5 reminders for dealing with trouble at work or with welfare benefits!
In my employment and equality law training courses as well as the advocacy service I provide to people with work or welfare problems, I use five key reminders and messages.
?Where could this go next? - Think ahead creatively. Often a case will start off one shape, end up another shape and sometimes have an outcome that nobody predicted or expected. It's a reminder to follow due process as are some of the next points.
?Was the response reasonable, practical and proportionate? - Slippery and/or elastic words but a reminder that every case is considered on its own merits and that external observers in an employment or welfare appeal tribunal will usually bring an objective legal or technical focus to bear on matters that those on the receiving end will need your help and patience in explaining
?If it is not recorded, it did not happen - Safeguarding mantra but so transferable to cases such as sexual harassment or a claim for Personal Independence Payments (PIP). Often the people I work with have lives that have been thrown into chaos and turmoil by events and may overlook paperwork, diary entries and good record keeping.
?Remember the links - many allegations and claims are not vacuum packed from other laws and procedures. An equality discrimination claim might be linked to one of unfair constructive dismissal. You might have to use data protection access rights to get critical information for the person you are helping. A manager may have to be warned that a seemingly straightforward sickness absence could spark a personal injury claim in the County Court.
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?WAR? - I often work with people who:
WITHDRAW (W) - resign or walk away from the workplace or don't have the strength to withstand a prolonged complaint about access to services
AGREE (A) - suffering inside from harassment or bullying but the mask goes on. "It was only a joke, a bit of fun" becomes a coping mechanism
RESIST (R) - easy to say-harder to do. However, the question often asked by those helping others from outside is "Did that person have the confidence to resist, knowing that support was available, inside and outside the situation?"