wife work troubles!

Amleto

Amleto

Amleto

Soldato
Joined
13 Feb 2003
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Her company are doing some training, lots of people have been failing it. She has failed it twice now.

She has just been told in her 1/2-year review today that if she doesn't pass the training at the end of the month then she will be sacked.


Is that reasonable/legal?

She has no formal warnings and has been working there over two years.

She has been bullied at work for a while and her team leader is frequently insulting her behind her back. This just looks like an excuse to get rid, but feels very much like harassment + constructive/unfair dismissal.
 
Correct process has not been followed, from what you have said.

She would need to be given training, fail the test, and then be given additional training, and then fail, etc etc. At some point a warning would have to be given, and then a disciplinary hearing and then a second. At least that's my understanding based on how my employer works, it's possible my employer has an extra step that's not totally required in there.

What I understand from union advice is that middle/lower management often use bullying tactics but when it comes to the actual point where someone is going to get sacked, HR take one look at it and fill their knickers.
 
I suppose it depends on what the training is for and how critical it is for the job. If she cannot demonstrate the fundemental skill required for a role, then without a convincing claim for harrassment / bullying I think you are going to struggle.

Speaking of 'wife work troubles', I had an interesting thing occur during an old job (all names changed for obvious reasons). I worked on a desk with 2 directors of a FTSE top 100 firm and their female assistant. A woman out of nowhere turned up and said "hello, I'm Chris' wife - can you tell me where Sophie is please?". I said "errr, sure, she is just there (being the directors' assistant) but Chris is just down the corridoor over there *points at him*".

At this point she produced an envelope and plonked it on Sophie's desk, before giving her a look that could kill Chuck Norris. Then Chris ran into the room and they all run outside and having a deafening blazing row! Drama :eek: :D

Moral of the story - don't have a cheeky mistress at work, because the wife might just find out :p
 
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First call would be to check the company's dismissal procedure and make sure the management are following it, if they're not, a quick call to HR should get things moving properly (and get some management knuckles wrapped).

If it's a smaller company you're probably in a worse position, if the training is required for her to do her job going forward then the employer is within their rights to dismiss her so long as they are following process (which it sounds like they are).

It doesn't really matter if she's been bullied before as it's a separate issue unless you're claiming it's directly affecting her performance. But it should have been something raised prior to this training issue.
 
Ahleckz said:
Seems reasonable. If you can't complete the training which means you can't do the tasks needed then why would you be kept on?
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its not that simple. If the level of training given was not adequate to prepare the trainee to either carry out the tasks at hand or pass the test then its not really down to the person not being able to do the job. Rather its a case of a company handing out slipshod training to trip people up and thin their ranks the sneaky way during this period of austerity ?
 
wildman said:
its not that simple. If the level of training given was not adequate to prepare the trainee to either carry out the tasks at hand or pass the test then its not really down to the person not being able to do the job. Rather its a case of a company handing out slipshod training to trip people up and thin their ranks the sneaky way during this period of austerity ?
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Surely there is an 'overseer' in the matter? I mean the test cant be administered by the company can it? That sounds like schools making up their own exams and marking them, and getting rid of pupils who the teachers simply dont like? (A vague example but fundamentally education related).

There must be a body or organisation who oversee's or admits the training, if the training is inadequate I would ask your wife to ask members completing the training, and members failing the test, to all petition to have it overseen. The best consultant for this matter would probably be a lawyer, and/or a governing body.

Either that or get your wife to do additional/obsessive study, or external training (paid for) to make sure she can pass and stick 2 fingers up to such a system by succeeding.
 
Ahleckz said:
Seems reasonable. If you can't complete the training which means you can't do the tasks needed then why would you be kept on?
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Not that simple. If the training is for a new responsibility, beyond what she was originally contracted for, then the company has no right to sack her for failing that training.

If that training is to get her into a new position due to her current one no longer being required, then they need to make her redundant.
 
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