February 2020 Monday 08:30am
Been in the office and have the usual routine completed-door lock,
lights, blinds, computer on-and was bringing up the necessary work programmes
when the door was flung open and in walked the Boss_Jaro.
To my “Morning” greeting and before I could get the ‘Are you
alright’ out of my mouth, I was treated to “Couldn’t you sleep” in return.
Why they do this to me has baffled me for the duration of my
employment here. It was not the end of,
what would turn out to be another of their terse grillings.
Boss_Jaro --
“You’re here early”
“What’s the matter, couldn’t you sleep?”
“You have to give me a list of advance notifications of when
you’re going to be in early”
“Is that okay?”
“I can see it’s not okay?”
The answer to this inquisition lies further back but one thing for
sure is that mainly when arriving earlier than the 9am start of the office
workday, the Boss_Jaro has not been there which is not a problem unless of
course you’re the Boss_Jaro who tells everyone and anyone that one is always in
early, working over the evenings, working over the week-ends and working in
one’s holidays.
Supportively, the Boss’s_Pet has no sympathy and says it’s
Boss_Jaro’s fault/problem-behind their friend of 30+years back-of course.
Their attitude is “this is what they (Boss_Jaro)get the big bucks
for”, “more fool them”, “Frode doesn’t
care, squeezing everything out of them to make him money”.
Having been bombarded with this tirade I calmly explained that I
didn’t want to discuss it at the moment
because I was thinking about the background to my being sent away from the
office over the week-end because Boss_Jaro wanted Boss’s_Pet to be able to stay
at work “with their compromised immune system”.
My imparting this was ‘Red Flag’ to a five foot bulle.
Another exchange followed.
Boss_Jaro “What, I said go home because you sounded unwell”.
Me-I said I felt well enough to be at work
Boss_Jaro “you sounded unwell”
Me-I was sent home because Boss’s Pet had moaned at me for two
days straight about how I shouldn’t be at work because they have a compromised
immune system”
Boss_Jaro “Well they do”
Me-That doesn’t mean I should be stopped from attending work. The offices and warehouse are full of people
with germs including coughs and colds. None of those were sent home. I was sent home solely because Boss’s Pet had
moaned for two and a half days to you about their immune system being
compromised.
Boss_Jaro “Well it is. Are
you saying that we shouldn’t take care for Boss’s_Pet.
- The Boss_Jaro was
still sporting a cough, a mouth still with ulcers including on their lips
Me-You have a cough but you’ve not stopped coming in or been
moaned at by Boss’s_Pet?
Boss_Jaro “I’m not going home, I never have time off sick”
Me-So it’s another instance of different rules being applied to me
Boss_Jaro “you’re getting paid for it; what is your problem?”
Boss_Jaro “What do you want out of this?”
Me-I want it to stop; isn’t that enough?”
Exchange about the holidays
At this point I repeated I don’t want to talk about it until I’ve
had more time to think about why and how I was sent away from the office and
prevented from working in order that someone else could continue to attend work
and only for the Boss_Jaro to fly out of the office in to the
production/warehouse area up the stairs to the HR office and come down shortly
after because the HR person doesn’t work on Monday or Tuesday.
Returning to their desk the Boss_Jaro was still incandescent but
at least when the Boss’s Pet had arrived and, following our usual routine I
asked if anyone wanted a drink they were no longer snorting responses to
me.
They didn’t want a coffee as normal - they had a can of pop. Nor did Boss’s Pet want one they’d got their
water. So I made myself a drink and
carried on. Things popped up in the
course of work but I only received cursory responses and was, again, excluded
from the chit-chat. Gawd they made the
atmosphere oppressive.
Aah now the latest little confab. in the kitchen whilst I was left
alone in the office made sense. Away I
go again, I’ve been sent to Coventry.
I tried again late morning-more of the same treatment.
The Boss_Jaro’s coughing throughout the morning elicited the
Boss’s Pet to say- “ Well at least you don’t go sick just for a cough”. To which they replied “No, I’ve got too much
work to do.” So the Boss_Jaro’s
coughing, sore lips and ulcers in close proximity to them isn’t a concern for
Boss’s Pet. Hmmm.
