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View Full Version : Back to work today after 7 months off...:(



lesleya
13-07-09, 19:45
I went back to work today...well i was forced to go back as i was given the choice of going back to work today or loosing my job!
Basically i was encouraged and pushed last september into putting in a harrassment/bullying grievance in against a woman at work by my ops manager and team manager who just really used me as a scapegoat to get rid of this person as i wasnt the only person she had caused problems for, plus she had lied on her cv and it was found she had worked in our office a number of years ago and had left under a cloud!!
I was brought in a few times while on sick in to be interviewed (grilled) by 2 managers and an hr rep at the end of january this year and it was really awful. The woman i'd put a grievance in against was never brought in as she had gone on sick too, but when she did eventually come back to work in march this year she resigned the same day!! My manager told me it wasnt because of the grievance because she had not been confronted about it:shrug:
I was so angry and upset that id gone through all of that for what?...for nothing!! it felt like id totally wasted my time, but they expected me to go back to work straight away as if nothing had happened just because this woman had resigned, but i just couldnt do it then i was a right mess and in no way ready to go to work.
To cut a long story short i requested 'redeployment' to a different office so that i could make a new start, but nothing came of that. Ive had numerous 'care and concern' meetings with hr and management over the last few months and was told that they couldnt keep me on their books indefinitely eventhough id had no wages for 4 months so i wasnt costing them anything surely?... so i was given 2 choices... either i resign or be dismissed on the grounds of 'capability' which means that they didnt think i was able to go back to my old job because of anxiety. So i told them no way was i going to resign and that i wanted to go back to my old job, and after a lot of humming a tutting and saying that they dont usually get anyone asking to do that they told me i could have my old job back but only if i returned to work when my sick note ran out last week. So i was given no choice eventhough my dr wont sign me off and im actually still covered by a sick note they said i had to come back today!
I had my return to work with my new manager, and i was very blunt and straight after he asked me how i was feeling and was i ready for work...so i told him no i wasnt and that i was being forced back by hr and i was so disgusted with the whole thing etc etc. They've bent over backwards to be nice to me today but i just dont feel the same about my job anymore and i dont trust them now, i used to enjoy my job and i got on well with the people i worked with (apart from one) but all this has made me feel like i dont fit in anymore:weep: If it hadnt been for my husband pushing me this morning i wouldnt have gone back, i felt physically sick at the thought, but i suppose i owed it to myself to try. Im due in tomorrow but im not sure if i will be able to do it again...i just dont know:unsure:
Ive had a viral infection for the. last week or so, so that doesnt help.
Then my husband drops a bombshell tonight saying one of his joiners in the factory is off with swine flu....aaaggghhh:ohmy: ....he went to the drs a week past friday and so yes now im worried that the viral thing ive got might be more than viral. Im probably being stupid i know but im feeling so low im not thinking rationally.
Sorry for rambling on but i needed to get it off my chest as you all understand what im feeling better than anyone else:roflmao: .
Thanks
xxx

Worrier
13-07-09, 19:55
Hey Lesley,

OMG you have been through the ringer with this situation. But oh my gosh you must hold your head up high and be VERY proud that you went in and did what you had to do.

I completely understand how you must be feeling, but I suppose the decision is whether you are going to let them beat you down completely or stand up for your rights and be counted.

Whatever you decide, it has to be the best decision for you. I know what it is like to be miserable at work (that is how all my anx started years ago) and it is very difficult to deal with.

Look, you are a wonderful human being and deserve to be treated fairly. Make a decision and go with it and screw everybody else.

Hang in there. I really missed chatting with you the last few months. I know that you know I understand because we talked about this a lot in the past.

Anyway, just wanted to let you know I was thinking about you and wish you all the best no matter what you decide.

Take care
Natalie xx

bottleblond
13-07-09, 20:00
Les


Get the union involved hun! there is no way you should be bullied into going back when it is clear you are not comfortable working in that enviroment. You have requested a move to a different office which has been ignored. That is extremely unprofessional of them and as you are an employee of theirs, it is their duty to take these requests seriously.

Seriously hun, talk to your union rep (outside of work), you can request they visit you at home or somewhere you feel comfortable.

I hope you get it sorted!
Love Lisa
xxx

Emira7
13-07-09, 20:06
Lesley

I am really sorry that they are putting you through this nightmare. Well done for being blunt and straight with them. I think you are brilliant for stepping back in there at all.

As for the swine flu! Well isn't that a treat for us Health anxiety people!!

Big hugs to you Lesley
xxxx

lesleya
13-07-09, 20:51
Hi lisa and emira
Lisa hun... i tried to get the union involved when this first started last year but i wasnt a member at the time and i couldnt get any help they said even if i joined as it was ongoing so it was a no go unfortunately...a waste of time there. I did use my house insurance that has legal coverage which includes employment law advice etc but they wont help until im dismissed etc and will only help if they think ive a good case they can win...insurance is such a con isnt it !!
Thanks emira, i think im a right wuss being honest cos i just about didnt go in i was so scared of what i might face. Theres a little lad im friends with at work, hes 21 and hes gay and i love him too bits hes so cute you just want to mother him :) but i was gobsmacked he told me hes been off for 6 months with stress too and hes only been back 4 weeks and he had the same hr rep that ive had (wont repeat all the names he called her) :D but one of the polite ones was that she should be lying in grass going moo!...lol
Ive thought seriously about letting them sack me and id take them to a tribunal but someone told me that part timers dont have same rights as full time workers. Dont know how true that is?
Thanks for replying
xxx