Theft of Company Time.
Discussion
Long time member but for obvious reasons posting under another name.
Long story short as usual. Working as a delivery driver for a small chain of Pharmacists part time. Length of shift could vary from six hours to twelve or thirteen dependant on work load.
No designated breaks. Often little opportunity to take due to volume of deliveries.
Anyway on a couple of occasions after making a delivery of controlled drugs to an end of life patient which was obviously upsetting called in at a an off duty drivers house a few doors down for a much needed brew.
I was pulled in a month later and presented with Tracker Information and volunteered what had taken place. Told by manager " Thanks for your honesty i am taking it no further but issuing a verbal warning".
Couple of weeks later invited to investigation meeting etc etc.
End result Dismissed for gross misconduct..... Theft of company time. However they did pay me a weeks notice owed overtime leave etc. which i found odd.
As an aside i was labelled a common thief at the dismissal where i was labelled as no different than someone who had stole from the till stolen from the shop or taken controlled drugs.......
I was never suspended at any stage.
Anyone any thoughts on the matter. Thanks.
PS Without wanting to cloud the issue i believe i was targetted and this was trumped up because i discovered some strange practices shall we say and you know what happens to whistle blowers.
Finally there were 400 pages of Tracker Info for the Van gone through to find something on me but the other drivers were left untouched. Thanks Sue.
Long story short as usual. Working as a delivery driver for a small chain of Pharmacists part time. Length of shift could vary from six hours to twelve or thirteen dependant on work load.
No designated breaks. Often little opportunity to take due to volume of deliveries.
Anyway on a couple of occasions after making a delivery of controlled drugs to an end of life patient which was obviously upsetting called in at a an off duty drivers house a few doors down for a much needed brew.
I was pulled in a month later and presented with Tracker Information and volunteered what had taken place. Told by manager " Thanks for your honesty i am taking it no further but issuing a verbal warning".
Couple of weeks later invited to investigation meeting etc etc.
End result Dismissed for gross misconduct..... Theft of company time. However they did pay me a weeks notice owed overtime leave etc. which i found odd.
As an aside i was labelled a common thief at the dismissal where i was labelled as no different than someone who had stole from the till stolen from the shop or taken controlled drugs.......
I was never suspended at any stage.
Anyone any thoughts on the matter. Thanks.
PS Without wanting to cloud the issue i believe i was targetted and this was trumped up because i discovered some strange practices shall we say and you know what happens to whistle blowers.
Finally there were 400 pages of Tracker Info for the Van gone through to find something on me but the other drivers were left untouched. Thanks Sue.
I suspect you'd have been better coming here before your meeting as you'd have advice before the event - now I guess it will be tribunal of nothing.
How long had you worked there? You may have little comeback if not very long.
Sounds like they were crap employers so moving on would probably best. Oh and report their H&S breaches.
How long had you worked there? You may have little comeback if not very long.
Sounds like they were crap employers so moving on would probably best. Oh and report their H&S breaches.
Thanks you are right.I have moved on.It was only a bit of a job to keep me active as i am retired with occupational pension etc so didnt need it for financial reasons.
I had been there around twelve months so a tribunal not possible. I did appeal the decision with the CEO but as you can imagine that was a waste of time.
I just hate injustice in life whether me or anyone else. Yes crap company so actually i am out.
The reason for my query is that there have been developments at the firm nothing to do with this and they are causing issues with other members of staff so my experience is useful to them.
Thanks again.
PS I did report certain matters appropriately but dont know what happened.
I had been there around twelve months so a tribunal not possible. I did appeal the decision with the CEO but as you can imagine that was a waste of time.
I just hate injustice in life whether me or anyone else. Yes crap company so actually i am out.
The reason for my query is that there have been developments at the firm nothing to do with this and they are causing issues with other members of staff so my experience is useful to them.
Thanks again.
PS I did report certain matters appropriately but dont know what happened.
t company treats their employees in a sI agree you are best out of the place but I understand your grievence. You really need to get expert legal advice, but hopefully a few useful pointers.
In your shoes I would use a friend to get a reference to find out what they say, prefereable before you do anything else and make them suspicious.
I would file an official grievence complaint but given their attitude I suspect you won't get very far. How large are they? Do they have a dedicated HR department? ACAS can represent individuals and I might be able to help particularly give this about your reputation rather than money
http://www.acas.org.uk/index.aspx?articleid=1697
I could see fraud or false accounting allegation being levelled but Theft of Company time, is that official in writing ? Your Time belongs to you and you 'hire' it out to the company. Time is intangable. I don't see how it can be called theft. I image this is what you find galling; I know I would.
All employees are legally entitled to breaks under the working time directive. Commericial drivers are not only entitled but legal required to take breaks you will have to work out which if any apply from this link.
https://www.gov.uk/drivers-hours/overview
When you say 'strange practices' what do you mean? Can you report them to anybody, VOSA sounds possible given the hours they seem make their drivers work.
In your shoes I would use a friend to get a reference to find out what they say, prefereable before you do anything else and make them suspicious.
I would file an official grievence complaint but given their attitude I suspect you won't get very far. How large are they? Do they have a dedicated HR department? ACAS can represent individuals and I might be able to help particularly give this about your reputation rather than money
http://www.acas.org.uk/index.aspx?articleid=1697
I could see fraud or false accounting allegation being levelled but Theft of Company time, is that official in writing ? Your Time belongs to you and you 'hire' it out to the company. Time is intangable. I don't see how it can be called theft. I image this is what you find galling; I know I would.
