• Make a contribution
  • Get the Print Edition
  • Sign up for our daily newsletter
Sunday, May 25, 2025
  • Login
Reading Today Online
  • HOME
  • YOUR AREA
    • All
    • Caversham
    • Central Reading
    • East Reading
    • Katesgrove
    • Reading
    • Southcote & Coley
    • Tilehurst & Norcot
    • Whitley

    Decades old tree irrevocably damaged by electricity workers cut down in East Reading

    Plans approved for new location for Reading driving test centre

    Showdown set as plan for new homes in Caversham is hit with objections by neighbours

    Former headteacher who made illegal images of children banned from teaching for life

    Plan to add 70 new homes to huge Reading Golf Course development submitted

    Fifteen roads seeing resurfacing as next six-week phase of improvements starts next week

    Royal Berks Charity funds new defibrillators at RBH

    Vape-related fires jump by 400% since 2020, data shows

    UTC students lead the way on sustainability at multi-academy trust summit

  • COMMUNITY
  • READING FC
  • SPORT
    • All
    • Basketball
    • Football
    • Rugby

    Former Reading FC manager Ruben Selles linked with League One job

    Four in a row for BAPCO

    Reading fans – you can finally dare to dream again

    Rob Couhig reveals new Reading FC CEO following takeover

    It’s a podium streak for Wokingham racing star Bobby with a win at Silverstone

    Rams RFC celebrate at end of season ball

    Lewis hits brilliant century to see Berkshire CCC beat Buckinghamshire

    ‘Without you, there would be no club’: Defender sends farewell message to Reading FC fans

    Style and splendour returns to Newbury

  • ENTERTAINMENT
    • ARTS
    • READING FESTIVAL
    • READING PRIDE
    • WOKINGHAM FESTIVAL
  • PRIDE OF READING
  • OBITUARIES
  • JOBS
  • ADVERTISE
  • CONTACT US
No Result
View All Result
Reading Today Online
No Result
View All Result
Home Business
This article appears as part of a paid partnership with Blandy & Blandy

Blandy & Blandy: Workplace Issues and Problems with Your Employer – How Law Firm Blandy & Blandy Can Help Employees

Guest Contributor by Guest Contributor
Thursday, December 19, 2024 10:30 am
in Business, Columns
A A
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

Dayna Rodrigues, Blandy & Blandy

Challenging working environments can be detrimental to your health and wellbeing, and your career. Below is helpful information on some of the issues that can arise and how the firm can support you.

Whilst some employees may be fortunate enough to work for employers who are supportive of their personal needs and facilitate a flourishing career, not everyone is so lucky. In fact, many employees find their working environment to be fraught with challenges which can be difficult to overcome or improve. Common day-to-day examples include:

  • managers who are unwilling to resolve concerns that you have raised;
  • illegitimate accusations of poor performance often resulting in a formal performance improvement plan (in an environment of looming dismissal);
  • employers who are inflexible about their workplace policies or practices; or
  • an unmanageable workload or working arrangements.

These are just a handful of the challenges we hear about from employees on a day-to-day basis, who are also often struggling with a health condition which has been caused or exacerbated by the difficulties faced at work.

But not all is lost and there are options available that may be appropriate to try to improve your situation, such as the following examples.

Formal grievance

If your concerns raised at work are not resolved through informal discussions, you may wish to consider raising a formal grievance. Your employer’s grievance policy and procedure should outline how you are expected to do this. Your employer would need to investigate your formal grievance and reach an outcome. If you are unhappy with the outcome, then you may have the opportunity to appeal.

Related posts

Decades old tree irrevocably damaged by electricity workers cut down in East Reading

Plans approved for new location for Reading driving test centre

Showdown set as plan for new homes in Caversham is hit with objections by neighbours

Former headteacher who made illegal images of children banned from teaching for life

Our Employment Law solicitors can advise and assist you with preparing your formal grievance and grievance appeal and navigating the grievance process.

