Change your name, or stop working.

[R E S T E C P]

karona said:

Edit to add, this is in Scotland, if it makes any difference

I called the records office in Edinburgh a couple of years ago - the place where you apply to change your name by deed poll.
This was after I got married. My wife wanted to use my name for everything other than work, where she wanted to keep her maiden name.
Her work sometimes involves signing legal documents and potentially going to court.

Their advice was that in Scotland (maybe UK?) you can use whatever name you want, as long as it's not for the purpose of committing fraud.

I asked then if there's any point changing her name by deed poll to my surname
"Only if she wants to, she can use your name whether she does or not"

So I asked if I can just make up a name for myself like Bob Loblaw and sign legal paperwork with it.
"Yes, as long as it's not for the purpose of committing fraud."

If that advice is correct, your step daughter can call herself whatever the heck she wants at work and they can't do anything about it.

[matchmaker]

I'll say it again - there is no such thing as a Deed Poll in Scotland!

[karona]

Sorry, nothing to add, except that all those years ago Laura's natural dad put as many obstacles in the way of changing her name as he could think of, and one of the documents in 'The Box' is from a solicitor saying we could call her what we liked, there was no legal way of changing it officially, just start using my name, and no way her natural dad could prevent us doing so.

The memories are all flooding back now.

[Evolved]

Find another place to work? Problems solved.

[anonymous-user]

I would also guess some audit somewhere turned up a problem, probably with a tenuous link at best to an identity, and, to quote 'Tropic Thunder' , someone has gone 'full retard'.

I've just had to chuck many £10000s on a regional reference/background checking service based on an audit issue somewhere that doesn't get out of the bottom 20 of the corruption indexes. An utter waste of money as there were effective processes in place already, and no issues had arisen, and potential ones had been caught...but easier in the corporate sense to just chuck money at it

[Cyberprog]

In the UK AFAIK, you don't even need to make a stat. dec. to change your name - as long as it isn't for fraudulent purposes. You just start using the name you wish to be known by.

[karona]

Just for closure, the original message from HR was:

"We need Laura to explain why the name on her birth certificate is different to her name when she joined the company. There's no rush, when she's back at work after her management course will do". HR showed her the original e-mail to the local HR rep.

How the F that got changed to "You can't work until you've changed your name" Gawd only knows.

A quick hand-written declaration sorted everything out.

[kowalski655]

Did she actually stop work? And if so will her employers make up any lost wages due to the cock up?

[karona]

kowalski655 said:

Did she actually stop work? And if so will her employers make up any lost wages due to the cock up?

No, it was all sorted after a long weekend with time off in lieu for a fortnight course, so she never actually missed any rostered hours, the local HR rep was first at the bar, tho'