I have an absence review and I want a rep with me. The rep I would usually choose is on holiday and I don't have any others who work the same shifts as me. When they ask me if I want a rep, and I say yes, what happens? I know they postpone it but do I have to give the name of the rep then and there or do they give me time to find one?
I am considering bringing a colleague instead of a rep, but I also need to check when they are available will they give me time to do this? I've not been at work since I was given the AR letter and my AR is on the day I go back, so I haven't had time to get anything prepared. What's the policy on this?
Do you have a big absence % or number of occasions? Whats the reason for wanting a rep?
Quote from: madness on 22-04-22, 02:50PM
Do you have a big absence % or number of occasions? Whats the reason for wanting a rep?
Over 5% apparently, was one week at the end of last year when I had the flu and once earlier in the month when I was off for medical reasons. I just want to cover all my basis, I don't want to get a warning when the reasons for being off were completely out of my control but management have a habit of giving warnings to staff particularly when not represented.
As long as your bigger history picture is alright ie really good outside of the 26 week period id just be checking that medical reason isnt going to be ongoing or if it needs any support.
Take a rep it's what you pay for.
It's also buried in the partnership agreement that TESCO organise a rep if you cannot give them the name of the rep you want and ask to adjourn the meeting until the rep is available which they can do.
As long as your chosen rep is available shortly to allow the AR to take place in a reasonable timescale (ie they haven't started a month long extended holiday) they should postpone the meeting until they can attend.
contact your local office and they can help arrange for you
Quick bit of info for everyone.
An ARM is a disciplinary hearing, because it can lead to a warning.
Because of this the right to representation is governed by the law rather than policy tou can postpone for upto 7 days for your companion of choice.
Be aware you should be prepared to offer your availability with your companion of choice when you request the meeting be postponed.
The AR must open within 7 days, and your request to postpone be written into the notes.
If you want a longer postponement then you will have to negotiate it with the manager in question.
I've seen Store Managers sack CAs for 1 days of sickness, this was years ago however, and this SM in question thought that as a Store Manager that he is above Tesco policy and law, that the employment tribunal judge would bend the knee to his authority. He was chummy with the People Partner but even she had to spank him and apologise profusely to the dismissed colleague. The colleague told her to shove the apology where the sun doesn't shine and the SM got no more than a verbal ear wagging, eventually down the line though, he got asked to resign for cooking the books.
Quote from: madness on 22-04-22, 03:31PM
As long as your bigger history picture is alright ie really good outside of the 26 week period id just be checking that medical reason isnt going to be ongoing or if it needs any support.
Fair enough, I have rarely been off in nearly two years, the only other time was when I had the flu (couldn't move, even if I could I had covid-related symptoms and wouldn't be allowed to work anyway). This time it's a valid medical reason and have evidence, might even be a mitigating circumstance. I do wonder however, why my flu absence wasn't counted as covid-related, because at the time the policy was that anybody with the symptoms, regardless of a negative test, wasn't able to work and it wouldn't be counted as an absence. That's how I read it, anyway. Either way, I'm not too worried, it's just a formality, just want a rep with me to make sure it's all above board.
Quote from: horatiocain on 22-04-22, 07:25PM
Take a rep it's what you pay for.
It's also buried in the partnership agreement that TESCO organise a rep if you cannot give them the name of the rep you want and ask to adjourn the meeting until the rep is available which they can do.
Thanks, I did just that, and they have adjourned it, but two of the reps aren't available yet, so I may not be given my AR for another week, at what point does it become too late to do the review? I've already waited a week, then it was adjourned until a week later, but with nobody available it's going to be another week wait.
Quote from: londoner83 on 23-04-22, 08:51AM
As long as your chosen rep is available shortly to allow the AR to take place in a reasonable timescale (ie they haven't started a month long extended holiday) they should postpone the meeting until they can attend.
They have postponed it, but the rep isn't available for over a week (and it's already been nearly two weeks since I was first in the review). How long can they wait for a rep?
It doesn't become too late, if they have touched base with you, and you are all in agreement to postpone until the rep is back from holiday next week.
If your chosen rep was off long term, due to sickness or extended holiday/break, then it can't be postponed for that length of time. Your option would be to have another in store rep if one available, if not then you can request a rep from another store.
