other knock on effects such as losing contracts because of a poor H&S record.

It's important to remember that a quick buck for you can result in many other lives being indirectly affected.
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well...i'm not convinced that the sole incident - which without having details may appear to be a genuine reason to claim - would damage a H&S record to the extent that they would get bumped off tender lists?
 
coley said:
Yep that's exactly what is causing me the headache...

If my back doesn't hold out then they are not going to help that much if at all and if I am ok in a few weeks then I do know that as you point out they can find ways of letting you go:confused:
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Looking at it really coldly, it would appear that you have no written contract & have not chased it up. Also, you have had the benefit of the flexible working hours without any reduction in pay.

So the flip side of not having the full benefits you may expect is being realised. Difficult to see a way out.

I'd leave the place immediately mate & accept you won't get that flexibility whilst recieving the full benefits package & make a decision. Also, so some research on employment regs.
 
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