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Worst colleague — or most deluded?
July 28, 2010
My candidate would be Dave, our new salesman who was given a company credit card. At the time, these cards were given out to most salespeople so that they could buy petrol. Nothing out of the ordinary there, then.
At the end of the second month in the job, the accounts department started querying Dave’s statements. It turned out he – and Mrs Dave - been doing the weekly grocery shop with the card. When asked to explain himself, he claimed grumpily that popping into the local Sainsbury's was “a perk”.
Taking this behaviour to extremes, I'm guessing he could have booked a fortnight in the Maldives on the assumption that doing so was just one of those things a salesman in publishing typically did. It obviously helped that he was deranged — we later found that his background in "the army" was not all he'd claimed — but this is my favourite example of a company facility being abused.
Michael Scutt writes:
It’s an old saying in employment law that if you want to get rid of someone, take a good look at their expenses. Stealing, thieving, fiddling, “adjusting”, being economical with the truth … they are all examples of dishonesty.
Theoretically even taking a pencil from the office stationery cupboard is stealing but most employers will take a sensible approach in trivial cases. Every employee owes a duty of fidelity to his/her employer. This includes not working against the employer’s best interests and certainly includes not stealing from them. “Massaging” the expenses is widespread, of course, but most people don’t behave as blatantly as Dave here did. It is a disciplinary matter and the likely outcome will be summary dismissal for gross misconduct.
To avoid any misunderstanding at all, many employers that issue credit cards for expenses will specifically inform the employee (usually in the contract of employment) that the card is to be used for business expenses only and will set out the consequences for misuse and abuse of the card.
Category:
Employment law
An editor and the 'Walrus of Love'
July 14, 2010
An Editor and the Walrus of love
In my last job on a legal paper, my favourite colleague was our pool sub-editor. Alcoholic and unstable, Bella lived for the evenings, in particular her longstanding passion for the 'Walrus of Love', Barry White. She had been attached to Barry for thirty years, despite his girth and numerous marriages, and lost the plot - as well the ability to spell - at just the thought of his throbbing vocals.
One day the subs’ phone rang. Bella, who was sending the issue to the printer, threw it down. Through high-pitched, incoherent shrieks, we established that Barry, who had been due to arrive in the UK to perform, was having a "life-threatening" health scare. She was so hysterical, we had to send her home. What’s the HR position on that?
Michael Scutt writes:
Firstly we shouldn’t judge this lady just because of her fondness for Barry White. Look beyond that. Instead consider that this is a person who has just had a nasty shock and is very upset. What would be the position if, say, it was a close family member or partner who had a “life-threatening “ health scare? In that situation it would not be that remarkable if she became hysterical and had to be sent home.
The real issue here is whether she was acting genuinely or not. If she was “hamming it up” then there might be a call for disciplinary proceedings, following a proper investigation. However, care needs to be taken because the lady was said to be unstable and an alcoholic. A mental illness, such as depression, may qualify as a disability within the meaning of the Disability Discrimination Act 1995 (and as amended). Alcoholism doesn’t qualify, although it might if it was caused by her depression. The point to bear in mind is that if this lady is treated less favourably than a non-disabled person because of her disability she might be able to bring a claim for discrimination. They can be very expensive and time consuming to deal with.
Tread very carefully before proceeding.
Category:
Employment law
Top law blogger now free at The Guardian
July 12, 2010
Having wigged out at the prospect of his legion fans forced to pay for his wickedly funny work at the now-paywalled Times, BabyBarista blogger Tim Kevan has swept his pink-ribboned observations of life at the Bar over to The Guardian, where readers can get their daily hit of humour free.
Now the subject of two books, BabyBarista is a fictional account of a junior barrister practising at the Bar - The Times calls it “A cross between The Talented Mr Ripley, Rumpole and Bridget Jones's Diary ... a gallop of a read”.
We're reviewing the new book, Law and Disorder, on Law Donut next month, but in the meantime, enjoy your lunchbreak more than you would have done without BabyB and his cartoon pals on Tim’s site or at The Guardian.
Category:
Employment law
Bullet holes by the photocopier
June 29, 2010
An award-winning journalist writes…
When I was 24, after a couple of years of dismal freelancing, I got my first staff job on a small but high-profile magazine. I was unbelievably nervous and excited when I arrived on the first day but was shown to a desk and given a few tasks to get on with.
I had only been there a couple of hours when one of the other journalists came up to me and said, "What's your name?" in a rather intense way.
"I'm Angela," I said offering him my hand. "I've just started and—"
"Angela, you've got to leave the building now," he said flatly.
I was torn between conscientiousness and alarm but decided, it being my first day, to stick with conscientiousness. So I picked up the phone.
"I'll just make this call I've been asked to do," I said breezily. He grabbed my arm and pulled me out of the office — I noticed other people marching purposefully to the exit as well. Within moments, police were flooding in.
It turned out that the work experience guy sitting opposite me, who had been complaining loudly that he “wasn't "feeling well" had brought not aspirin, but a gun to work. When, indignant at not being offered the office first-aid kit, he started brandishing it, he was marched out.
As he was led away, and we inspected the bullet holes by the photocopier, I saw him looking a bit shame-faced. But in retrospect, I wonder if he didn't have the right idea. It turned out to be a really horrible place to work.
This much I know: the employee writes:
I went for a Starbucks and rang my friends for a laugh. Call a lawyer? Why? I’ve had worse from newspaper management.
Category:
Employment law
Sex and drugs and employment law
June 29, 2010
What’s a hard day at work for you? As employees now launch tribunal cases because they ‘weren’t offered a seat at the right table in the canteen’, the Law Donut takes a look at the – real – world of employment.
