Discrimination in the workplace - to complain or not?

Wow such a great article... thanks so much for that @HighAchiever I hadn't seen it. Very very true. I was having a conversation today with someone about workplace cultures and the impact on staff. It starts at the top and allowing a toxic culture to flourish leads to these sort of mental health issues caused by poor management. Quite apt it mentions healthcare workers as being at elevated risk - seems a few of us here who work in healthcare are facing this issue. I mentioned to someone that my meeting yesterday was farcical in its lack of understanding - and these are people in senior managment roles in a healthcare organisation that employs thousands.

Well yesterday I yesterday I received an email from my lawyer regarding my employer's investigation into complaints about my performance that were made in February by my manager with a clear intent to start managing me out of the workplace and start termination proceedings. So after I presented many pages of evidence at the recent meeting that I attended with my lawyer it was found that I hadn't breached any policies or protocols and actually hadn't done anything wrong - no apology of course for putting me through hell for five months and no mention of the fact that this was a clearly malicious and vexatious complaint made by a manager with a vendetta against me and just blame shifting to make me the scapegoat. Just gives me more ammunition to take to court now. I haven't worked for several weeks but now I'm going back on Monday just to prove the point that they won't beat me and I won't be bullied or intimidated. Why should I let them treat me like this when I've done nothing to deserve it. I did not have one single day off in 8 years due to my mental illness but since this campaign against me started this year I've had to take many weeks off - I'm so furious about how I've been treated. Sorry for the angry rant.

@Former-Member

I feel for you so much! I'm going through the same thing and I'm a HR manager - doesnt matter who you are in a company. I'm doing the same have been getting bullied and harrassed by owners because I try to adhere to HR policies and dont let pople get away with being bullied ( to another employees) but you know how it goes now because I stuck up for one of my employees who was being bullied they have had it in for me since. Now they are just being mean, vicious and just think they can treat people however they want (seeing past employees experience). I too think just to piss them off I'm not going to quit, everyone else had but I'm the same I have done nothing wrong and have even been told in my performance reviews that I'm too nice to employees and should be nice in my own time, too nice to suppliers or customers who come in the front door, I'm over professional and over efficient and spend way too much time on payroll (hence no errors).

It seems to me people like us that do the right thing, dont take sickies etc etc just get given shit left right and centre and yet employees who complain about everything, are not compliant etc get away with it. How is this right?? Yes I'm very angry so I'm venting too but so sick of how employers feel they have the right to treat employees however they want and then they just pay off lawyers to get them out of the shit.

Hang in there if thats what you want to do, at the moment apart from no work in my area I'm not going to let them make me resign (thats actually known as constructive dismissal which is no different than harrassment). I will stay here just to piss them off.

Hi All... I haven't updated this thread for a while. Yesterday I got told to attend a performance review that was done by a "interim manager"... this interim period is now up to its fifth month. The review was highly critical and negative, mentioned incidents for which I was exonerated of any wrongdoing and did not contain any postive comments or any acknowledgement of any achievements or the difficult circumstances I have had to endure including coming close to pulling the plug earlier this year after copping a load of verbal abuse from a manager about what a useless person I am. I was told I had to sign the review and send it by COB tomorrow. I was really upset after the negative onslaught so I forwarded the review to my lawyer who then sent a strongly worded reply to the HR person that I should never had been made to attend the review while there were still outstanding legal issues. I hope they realise that this is serious now and try to work to a resolution - It's really taken a toll on me over the past nine months but I am determined to see it through to its conclusion. Big thanks to everyone who has supported me here = @Change123 @Sahara @utopia @Bast @Former-Member @girl99 and everyone else. I really appreciate everyone's comments and I hope it helps others who are in this situation.

Hello @Former-Member

so sorry to hear about the appalling experience with the interim manager...clearly direction from above

great response from lawyer and you for being spot on, sending information straight through

I finally finished ordeal with me work and have retired. I had to bring the union in again purely because I wanted nothing to do with them anymore ...I had been on extended sick leave.

a big slice out of my life ...I could have pushed harder and taken them to court but for me, with everything else that was going on around me, just standing up to them was enough.

I am very proud of you dugga

do not let them wear you down though

I do hope that you are having some counselling of some time and all costs to be settled with employer, via your lawyer

take care

typed in haste...please excuse grammar mistakes

Thanks @Former-Member - I don't dislike Mr. Interim Manager but clearly he is a puppet and is getting the strings pulled from above. I'm sorry for your experience in your workplace. It does suck the life out of you and removes any enjoyment or satisfaction you ever got from your job when you're mistreated through no fault of your own. Thanks again for your kind words.

Good on you for forwarding that copy of the review to your lawyer, @Former-Member! Way to go.

Please think twice about ever seeing your employer agian. Are you at home on Workcover? Can't you just get a doctor's certificate so as you don't have to attend appointments like the one you have just been to?

I would not be going anywhere near them while legal action is pending. It isn't safe for you.

How are you doing on a day to day basis? Are you able to enjoy a few things in your day?

Thanks @Sahara and @utopia - I took time off on sick leave. My GP will give me a certificate for as much time as I want. I went back hoping they would have got the message but straight it was back to the same stuff: not being invited to meetings, not being given any work to do, being isolated in a room by myself with no contact from anyone else. I can see now why solitary confinement is used as a punishment. If I didn't have a window I would lose it completely. My psychiatrist and GP both advised me to stay off the workcover path until I've completely exhausted my sick leave and annual leave. My psychiatrist has worked as a so-called Independent Medical Examiner with Workcover and told me about the tricks they get up to so Workcover is a last resort even though my GP and psychiatrist have agreed to support my claim if I submit it. It's hard to get a MH claim accepted with a pre-existing condition but there is no doubt my condition has been made far worse by the treatment I have been subjected to. This entire mess could have been avoided if it had been properly investigated by my employer's HR department in the first place. They automatically took the side of a manager who has had several previous incidents and didn't even bother following up the evidence I had. Anywhere else would have sorted it months ago but their lack of professionalism and poor process following has brought it to this point. I have had people ask me why I am putting myself through this but I have come this far and now it's all about justice and making people accountable. If I don't take a stand it will just be someone else in my position a year from now. The truth will always come out and if I have to expose it in a public court I will do that.