What time is your lunch said the Boss_Jaro to the Boss’s Pet?
I thought it was One o’oclock said the Boss_Jaro to the Boss’s
Pet?
Shifty looks and mumbles exchanged between the Boss_Jaro and
Boss’s Pet. I was very unsettled by the events unfolding and the atmosphere
being created when I speak up for myself and had said to Boss’s Pet that it was
my day for a one o’clock lunch.
Then a telecon. immediately after where Boss_Jaro talking to Arbey
“it’s one o’clock, we’ll speak around then”.
I turned my head 90 degrees left to look over at their desk and caught
them looking at me. Hurriedly they
turned away and busied themselves with the ‘phone cable before they hung up.
I called my daughter on the way home and said I didn’t want to go
back. They reminded me how much they
tried to get me out by making my life difficult including the seemingly
never-ending One Rule for Everyone and A Different Rule for Me and that I
shouldn’t let them get me out of the way another time so I put on my lipstick
went back.
Hi, I said on going back into the office by which time the number
was swelled by one as the afternoon woman was in and it was like the Wild West
scenes with tumble weed blowing through.
Nothing; wall of silence. I
decided there and then I was going to call the union to tell them about this
treatment. Unfortunately for me the
‘phone rang and ‘Thick …’ was (as though it was my fault) putting a creditor
through to discuss promised payment not forthcoming, yet again.
Lovely chap, sitting in Spain enjoying the weather and looking for
their promised payment. Sociably asking
me about my holidays but the three women - Boss_Jaro, Boss’s Pet and HerMadge,
had all stopped what they were saying and doing to listen.
This was intolerable.
Please can we have a payment and for it to be ‘actually made and
credited to our bank account this time’ was the upshot. Turning to the Boss_Jaro I relayed the
message as I had 6 previous reminders and promises to pay. Being curt and using very few words I turn
back to Ben and say “the payment will reach your account today”. One happy creditor and as I am wrapping up
the telecon. I retrieve my mobile from my bag and place it nearby on the
desk. I am going to ‘phone the union.
As soon as I am off the ‘phone I leave the office, ‘phone
discreetly held and walk to unit 2-the manufacturing side. Immediately I am through the front door I see
the Cleanr and they want to talk to me.
Whilst listening the front door suddenly thrusts open and as I turn away
from the Cleanr see that it is the Essbee who takes the stairs up to the first
floor. Cleanr gives me a frown and,
after what could only be 90 seconds returns back down the stairs. The Cleanr and I must have looked baffled to
hear them say “I was looking for Arbey-I forgot they were in America” and shot
off out of the front door. Cleanr could
not fathom the sense of either the exercise nor the commentary of Essbee as
they were in daily discussions as to the whereabouts of Arbey with the Boss_Jaro
in the accounts office.
Telling Cleanr “chin up” and “take care” I took my leave and went
in to the bathroom single toilet cubicle and locked the door. I tapped out the number of the union and a
few seconds later was connected and the hold message “someone will be with
shortly” had started to play.
Well next thing is the bathroom door flies open and after a couple
of seconds the tap starts running and the sound comes of someone washing their
hands. I can see through the crack that the Boss_Jaro has followed me over to
the Mfg unit seemingly being told by Essbee that’s where I am. Standing up, I press the red ‘phone button,
unlock the door and walk out of the bathroom and nearly run straight into the
man stood right outside. To say they
were flummoxed was an understatement.
‘Hi’ we exchanged and he asked me- “Boss_Jaro”s is in there aren’t
they.
Yes I replied and slipped out the front door and headed back to
the Production/warehouse/offices unit fairly rapidly.
Instead of going back in to building I skipped around the side of
the building, past the ‘smoking shelter’ and to the back. Shaking I re-dialled the union and proceeded
to tell them ‘what’s occurring’.
Emotions overcame me whilst I am sharing this tiniest of a slice
of the type of action I contend with on a daily basis.
You need to tell them you cannot stay in this “hostile”
environment and leave the office and go home and see your doctor is the advice and
they ring off.