A shooting, a strangling, a drugs ring, a fight, a hold-up and “nipple issues” with a Mafioso - even in the leafy enclaves of LawDonut HQ, our oh-so-refined editors, lawyers, and mentors produced a range of ‘workplace incidents’ to stun a tribunal in ten seconds.
So if you’re bored by a whingeing worker, or facing a conduct dispute that’s a little tiresome, our new series should cheer you up. Find a new post here every couple of days, as well as expert pronouncements from our renowned bloggers and writers that show you what the victim – or the law - did next. The first post in our series is right below.
Mentor-health problems
The Prince’s Trust mentor writes….
One of my oldest friends, who is staying with me, has done annoyingly well as a tycoon. Needless to say, he’s rather competitive. So this morning, breakfast table conversation turned briefly to employment law as he and I shared (ie scrabbled for supremacy about) our managerial war stories.
I work with young people’s businesses now, but I kicked off with a few tales from my salad days as a restaurant manager. One of the high points was a phone call from the Metropolitan Police, wanting to discuss a former chef of ours, who had, they explained, been convicted of drug smuggling while on the job. The police needed to check how much I’d paid him so they could calculate how much illegal income they could seize.
At the time it was a fairly uncomfortable situation, but in hindsight it wasn’t a big deal. After all, the chef was by then an ex-employee, and in the restaurant trade this sort of thing isn’t that far out of the ordinary. Anyway, he was a good cook: well, his sauces were very more-ish.
My friend rose to the bait. He ran a far larger business, but he too had been on the receiving end of personal calls from the police. One of his employees was a junkie, in whom the boys in blue had a keen interest. Somewhat to my mate’s indignation, the employee had used his company car in a heist (then sold it for cash). Well, it showed initiative, I pointed out infuriatingly.
But my mate won. The prize for “HR Minefield of the Decade” went to one of his lady executives, who had decided to become a man. Advised to make lifestyle changes before the op, she asked to use the men’s toilets. By that stage, her female colleagues weren’t happy with her continuing to use the Ladies’. But the male staff were less than thrilled at the prospect of her hauling up her tights in the urinals.
It’s the sort of situation that could turn seriously tricky. The sex-changing employee might claim discrimination, while, whether she chose the male or female toilets, there was a good chance that other employees’ discomfort might turn into formal grievances. In the event, common sense prevailed. She would use the male facilities, but only after checking they were empty.
This much I know: the business owner writes:
What all our stories had in common was the sheer unpredictability of managing employees. Neither of us expected our employees to get involved with drugs or have a sex–change, I guess, the lesson is that you do need to be ready to cope with the consequences, whatever happens. And avoid ‘Dish of the Day’ in small restaurants.
Category:
Employment law
Bank of England set to shed some pounds with new SME icon
June 21, 2010
As of 30 June 2010, the £20 note featuring the composer Edward Elgar is to be withdrawn from circulation. The original black-and-white £20 note was first issued in 1725 by the Bank of England - while I can’t say I have seen one and I am no Numismatist [ed’s note: get you, a coin dealer], my inner geek has always hotly anticipated the issue of ‘new’ money.
The Elgar note has been phased out since 2007 with a new face, Adam Smith [don’t all say “Who?” at once – see below] and by a ‘slightly brighter’ colour design to combat fraud, explains Andrew Bailey, Executive Director, Banking and Chief Cashier of the Bank:
“The new £20 has a number of new design features; it includes a much larger silver holograph.
“It is very important that we produce notes that the public can recognise as being genuine.”
The new design will help to avoid counterfeiting of the most common note in circulation — between 1.1 and 1.2 billion. And while only one per cent of all notes in circulation are fake, the counterfeit industry remains appealing - designs need to be updated regularly to outwit forgers
If you run a business where you need to identify genuine banknotes, the Bank suggests the following measures for businesses that should help:
- Train staff by using Bank of England counterfeit detection material, including leaflets, posters, a short film and a training CD.
- Establish an anti-counterfeit checking policy and ensure that staff are aware of it.
- Avoid confrontation and do not put staff at risk of attack or injury.
- Where possible, retain the counterfeit note(s) and ask for another means of payment. Take the customer's details and give them a receipt, so they can be reimbursed by the Bank of England if the notes are found to be genuine.
- Call the police as soon as possible and hand over the counterfeit notes, or take them to the police station.
For several months after the end of June, most banks, building societies and Post Offices will accept old £20 notes for deposit to customer accounts and other customer transactions. The old note will remain legal tender for small businesses that handle cash transactions for some time but it is at the owner’s discretion how quickly they decide to decline the Elgar-faced note.
While previous icons on the £20 note included William Shakespeare and Michael Faraday, the appearance of Adam Smith on the new note is particularly appropriate for small firms.
Smith was a key proponent of free trade and capitalism and in his most famous work, ‘The Wealth of Nations’ (1776) he outlined the economic ideology that is still highly regarded today. Andrew Bailey explains why the 18th-century economist was chosen.
“Adam Smith was not just an economist; he was also a moral philosopher, a very famous figure. The insights he developed have stood the test of time; they lie at the heart of our understanding of the economy and human behaviour.”
Smith’s most often-quoted soundbite is:
"It is not from the benevolence of the butcher, the brewer, or the baker that we expect our dinner, but from their regard to their own self-interest. We address ourselves, not to their humanity but to their self-love, and never talk to them of our own necessities but of their advantages."
- The Bank of England will always exchange its old notes. To exchange an old note for a new one, either take it or post it to: Dept NEX Bank of England Threadneedle Street London EC2R 8AH
Category:
Trading law
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