All employees are legally entitled to breaks under the working time directive. Commericial drivers are not only entitled but legal required to take breaks you will have to work out which if any apply from this link.
https://www.gov.uk/drivers-hours/overview
When you say 'strange practices' what do you mean? Can you report them to anybody, VOSA sounds possible given the hours they seem make their drivers work.
Edited by Martin4x4 on Sunday 10th August 20:49
sued said:
Absolutely.Thank You. However what goes around comes around and revenge is a dish best served cold.
Revenge isn't really the best inspiration for taking things further (negative reasons rarely are). If however, the practises you highlighted are putting people at risk and you think this is the real reason for your dismissal you may potentially be covered under whistleblower legislation. This would not require you to have been employed for 2 years to be able to bring a claim.
As with most things, it would depend on the precise circumstances.
Martin4x4 said:
I agree you are best out of the place but I understand your grievence. You really need to get expert legal advice, but hopefully a few useful pointers.
In your shoes I would use a friend to get a reference to find out what they say, prefereable before you do anything else and make them suspicious.
I would file an official grievence complaint but given their attitude I suspect you won't get very far. How large are they? Do they have a dedicated HR department? ACAS can represent individuals and I might be able to help particularly give this about your reputation rather than money
http://www.acas.org.uk/index.aspx?articleid=1697
Time is intangable I don't see how it can be called theft and I image this is what you find galling; I know I would.
All employees are legally entitled to breaks under the working time directive. Commericial drivers are not only entitled but legal required to take breaks you will have to work out which if any apply from this link.
https://www.gov.uk/drivers-hours/overview
When you say 'strange practices' what do you mean? Can you report them to anybody, VOSA sounds possible given the hours they seem make their drivers work.
Martin. Thank you very much for that info. You are quite right the word theft in this context is nonsense. I spent thirty years in law enforcement and i would have been dismissed a thousand times in that career if they had adopted the same approach. Good point about the reference i will do that.In your shoes I would use a friend to get a reference to find out what they say, prefereable before you do anything else and make them suspicious.
I would file an official grievence complaint but given their attitude I suspect you won't get very far. How large are they? Do they have a dedicated HR department? ACAS can represent individuals and I might be able to help particularly give this about your reputation rather than money
http://www.acas.org.uk/index.aspx?articleid=1697
Time is intangable I don't see how it can be called theft and I image this is what you find galling; I know I would.
All employees are legally entitled to breaks under the working time directive. Commericial drivers are not only entitled but legal required to take breaks you will have to work out which if any apply from this link.
https://www.gov.uk/drivers-hours/overview
When you say 'strange practices' what do you mean? Can you report them to anybody, VOSA sounds possible given the hours they seem make their drivers work.
Edited by Martin4x4 on Sunday 10th August 18:49
Edited by Martin4x4 on Sunday 10th August 18:54
The dubious practices related to prescriptions and other matters not directly involving me but impacted my daily work.I appreciate thats as clear as mud but im choosing my words!!!!
I had put this to bed but recent developments with other staff made its ugly head reappear.
You are right galling is the word. Im not after money just wish to put the record straight and be a thorn in their side.
Smallish company twenty odd branches no dedicated HR. The HR person did my investigation but i understand she has been made redundant. The firm is being sold for whatever reason so i assume they are cutting costs.
A real tangled web.
Thanks again for your input.
In all honesty I think you were targeted! I work for a company (no names) and me another colleague was half heartily slagging the company off via Facebook ( which to be fair is in the staff handbook not to do) however he got a verbal warning whilst nothing was said to me! The difference is when at work he always complains about one thing or another and I just let it slip for a easy life! He is now one step closer to being dismissed.
Sue,
I believe pharmacists are ruled by the General Pharmaceutical Council and perhaps the the Royal Pharmaceutical Society. If any of their practices are 'dodgy' then report to them. Your law enforcement background will only help.
If they are a 'local' chain then your local press would love a story on them.
I believe pharmacists are ruled by the General Pharmaceutical Council and perhaps the the Royal Pharmaceutical Society. If any of their practices are 'dodgy' then report to them. Your law enforcement background will only help.
If they are a 'local' chain then your local press would love a story on them.
elanfan said:
Sue,
I believe pharmacists are ruled by the General Pharmaceutical Council and perhaps the the Royal Pharmaceutical Society. If any of their practices are 'dodgy' then report to them. Your law enforcement background will only help.
If they are a 'local' chain then your local press would love a story on them.
You won't typically find local papers running exposes, as they are afraid of being sued and particularly ill will from local businesses who advertise with them.I believe pharmacists are ruled by the General Pharmaceutical Council and perhaps the the Royal Pharmaceutical Society. If any of their practices are 'dodgy' then report to them. Your law enforcement background will only help.
If they are a 'local' chain then your local press would love a story on them.
If you blew the whistle to the employer or an appropriate external body about bad practices and the dismissal was caused by that, then you can make a claim regardless of your short period of service. Whistleblowing claims are not straightforward, so take advice before making such a claim.
The employer sounds very Mickey Mouse. Nobody can steal time (except Procrastination).
The employer sounds very Mickey Mouse. Nobody can steal time (except Procrastination).
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