Of course it was never going to be so easy as when I walked back
in to the accounts office Boss_Jaro was nowhere to be seen. Boss’s Pet and HerMadge were there but I
couldn’t leave them a message-who knew what it’d turn into by the time they’d
played their Chinese whispers tricks with it.
Only thing to do was to write an e-mail and say, verbatim, what the
union advisor had told me to say.
I took my bag out of the drawer and relief flooded me when I was
in my car and driving away, out of the estate.
I called my daughter; “I’m on my way to the doctors.”
February 2020 Tuesday 09:00
Armed with a two week sicknote, I’m relieved that I have a break
from the stress, bullying and harassment that is my place of work
-but I also need to drop in the grievance letter per the
union.
I was told by HR that I can post the sicknote and save myself the
bother. Nothing from them to say that
the treatment of me is a black mark on the company policy or an abhorrent way
to treat a human being. Any way as I
have friends there and not seeing them for two weeks will be difficult, I call
in early to catch the two production ladies-unfortunately one is off poorly but
I leave the envelope and go back home.
The ‘grievance’ letter is prepared and sent in and is eventually
acknowledged and I am told a meeting will be convened. I start to receive conflicting communications
from the chairman and HR.
Eventually a meeting is held between HR [only does things for the
benefit of the company or what they say], the chairman and myself. It’s been weeks but they’ve “not started
‘investigating’ the matter” yet.
I have to get another sick certificate for another two weeks
whilst the ‘company’ seem to be dragging their feet. I cannot attend work or see friends. Totally isolated.
Finally get the chance to have the ‘investigation meeting’ and run
through the list.
Now the chairman asks “What do you want from this?” to which I
reply ‘What I have said all along. I
want the harassment and bullying to stop and to return to my job without facing
a hostile environment. For instance I
want Boss’s Pet “I’m nice me” prevented from gossiping and saying things such
as “she’s nasty, she’s very nasty” to me and to all and sundry.
I’m not holding my breath.
It was the right decision not to.
Taking the union in to the outcome of grievance meeting we find
that the chairman and HR do not uphold the grievance and think that I should
accept a small sum to ‘go whilst signing an NDA.
It’s my best chance says the union as they’ll only make my life
more of a living hell than they already do.
Reluctantly I agree and the company say they’ll draw up the papers.
A short while later I now discover, that the chairman’s business
associate and their husband had been hospitalised for Covid-19 and plastered it
all over facebook then hurriedly deleting it again. They’d been to Italy skiing-en-famile in it
seems, the epicentre of the misery and death that coronavirus 19 brings and now
wanted to make like Shaggy ‘it wasn’t me’.
Still-InPiquet-another of the associate businesses run by the
mother, has been sending in employees from their offices down to sit in our
employees offices, which are a very tight squeeze. Seems more likely now that
the Boss_Jaro and Boss’s_Pet knew this and suspected that they virus had been
passed to me.
I quickly fired off an e-mail to the chairman telling them of
their failure to disclose the sending of an employee of a seemingly Covid-19
infected boss down to the office where I worked not to mention the
inter-relations the chairman had with the boss anyway. Interesting that they denied they knew who it
was, they had no-one within their circles who that could possibly be and I was
talking rubbish. They didn’t even go on
facebook for goodness sake.
The union said I shouldn’t have sent the e-mail. The chairman spoke to the union and
apparently “assured them” I was spouting “rubbish”. Really?
A few days later the chairman was back-tracking-they knew who I
meant however they’d had no handshakes with InPiquet. They didn’t explain the attendance of the
InPiquet’s employee sat desk-to-desk in a tiny office of five.
I let the authorities know and, claiming ‘Whistleblower’ status,
retracted my acceptance of the ‘offer’.
Doctor
<https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-8131799/Italy-overtakes-China-country-coronavirus-deaths.html>
in Italy repeated the horrific experiences of dealing with the virus and we’re
kept in the dark about the virus being brought in amongst us.
Next thing I know the decision has been made to make me
redundant. The only person in the whole
building. The only person out of the 90
people working there. A replacement for
me had already been engaged some weeks prior (presumably when they packed up my
belongings from my desk).
Coming up…
So having blown the whistle since Sep19 on practices I am let go