Often it is also sensible to utilise and exhaust the formal grievance process to try and protect your legal position should you ever need to bring a claim in the employment tribunals related to the same complaint. This is because the tribunal can reduce any compensation you are awarded, should you be successful at a final hearing (e.g. for Unfair Dismissal), for unreasonable failure to comply with the Acas Code of Practice relating to the raising/handling of Grievances at Work.

Our Employment Law team can advise you on a strategy to best protect your employment position and regarding the strengths and weaknesses of any potential employment law claim you might have.

Apply for reasonable adjustments

You may consider that you are able and willing to work but due to a medical condition (be it a physical condition or a mental condition (such as anxiety/depression, you would like to agree some adjustments with your employer to your working arrangements to help you to work to the best of your ability.

The Equality Act 2010 (EQA 2010) imposes a duty on employers to make reasonable adjustments in certain scenarios where the Employee has a ‘disability’ (as defined in that Act).

Our Employment Law team can advise you on your employment situation including whether your physical/mental condition is likely to amount to a ‘disability’, and if so, to assist you with preparing a reasonable adjustments request and/or advise on situations where your employer refuses to make reasonable adjustments.

Flexible working request

Perhaps you are required to work strictly to your contracted hours or to work in the office every day but you wish to change this requirement.  

Under the Employment Rights Act, employees are entitled to request changes to their working arrangements to work flexibly – for example to change working hours, where the work is done and the days worked. Your employer should reasonably consider your request and let you know their decision. Should you disagree with the outcome, you may have the opportunity to appeal.

The gov.uk website contains useful guidance on making a flexible working request.

At Blandy & Blandy, we can advise you on your flexible working request and any negative outcome including assisting you with your appeal. An employer’s failure to agree to a flexible working request can, in certain circumstances, lead to other potential employment claims arising e.g. claims for sex discrimination, and it is often sensible to take specialist legal advice in relation to such potentially complex claims.

Signed off from work

If your working environment is taking a negative toll on your physical or mental health, you may consider it necessary to speak to your GP. Your GP may consider you are fit for work subject to some adjustments, or alternatively they may decide to sign you off as unfit for work for a period of time.

Hopefully during this time, your employer will comply with their statutory and contractual obligations. However, should your employer refuse to pay you for any sick pay to which you are contractually or statutorily entitled, our Employment Law team can advise you on your sick pay rights and any unlawful deductions from your wages including your options in pursuing any payments still owed to you.

Capability/conduct process

If your employer has concerns about your capability to do your job, be it as a result of health concerns, or otherwise your performance generally, they may commence a capability process.

Similarly, if your employer has concerns about your conduct at work, such as potential gross misconduct, then they may follow their disciplinary procedure.

In either scenario, your employer should investigate their concerns, carrying out a thorough and fair process in accordance with their own policy and procedure and with due regard to the Acas Code of Practice in relation to handling performance/disciplinary matters, and decide upon an appropriate outcome. Should you disagree with the outcome, you may have the opportunity to appeal.

Often employees dispute the legitimacy of their employer’s alleged concerns and consider it a ruse to ‘get rid of you’ or have concerns about how the process has been handled.

We can advise you on what to expect, how to best navigate these processes and what your legal position and options are.

Negotiations to facilitate your exit and Settlement Agreements

You may have come to the point where you feel you just want to leave the business. Ordinarily, you could simply give notice of resignation as required and leave once your notice period has come to an end. In this situation, you will not however recover any compensation for Wrongful or Unfair Dismissal as you will not (typically) be able to prove that you were ‘dismissed’.

Alternatively, you may instead prefer to try and negotiate (on a ‘without prejudice’/’protected conversation’ basis) your exit on terms acceptable to you.

Our Employment Law team can advise you on your legal position and assist you with trying to negotiate your exit from the business.

Sometimes your employer will instead be the one to commence these discussions and they may offer you a Settlement Agreement, including terms on which they want you to agree to exit the business.

Our Employment Law solicitors are very experienced in advising individuals or groups of employees on settlement agreements. Please see further information about settlement agreements.

Potential legal claims

If you are particularly unhappy at work and feel that you have been treated poorly you may be considering whether you can bring a claim against your employer and/or any particular individuals.

