fired

[dazdaz]

oh not a good day.just been fired for gross misconduct (accussed of diesel theft).was suspended for investigation of company hi-top van and van seen filling large cans in back of van,only 1 person suspended, van checked by garage (not independant garage) and my van compared to other van on firm that doesn't do the same kind of journeys as mine,so based on paperwork and figures i was sacked for theft, no regestration of van was taken by said witness and no photographic proof so i'm a theif via paperwork,is that not a slanderous remark as i aint a theif and have not filled containers using thier fuel card.........what should i do??????????

[abaxas]

Personally I would attack.

Get a meeting with HR and offer no tribunal for 12 months paid gardening leave. With that you will put in notice.

If no deal. ATTACK

[Phage]

In a nutshell, Citizens Advice Bureau.
I take it that the van is sig-written with the company name ? Really need more facts, but I would recommend writing down all the details whilst it's fresh in your mind. What happened, who spoke to you, what evidence was presented, how you were treated, what type of job it was, any documentation etc and take it to the CAB.

[dazdaz]

HR were at the meeting but you know that HR and manager stick together like tics on a dog. not sure how to play this as have never been in this situation

[dazdaz]

van was sign written but there are 35 vans in our unit also vans from other towns work in our area, fuel economy as worked out and yes it was poor but we had snow and i do alot of stop start short journeys compared to the other van i was compared too.felt like i was treated like the guilty party from the start. And thanks to everyone for thier help....

[Phage]

1) Make notes
2) Collect any documents you have. I think that they have to show you the evidence against you.
3) CAB

[MaddAussie]

how long have you worked for the company?

[peterb]

Welcome to Hexus.

Are you a member of a Trade Union? If so, I would contact them - otherwise CAB, or consult someone legally qualified who specialises in employment law.

[VR46]

All petrol stations have CCTV, did your company consult them as this is a serious case?

They could match up the CCTV to your Fuel receipt and highlight that no fuel cans were used.

[oolon]

Fight it, talk to the CAB about how to get an unfair dismissal tribunal underway. Demand the figures and fuel economy for all vans. To see if your one really is that bad, check and see what it your vehicle was like last year. If they will not produce the evidence, a tribunal would be very interested in that. Is it possible someone else got hold of your fuel card? Ie did someone swap cards with you and then swap back? Can you find out where and when your card was used? Surely they have date, time and place for the offence? Where was your van at this time. Were you at lunch while your mate drove the van?

Edit:
Nothing is going to get your job back quickly, you need to start looking for alternative employment. Hopefully, a tribunal will get you some compensation, even if they do give you a job again, your manager will do they best to make you uncomfortable, so getting another job is the best idea, to go with the tribunal. I am sorry.

[dazdaz]

there is no cctv to show, loads of paperwork with fuel reciepts and milage calculations.i've worked for them for 2yrs but since i brought a grievance against one of the managers things aint been the same,yes i admit it looks bad with the figures on paper but that is not 100% proof it's all cercumstancial, and i aint done it anyway but it's thier word against mine and accordding to them i'm a thief and had to go

[TheAnimus]

check your home insurance policy, you might well have personal and family legal insurance. If so, ring them up and start using it, it should cover advice from a solicitor.

[Unique]

you should speak to ACAS as soon as possible

i presume you were suspended a few days ago, and given a letter formally inviting you to a disciplinary hearing with details of the complaint and advising you that the outcome may result in dismissal, and you attended the hearing, and after they presented the evidence and heard your reply, they adjourned and came back with the finding and gave you a letter of dismissal, and that should give you 7 days to appeal?

you should appeal in writing straight away, put in writing your reasons, put everything in writing, make it clear and elaborate on everything, and point out that it's only circumstantial evidence, there is nothing definitive as you did not do it. explain your reasons why you think the fuel use may be higher for your vehicle etc, and state that you will not accept the decision under any circumstances and take the issue further in a tribunal if you are not immediately reinstated. state in writing that you believe the disciplinary process to be unfair and the allegations made up, as a result of your formal greivance against your manager. ensure this is stated in writing. keep a copy of your appeal and any other documents relating to this incident

next step if they don't give you the job back is to raise a tribunal complaint and take them to a tribunal. the main things the tribunal is concerned with is the technical aspects of how the disciplinary was handled by the employer

[Jay]

but did you do it?

[Unique]

a few other things...

have you had any formal warnings for anything previously, if so what? have you had any warnings at all, formal or informal or any discussions prior to this about your fuel usage being high?

did you ask for and/or did the employer give you paperwork to show your milage and fuel use compared to other vehicles, and how many other vehicles did they compare fuel against mileage in order to ascertain that your fuel use to mileage was higher than other vehicles, and what percentage of fuel use were you higher?

i presume you kept mileage logs during the vehicle use, did your fuel to mileage increase during your 2 years, or remain similar?

what you want to aim for is that you weren't previously warned about your fuel consumption, you weren't given adequate paperwork prior to your hearing to answer your case, point out that you are a driver and never had warnings before and not used to this situation whilst your HR dept etc are qualified and experienced in these issues yet didn't give you the appropriate information to deal with your case. you also want to point out that they didn't compare against a sufficient number of vehicles as regards to your fuel useage and your useage has remained constant throughout your time with the company. you also want to ask them if they will continue to monitor and compare the fuel usage with your intended replacement if they don't reinstate you, and ask what they will do when they find the fuel usage is not notable different to yours, in other words providing them with the circumstantial evidence that you did not use the fuel

that's what you want to hit them with in writing, obtain a written reply and present that to the tribunal hearing

i'm presuming they've plucked this out of the air and they haven't made a proper fuel comparison or given you proper paperwork to compair, thus you were at an unfair disadvantage at your hearing

also, i'd mention that if they had suffiencnt evidence to fire you for stealing fuel, why didn't they report this to the police as theft, and also to the insurance company for a theft claim, as a proper investiagtion by either or both parties would provide further evidence to your case that you didn't do what you were dismissed for

[hypnoticstate]

bummer! feel for you man!