Scots Royal Mail worker had sick pay illegally docked by ‘bully’ boss who forced her off

A Royal Mail worker who had almost £4,000 of sick pay illegally docked by a manager she accused of bullying has won the cash back after taking her bosses to a tribunal.

Pamela Gray was signed off work with anxiety and stress after learning that her new boss at Bo’ness Delivery Office was to be a colleague she had previously accused of bullying.

She told her outgoing manager on March 29 that she couldn’t work with them and handed in a long-term sick note from her doctor.

Pamela said in a letter to her boss: “You and everyone else are well aware that I am off work because of previous issues with yourself.

“Make no mistake, I want to be working but at this time. I hope my sick line from doctor’s will do.”

However, her new supervisor demanded that she meet with him or face having her pay docked.

When both she and a trade union rep failed to show, he said in a letter dated April 12th: “I must advise you that from 13 04 2021 you will no longer be entitled to receive Royal Mail sick pay.”

An Employment Tribunal has now concluded that the Royal Mail illegally deducted £3,893.21 of wages from Pamela’s wages between April and September 2021 after she concluded she couldn’t face her alleged tormentor.

Employment Judge Joseph d’Inverno said that the deductions had begun with too little notice – one day – and that a failure by her trade union rep to appear at meetings on her behalf couldn’t be blamed on her.

He also said postal bosses couldn’t use the fact she was continuing to work elsewhere in the sorting office as a cleaner against her.

Pamela’s manager in that job – under a separate company – had rearranged her rota to make sure she never came face-to-face with her accused bully.

The judge also criticised the Royal Mail for failing to give her the option of speaking to someone else inside the postal giant.

It had insisted that everything had to go through the manager she said she was “physically and mentally unable” to work alongside despite the issues she had raised.

And at one point early in the dispute, another Royal Mail boss said to Pamela of her allegations: “It didn’t happen, it didn’t happen.”

Judge d’Inverno said: “The decision [to stop sick pay] and the reasons notified…were predicated upon a number of factual inaccuracies.

“The Tribunal determined that the claimant’s [Pamela’s] entitlement to sick pay continued…and that in withholding the claimant’s sick pay in that period the respondent [RM] did make an unauthorised deduction from her wages.”

Pamela, who secured the victory against her employers without legal representation, told a Record reporter she was unable to comment.

She is still employed at the sorting office on East Pier Street in Bo’ness, between Grangemouth and South Queensferry.

A Royal Mail spokesperson said: “We’re reviewing the judgement and will take on board any lessons learned.”

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