Quote from: ihavequestions23 on 27-04-22, 01:20AM
Quote from: madness on 22-04-22, 03:31PM
As long as your bigger history picture is alright ie really good outside of the 26 week period id just be checking that medical reason isnt going to be ongoing or if it needs any support.
Fair enough, I have rarely been off in nearly two years, the only other time was when I had the flu (couldn't move, even if I could I had covid-related symptoms and wouldn't be allowed to work anyway). This time it's a valid medical reason and have evidence, might even be a mitigating circumstance. I do wonder however, why my flu absence wasn't counted as covid-related, because at the time the policy was that anybody with the symptoms, regardless of a negative test, wasn't able to work and it wouldn't be counted as an absence. That's how I read it, anyway. Either way, I'm not too worried, it's just a formality, just want a rep with me to make sure it's all above board.
You can ask about all of this in your meeting. The whole point of the meeting is to review your absence over the past 26 weeks.
Thanks, been 2 and a half weeks and nothing yet. My manager keeps telling me they are going to get someone but still no word of a meeting. Annoying me now, have half a mind to say forget the rep just give me my meeting so you can stop going on about it and I can get on with my job.
Adjournments are for 2 weeks unless specified and agreed longer, that's in the partnership agreement.
If its been more than that then the meeting is out of process and you shouldn't worry, any rep worth their badge should kill the meeting quickly
Reps cannot "kill the meeting" even if it is out of process. The meeting could still go ahead however cannot result in any disciplinary action if out of process.
Any meeting which is pointless is potentially vexatious which is a breach of the ERA any good rep will speak with the manager and point out that no meeting needs now take place the manager can hold a hearing without the colleague reading into the notes that the meeting is out of process and therefore uneeded and closing the meeting.
Normally the rep will sign these notes to confirm, I did it many times, the colleague need not be stressed out worrying about a meeting with no purpose.
It's the efficient way of dealing with the matter.
Quote from: horatiocain on 06-05-22, 12:37AM
Any meeting which is pointless is potentially vexatious which is a breach of the ERA any good rep will speak with the manager and point out that no meeting needs now take place the manager can hold a hearing without the colleague reading into the notes that the meeting is out of process and therefore uneeded and closing the meeting.
Normally the rep will sign these notes to confirm, I did it many times, the colleague need not be stressed out worrying about a meeting with no purpose.
It's the efficient way of dealing with the matter.
I'm wondering if this meeting is now out of process. I have it in a few days (according to my rep, but I haven't had this confirmed by a manager yet) but it's now been two weeks since it was postponed. (Three weeks since I received the absence review letter). My manager has been up to me several times about the rep not being available yet, but he hasn't put this in writing or anything. Honestly I am happy to go through with it because I have legitimate reasons for being off, but I hate that nobody wants to follow process.
Process is the whole point.
The partnership agreement is clear unless by mutual agreement no adjournments over 14 days unless necessary for complex investigation and then they need your agreement to do so.
Bottom line is that it's out of process and your manager should know it.
And just because they shouldn't issue a warning doesn't mean they won't.
Quote from: horatiocain on 06-05-22, 12:37AM
Any meeting which is pointless is potentially vexatious which is a breach of the ERA any good rep will speak with the manager and point out that no meeting needs now take place the manager can hold a hearing without the colleague reading into the notes that the meeting is out of process and therefore uneeded and closing the meeting.
Normally the rep will sign these notes to confirm, I did it many times, the colleague need not be stressed out worrying about a meeting with no purpose.
It's the efficient way of dealing with the matter.
Part of the reason for absence reviews are to find out how Tesco can support with improving your attendance, the meeting should still go ahead for this reason but cannot result in disciplinary action.
My other legs got bells on it :D
Tesco supporting?????
I'm sorry I've never heard those words used together.
My experience has always been Tesco managers issuing as many warnings as they can get away with to look good to incompetent lead managers who can keep kissing ass of their store manager so they get promoted.
If they don't think this way they leave because they're ostracised.
As an old tesco colleague used to say:
They're lazy idiots, and they promote those who fit in, which are lazier and stupider, eventually they'll be hiring from the monkeys enclosure at the zoo, but that might be an improvement over what we have.
Don't insult the monkeys.;)
Can a GA take notes in a meeting if there is only one manager in?
