Dismissal and Subsequent Clawback of Enhanced Redundancy Payment

Good Morning,

I am looking for advice in relation to my current predicament...

I have worked for my company for approx 4 years and have recently been given notice of Redundancy.. There was the option to choose VR or CR and i looked interally for a role and therefore selected CR, my Last date of work is the 5th April and my finish time 23:59 (according to my letter of redundancy)

In December 2010, I was disciplined on the grounds of Dropping Customer Calls (I work in a Financial company in Sales) and was taken down the path of a stage 3 (Final Written Warning) This was within the Consulation period as i was originally placed at risk (with 500 other colleagues) in July 2010. I Accepted the warning without appeal

In late January i was approached in relation to two areas of misconduct. The first one was Logging out after calls made (it apparantly puts you to the back of the queue Resulting in less Calls) and secondly 3 Red Calls (based on the Companies Risk marking and marked by my immediate Team Manager) I was made to sign Consequences Discussions and although i did'nt agree with all the content of the discussions i felt pressured to sign and signed thusly.. During these meeting i was asked to resign and the manager in both instances placed themselves between the door and myself, as i am in a wheelchair i was unable to leave the room

Two days later i was taken to a meeting room without warning b6y my line manager, It was for an initial Fact Find into my misconduct.. at which point i confirmed my version of events and notes were taken. Because i was already on a stage 3 written warning my manager was not supposed to carry this out (as internal procedures forbid it)

Two days later i was suspended under the rationale that other colleagues may see my behaviour and react accordingly, I have remainder under suspension since...

i was invited to a disciplinary hearing but i entered a grievance against the disciplinary based on 1) being asked to resign 2) Breach of procedures 3) being forced out the company.. The Disciplinary procedure was delayed as the internal disciplinary procedures will allow relevant grievances to take priority

within this grievance i entered evidence of texts from my Manager which appeared to support the grievance made regarding being asked to resign whilst also confirming the breach, i also confirmed that i believed the procedure was initiated to desprive me of my redundancy payout... I also detailed the procedure regarding the Initial breach of procedure

Subsequently The Decision was made to reject the grievance, despite the overwhelming evidence in two parts of the three entered, I was subsequently invited to a discplinary meeting. at this point i entered a Grievance appeal with the condition it is to be held by a different business area (to ensure fairness) and secondly it needed to be held by a manager more senior (as the internal procedures allow) I am awaiting this meeting to be scheduled but it is unlikely to be before the end of March

Now i have studied the disciplinary papers given to me and they cite my behaviour as gross misconduct, I simply don't agree that is the case. other people have commited worse acts and have not been moved to a stage 3 independently, i am already on a stage 3 and therefore am facing dismissal but i believe my actions from a normal definition to constitute Misconduct (which i know is viewed differently from a legal standpoint) it is something i will raise at any disciplinary meeting.

The Problem lies in that the disciplinary hearing is unliekly to occur before the 5th April (7 days notice required and the conclusion of the grievance need to occur first) It is entirely probable that i will have been made redundant under Enhanced Terms on the 5th April and the company would not have been able to hold a discplinary meeting with me or allow me the chance to defend myself against there allegations...

I recieved a phone call this morning from the business.. They confirmed that i was unlikely to be taken to a disciplinary meeting as a summise above, But they also confirmed that if this was the case and the nature of misconduct would have led to my dismissal then they will withold my redundancy pay out (both enhanced and Statuatory) as i would have been deemed to have been dismissed...

I am incredibly sour about this statement, having conducted an hour or so of research and a call to ACAS both them and I can see no evidence of this being a legal position to take. Especcially considering i've not even been allowed to present my case or potentially even have my grievance against the companies misconduct finalised. Can i be dismissed twice (as i've already been dismissed under Redundancy)

I'm aware there is a mass of information above but often i read other people's post and there are crucial pieces of evidence (how ever small) that is required by the responder and i want to ensure all facts are present...

Please, Please can someone help me with this scenario.. I'm treading water based on my aptitude for research and knowledge of procedures... but this latest gambit from the conmpany has left me puzzled

I'm short on time but quickly:

As you are on a final written warning already, it may well have been fair to dismiss you.

However if your employment will have ended due to redundancy before they are able to dismiss you, then the reason for termination of employment is redundancy, not misconduct dismissal. They cannot make assumptions about the outcome of disciplinary hearings that have not happened, and withhold compulsory redundancy payments on the basis that you probably would have been dismissed had they been able to hold a hearing.

A decision to dismiss or not must not be made before you've had a chance to represent yourself/be represented and have your defence heard. By saying they assume you would have been dismissed and therefore withholding your redundancy money, they are basically saying they were not planning to give you a fair hearing anyway - they have already decided the outcome before giving you fair chance to defend yourself.

A quick turn around on this case.. The Company are alledging that the proceedings are being delayed purposely by myself (they apparantly have proof) and therefore they will be withholding the award of Redundancy. Does this alter matters somewhat?