[LucyB]

So, I'm going for a mutually agreed redundancy; under the terms agreed I can't say anything bad about my employers, ever. They really are the most lovely bunch of people you could ever hope to meet; they are kind to old ladies and will all go to heaven where they will probably be the nicest people there.

However, it has been a bit of a long drawn out process, during which I have already seen a solicitor. The compromise agreements have been sent to the solicitor so I will also have been charged every time they even look at the computer which contains the email containing the agreement and so on. I am supposed to be meeting with my solicitor tomorrow to finalise the agreement and hopefully draw a line under the whole business. Though of course I shall miss working for those lovely, lovely people.

My solicitor phoned me today to check a couple of points. She has noticed that there is still no mention of the contribution to legal fees, which I understand is pretty standard. The agreement has to be signed by as solicitor, and I have to have taken legal advice under the terms of the agreement. When I phoned my employers today to check, I received an email saying that they would contribute £50, yes £50  towards the fees. Now, seeing as I am being charged £200 per hour, is it really ok for them to just contribute 15 minutes worth of legal advice?I'm pretty pissed off, any advice on what I can do? Please?

[robertostallioni]

 

Sounds like you need to speak to a solicitor.   



Doesn't sloper come round your way?

[Ian W]

Sounds like you have overestimated their niceness!

Unfortunately, you are a bit stuck, and it depends on how much they want to protect their good name. If they are making your position redundant, it all depends on how much they value nice comments by you in the future. If its a compromise agreement (and I suspect it is in reality), it depends on how much more than standard redundancy they are paying. If its £2,000 more, then fair enough, you are in pocket, but if you are staring down the barrell of a legal bill to keep them sweet, then its not fair.

In any case, only £50 is taking the micky a bit. It depends whether you really want to go or not,; you could just refuse to sign, and hope they will up the offer a bit, but still be left with a large legal bill to pay. When companies I've been at o this type of thing, there is usually a couple of hundred on offer.

[slackline]

Sounds like you need to speak to a solicitor.   

  Get your moneys worth out of the £200/hour and get your solicitor to sort it.

If you're employers have any sense they'll see that it will be cheaper for them to cough up for the £200/hour thats already been accrued rather than drag it out for another N x £200/hour if it is indeed "standard".

I'd also be questioning the solicitor themselves as to why they hadn't sorted this out earlier if its so "standard", as it seems remiss for them to only be raising the issue now.

[LucyB]

Thanks for replies. Basically, I am being squeezed out because of blatant discrimination. Unfortunately, this happened when the previous head teacher was in charge (he has since been sacked for many other instances of such conduct).

I was just about to return from 2nd maternity leave (this week), but was told there was no job - the 'job' I have been doing since first maternity leave is shit and never really existed. The head just didn't like working mothers.

The new head regards all this as a problem created by the previous head. It is a compromise agreement, but they will only give me the bare statutory minimum, which is why I expected legal fees on top.

I can't prove the discrimination because it originally started a lot more than 3 months ago - standard timescale for complaints to be reported.

My solicitor was behind the scenes for much of this, as my union were supposed to be sorting it. They are shit, but the head wants to use their legal advisor because they don't charge the school.

I want to refer it back to my solictor, but am really worried about building up more of a bill that I can't afford to pay.
Of course, everyone involved is still lovely, I wouldn't want to be seen to be bad-mouthing them.

[Neil F]

Lucy

(...in my experience...)

It is standard practise that an employer making an employee redundant, who requires a compromise agreement (which is only validated by the addition of a signature from the employee's solicitor), will cover the employee's solicitor's legal fees.

Often employer's state early in negotiations, that they will cover legal fees up to a maximum of X, but that X is supposed to cover what a typical solicitor would charge for that service.

To be honest, solicitors signing compromise agreements is typically a rubber stamping exercise.  It seems a shame that your union weren't more pro-active in defending your rights up to that point.  An expensive solicitor who is giving you extensive pre-CA advice, and expects to charge you handsomely for that privilege, should have negotiated a better settlement for you - or at least advised you early in the process that there was little prospect of achieving that end (and therefore capping their fees accordingly).

Just because your head is looking to blame the previous incumbent, doesn't mean he won't  be more than keen to be rid of the problem (you!), and he will have a realistic view as to the cost of achieving that end.  The fact he is looking to "gag" you in the future, shows he is taking the matter seriously.

If you are happy to accept the "bare statutory minimum", then I would certainly hold out for them covering all / the majority of your legal costs.

(...in my experience...)

Neil

[LucyB]

Thanks Neil. It's been complicated, and I haven't made things easier by wavering between the union and my solicitor. I was really disappointed with the union's support, but they kept leaving things until the last minute which made it difficult for me to make sensible decisions!

I guess I'll inform the head that until we can get things sorted, she can expect me back in asap. (Seeing as there is no actual job for me, that will cause her a bit of a headache!).

[mrjonathanr]

Your union was no good?? The school rep, area rep, or regional office? I'm shocked frankly, there should have been someone competent to support you in the chain. I guess that doesn't help now but there's no way I'd roll over and cop for the costs when it's in the head's interest to get the issue resolved.

Why can't you just go back to work but make it clear they could see you gone if they were reasonable?

BTW Whilst there are some professionals who will charge you for drawing breath there are also some who will listen and give disinterested advice in a quick phone call. I'd be tempted to email/call a few solicitors to see if someone will comment on good practice here (though you can't change solicitor, I assume you know that).

[LucyB]

The whole union thing has been really interesting. I changed unions after last time and have found the new ones no better.

It seems that in terms of campaigning for a whole group they are great, but when it comes to anything to do with discrimination they are about as much use as the proverbial chocolate teapot. They basically don't want to rock the boat for an individual when they may have bigger negotiations with proposed redundancies/ cuts.

I can kind of see their point, but it's still shit.

[Grubes]

-edit- reread first post my comments could not help you so deleted

[Will Hunt]

Totally different situation but same thread title.

A friend of mine was recently headhunted from a job he'd been in for 10 years at a car dealership. After starting work at the new place he raised comment that he thought the sales team should do things differently. He was told that he was wrong (I'm trying to be purposefully vague to protect the identity of this person, if I didn't post under my real name I could be more specific).

Later he was told he could either be demoted or be sacked. He chose to be demoted.

Later in a team meeting he was told, quite abruptly and flippantly and in front of the whole team, that he would no longer be working at that dealership but moving to one in a different town.

Shortly after, he was sacked altogether and is now without any job whatsoever. To put things lightly this puts him in a financially difficult situation and job prospects are slim.

There is reason to believe that all this has stemmed from the initial time when he critiqued the sales team. Is there anything that could be done about this? Claiming for unfair dismissal is apparently not an option as he was in the three month probationary period at the job.

[robertostallioni]

Nobody likes to be told ....

"Selling a car is very much like making love to a beautiful woman. The body has to be perfect with no signs of wear and tear before laying her out on the forecourt for everyone to inspect her interior. "