Some typical scenarios include:

  • You feel that you have been forced to resign from the business due to an irreparable breakdown in trust and confidence caused by the action of your employer/its staff, and wish to claim compensation for Unfair Dismissal and/or Wrongful Dismissal;
  • Your employer has unreasonably refused to make reasonable adjustments that you have requested notwithstanding the fact that you are suffering from a ‘disability’ under EQA 2010 – potentially giving rise to a claim for compensation including a sum for ‘Injury to Feelings’;
  • Your employer has unreasonably refused your flexible working request without any valid reason for refusal;
  • Your employer is refusing to pay you for the time you were off sick;
  • Your employer has decided to dismiss you for reasons you think are unfair and/or following a process you feel was carried out unfairly; and
  • Your line manager or others at work have been treating you poorly because of, or in relation to, your disability (or due to another ‘Protected Characteristic’ such as age; race; sexual orientation; gender reassignment; marriage and civil partnership; pregnancy and maternity; religion or belief; sex and/or sexual orientation).

Our Employment Law team can advise you on your position, including what potential legal claims you may have, if any, and what your options are, which may include pursuing a claim in the employment tribunals and what the possible prospects, risks and value of such claims might be. We can also represent you throughout employment tribunal proceedings including at preliminary hearings.

Blandy & Blandy is a leading Thames Valley law firm with offices in Wokingham, Henley-on-Thames and Reading. For further information or legal advice, please call 0118 951 6888 or visit www.blandy.co.uk.

Keep up to date by signing up for our daily newsletter

We don’t spam we only send our newsletter to people who have requested it.

Check your inbox or spam folder to confirm your subscription.

Previous Post

Queens Road footbridge closed indefinitely following repair funding withdrawal

Next Post

Local Labour MPs write to Chinese Embassy for help to contact Reading FC owners

FOLLOW US

POPULAR STORIES

  • Young man and woman attacked by group of teenagers in Reading robbery

    0 shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • Former Reading FC star to become free agent following Championship relegation

    0 shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • Thousands experience power outage in Reading, not expected to be fixed for hours

    0 shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • Reading FC group Sell Before We Dai makes generous donation following end of campaign

    0 shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • Reading FC takeover: EFL provides update as sale nears completion

    0 shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0

RDG.Today – which is a Social Enterprise – provides Reading Borough with free, independent news coverage.

If you are able, please support our work

Click Here to Support RDG.Today

ABOUT US

Reading Today is dedicated to providing news online across the whole of the Borough of Reading. It is a Social Enterprise, existing to support the various communities in Reading Borough.

CONTACT US

news@wokinghampaper.co.uk

Reading Today Logo

Keep up to date with our daily newsletter

We don’t spam we only send our newsletter to people that have subscribed

Check your inbox or spam folder to confirm your subscription.

The Wokingham Paper Ltd publications are regulated by IPSO – the Independent Press Standards Organisation.
If you have a complaint about a  The Wokingham Paper Ltd  publication in print or online, you should, in the first instance, contact the publication concerned, email: editor@wokingham.today, or telephone: 0118 327 2662. If it is not resolved to your satisfaction, you should contact IPSO by telephone: 0300 123 2220, or visit its website: www.ipso.co.uk. Members of the public are welcome to contact IPSO at any time if they are not sure how to proceed, or need advice on how to frame a complaint.

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password?

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In
No Result
View All Result
  • HOME
  • MY AREA
    • Central Reading
    • East Reading
    • Bracknell
    • Calcot
    • Caversham
    • Crowthorne
    • Earley
  • COMMUNITY
  • SPORT
    • Reading FC
    • Football
    • Rugby
    • Basketball
  • ENTERTAINMENT
    • ARTS
    • READING FESTIVAL
    • READING PRIDE
    • WOKINGHAM FESTIVAL
  • PRIDE OF READING
  • OBITUARIES
  • JOBS
  • ADVERTISE
  • CONTACT US
  • SUPPORT US
  • SIGN UP FOR OUR NEWSLETTER
  • WHERE TO GET THE PRINT EDITION

© 2021 - The Wokingham Paper Ltd - All Right Reserved.