As long as the note taking online training has been done it could be almost anyone. With a smaller and smaller management team this could be the way forward. We are often single manager in the building and we have a wages clerk and an off till colleagues who can take notes but they are also ex-managers.
Can a meeting be postponed/brought forward if my rep is unavailable, or does anyone know if it would be possible to request they pay the rep overtime for attending my meeting?
I have had one single rep following my case for almost a year. Not that I have a lot of meetings, but I've learned the hard way that Tesco can't be trusted to remember what was discussed, and I've been asking this rep to come to discussions with me. In particular meetings to discuss support plans after an illness. I have an ARM coming up, and I would like this same rep to accompany me, as they are familiar with my situation, and can even chime in if I forget a point. Their shift ends at the time my meeting starts. Can Tesco refuse to allow me to wait - or refuse to pay the rep overtime - just to represent me?
Also, this ARM has been triggered by me leaving early after becoming unwell at work. I worked the majority of my shift - can that trigger an ARM? I've been at Tesco for many years, and have never seen anyone get an ARM in that case. I even contacted colleague help, who stated "ideally this would not trigger an ARM". I feel like it's all a certain manager trying to make things difficult for me, rather than a legitimate Tesco process.
An employer is only obliged to allow for representation, not representation by a specific rep.
That said, the managers involved are expected to show reasonable flexibility. Changing the timing of a meeting by an hour or two should be reasonable - unless arrangements have been made for an external manager to attend. An alternative is that the rep is given time in lieu to compensate.
Based on section 7 of the current Sickness Absence policy (4.3 / Nov 21, if less than half of the contracted shift has been worked then the absence will count towards your absence level and could trigger an AR. If less than half of the shift remains then your absence level is not affected, but under section 13 either case still counts towards the "3 separate occasions" rule and so could trigger an AR
If you are on work and pay your absence is worked out in hours rather than days, so any period of 1hr or more away from work would form part of your current absence %.
londoner83 Not according to the policy document which clearly states
QuoteIf you have less than half your shift left to work, your absence will not be included in your absence levels.
Quote from: londoner83 on 15-08-22, 06:02AMIf you are on work and pay your absence is worked out in hours rather than days, so any period of 1hr or more away from work would form part of your current absence %.
That's incorrect, it's written into policy that if you have less than half the shift left it won't be counted. Though they are trying to count it at the moment 🙄 A couple of the days they are trying to pin on me are administrative errors. Tesco is such a headache
Thanks for the info @farmerfred
The only rep on shift at the time of my meeting is one who works directly underneath me, which is one of the reasons I never use them. I was also advised by the union's area manager that they are not the best person to use when things are complicated, which my situation is.
I filed a grievance over something that happened at work, which made me go off sick. They keep delaying hearing my grievance, so it looks like I'm going to have to start the tribunal process, especially as they are now calling ARMs on something that was caused by work.
Something else that came out of the latest pay negs is that a single sickness that goes over 3 % with no other sickness in the 26 weeks no longer goes to ARM
I didn't spot that in the policies, has that been updated yet?
Quote from: chris9997 on 15-08-22, 11:39AMSomething else that came out of the latest pay negs is that a single sickness that goes over 3 % with no other sickness in the 26 weeks no longer goes to ARM
There has always been disgretion with that.
The rep is on holiday 😖 can Tesco make the meeting go ahead, telling me I need to bring someone else or go alone?
You need to contact the Area Usdaw office and ask them to support with a Rep.
Make sure you tell the person in plenty of time who is conducting the meeting that you want a rep. The meeting should not go ahead if you want a rep
If they try to push it through, wait until the meeting starts, and the notes begin to be taken, you'll be asked if you want a rep, you say yes...your answer should be noted! Every comment now spoken,by everyone, should be noted down! The note taker cannot make any comment during the meeting, if they do, you insist they put their comments in the notes!
You should be asked if you're happy to proceed? You say no!
You ask for an adjournment, you state you are not happy to proceed without representation, all noted down, if it's not being written down, ask why not??
Thanks for the advice! I went with the advice to say I wasn't happy to continue without representation - however, Tesco's organisation skills were at their finest as ever, as I was the only person to show up to the meeting. I'm waiting to hear whether it gets rescheduled