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Submitted grievance..pregnant and on Probation...help, pretty stressed

7 replies

FergusSingsTheBlues · 22/11/2012 21:42

Hi, just need a bit of support really....i had a mid-probation review sprung on me a month ago which ended in a "formal warninng" with fairly spurious reasons. Some were me being blamed for other peoples actions, others were minor points (we are talking spreadsheet formatting! An email that wasnt answered!) but they also kept telling me how good i am at my job. My boss never addressed these concerns directly with me and one of them was fairly serious, about my working hours which had never been dcumented only vebally discussed.

I think the underlying cause is my pregnancy which i stupidly announced on day three of employment in the interests of honesty and clarity. Ive got pgp and they refused me flexible working and didnt carry out an assessment until i pushed for it. I felt unable to act on a doctors note advising home working (100mile commute) but as soon as i handed one in, was summoned for ths meeting. Since then, hr has been obstructive (eg witholding minutes from me, insisting on maternity leave letter a week before deadline etc). I know they are probably just trying to get rid f me as even though i wont get any cash, my pension contributions alone will come to over 20k and they are paying that. Ive cut my mat leave to six months in a bid to stop them sacking me.

But im so scared that they will sack me now. I only wanted them to over turn the warning asit was way over the top, but hr kept telling me there was no recourse to appeal so i had no choice. What goes on at a grievance hearing? I so worried and not sure i can cope with this strain at six months pregnant. The atmosphere with my boss is going to be intolerable. Should i just resign? Dh says there is no way they will uphold it even though i have emails etc. Woud just like some advice from anybody who has gone through similar...

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nellyjelly · 22/11/2012 21:48

What is the basis of your grievance? Can you prove you are being discriminated against on the basis of your pregnancy?

What is your warning for? What exactly did they put in the letter?

Are you in a union? Or can you join and ask for some representation?

Is it a small private company?

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FergusSingsTheBlues · 22/11/2012 22:02

They gave me a formal warning which i believe was totally unwarranted especially as boss hadnt discussed it informally first. Absolute list of very minor things, probably the worst being seven mins late for a meeting even though i explained at the time that i was in the lavvy with morning sickness. Some if it was blatant lies like me always being late for meetings. Im not. Hr Told me couldnt appeal, that if i got another one id get the boot. Very obstructive re flex working even after i gave them fit note.

The reason i did grievance was that they suddenly cancelled a colleagues trip to see me on the basis that they "didnt know if id still be here" although ut was two weeks before i go on maternity leave in january and at that point i hadnt handed in my dates but had tild them repeatedly when d be off.

Massive investment company.
No union. Felt like i was flung to wolves day of robationary review and it will be even worse with grievance, wont it.

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nellyjelly · 23/11/2012 07:26

Sorry for delayed response.

Check the disciplinary policy. Have they followed it?

Not sure of basis of grievance still. What are saying they are doing?

If they are a big company and you have no representation then agree you are at a disadvantage. CAB give employment advice and often have experts who will represent you. Contact them asap. If you can afford it see an employment lawyer. If you have grounds for discrimination due to your pregnancy then you should go for it but you need solid advice from experts. Good luck.

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flowery · 23/11/2012 09:53

Also not sure about grievance. Was this submitted before or after the warning stuff?

If you have a 100 mile commute then cancelling a meeting planned for 2 weeks before your maternity leave was probably not unreasonable. Lots of people plan to leave it to the last minute to start their maternity leave and then either bring it forward, or are off sick. I don't know what "pgp" is, but if your doctor is recommending home working already, it's not unreasonable of them to think there's a fair chance you may have to start earlier than you planned.

Was it not possible to bring the meeting forward? If that's the only thing that was of concern when you raised the grievance then on the face of it a grievance was a tad dramatic.

Having said that, a grievance about your treatment with regards to this formal warning might be more justified, if they are behaving differently to how they do generally with other people and if you have reason to believe your pregnancy is the cause.

What is it your DH says there is "no way they will uphold"? The grievance?

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FergusSingsTheBlues · 23/11/2012 11:22

No, the formal warning was out of the blue, was seriously minor issues or in one or two cases, boss blaming me in error for something i hadnt done, have email trail to prove. One excuse was that it had upgraded my laptop! They blamed me for that! It was very unfair and heavy handed and i wasnt given any chance to defend myself or appeal. They told me work was excellent, and then handed me a formal warning.

I am very much under the impression they want me out of the way. My boss contradicts and picks on me a fair bit. Hr have been very unsupportive re pregnancy. I am working in the office one day a week and he was coming up for that day. I just dont know why they didnt wait before assuming i wouldnot be there any longer.
On the other hand i think i should just resign. Should I? Im finding it really stressful.

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FergusSingsTheBlues · 23/11/2012 11:24

I submitted the grievance after getting a snotty email from my boss, a snotty email from hr then a call from my colleague to day they had cancelled trip.
One month after warning.

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nellyjelly · 24/11/2012 06:39

Get some expert advice. Good luck.

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