Friday 12 December 2008

Come on...Be Fair!

I've just spent a few days away visiting family and old friends. One of the latter told me this tale of a job advertisement, an interview, a successful candidate........and descent into employer hell. Can it be true? A nursing job in an NHS hospital psychiatric unit is advertised, including in the Ad. all requirements, hours, pay rates, the usual info. Final interview reveals the successful candidate. He starts work. A couple of weeks into the job and He tells the manager "I can't do these hours as I need to finish no later than 5pm". Manager points out that the job requirements actually included the specific need to work beyond 5pm. This was in the job spec and indeed was covered in the interview. Employee says it isn't good enough and gets the union to represent him in what is now a `dispute`. HR get involved and there is a period of too-ing and fro-ing followed by a `hearing`. Employee loses claim. Employee goes sick and then lodges claim that manager has harassed him by being unpleasant and unhelpful. The employee's still there and still being paid. The workforce is one light and the unit/patients ultimately suffer the shortage pending a resolution. Can one make a career out of this sort of thing? I saw quite a bit of this malarkey creeping in to the police in the last 10 years. What's it all about? When I was sixteen I got a job in a carrot packing factory. After 3 days the foreman got on my tits by swearing at me once too often, so I lobbed a carrot in his general direction with no serious intent of it landing on him. It caught him a pearler, right behind the ear. I was sacked on the spot. No complaints, except that on reflection I should have made it worthwhile and used a turnip.

1 comment:

Vetnurse said...

It would not surprise me. There should be some sort of probationary period for all new employees. With an option for either to terminate in that time.

I agree with the lobbing the carrot, you were remiss should have slung something harder :-))