One with a happy (non violent) ending
A few years back I started working at a law firm. My boss was *amazing*, and offered to put me through my law conversion course.

Then his wife started working there. She systematically destroyed any good relationship between the boss and staff. The only member of staff that was exempt was the secretary, an average, fairly dim, suck up.

Over the next 18 months all 12 of the original staff had left. I say this to reassure (mostly) myself that I wasn't a complete pansy.

Her slow take-over of the firm involved Big Brother-esque monitoring of each and every activity partaken in throughout the day, and the slow degradation of my role from that of having my own cases which I ran with minimal supervision, to office skivvy, culminating in them employing a new leader of our department, letting me know on the morning this numpty was arriving, and telling me to shift my stuff out into the hall because, oh, he'd be needing my desk, too. The department I worked in had consisted of me and my supervisor, who, since starting her new job has begged me to come and work with her new firm.

The boss's wife made continual nasty and sexist comments, letting it be known that although the male solicitor didn't have to clock in and out like we did, or fill in time sheets, there would be serious repercussions if we did not.

It is very hard to explain what office bullying is like. I honestly couldn't tell you what it was that affected me so deeply, but it was horrible. I used to sit in my car, trying not to burst into tears, for up to 10 minutes every morning before work, just in case I had to face her - or him, as she'd turned him firmly against us all.

Long and short was that I eventually went to see the doctor because my hair had started to fall out (!), and I was on the verge of a breakdown. She told me in no uncertain terms that I was to take time off with stress. I flinched, because time off with stress was what people who were lazy good-for-nothings did. But saw sense and took said time off. I had a meeting with my boss, and using up the last of my courage reserves explained in great detail why I was having such a hard time, to be reassured it wouldn't continue.

On my return, it was as if he had concentrated each offensive action into the space of 2 hours. I barely made it through the day, handed my notice in that afternoon, and through my tears fled to the doctors to be told that the doc had never heard anything so stupid (re the actions of my boss) in a long time. He signed me off for my notice period.

I did not get paid for that last month. Fair dos, I didn't work. But then my boss wrote to me demanding a number of thousands of pounds because they'd put me through one year of a law conversion course.


And here is where honesty and integrity (and printing all the evidence) prevails. I sent a 22 page official complaints letter, with 41 attached documents; mostly emails and timesheets, listing my unfair dismissal on the grounds of gender, bullying received from his wife, the reporting of said bullying, and the inaction on his part. It took me 2 weeks to write, and since I sent it I have not heard from the firm.

~wavy lines time~

The suck-up secretary who had stabbed all in the back when she was there, had been stabbed in the back herself, and quit. She told my supervisor to let me know that Mr Evil Boss had spent some thousands of pounds getting professional advice re my complaint letter to be told very firmly to shut up and hope that I never contacted them again or he would be in a huge heap of professional misconduct shite.

The firm is still doing business, altho last gossip was the idiot wife had "accidentally" laundered £10k for on of their clients. They still live in a massive house, drive massive cars, and generally act live pretentious nobs.
But... the husband has taken to sleeping in his office to avoid his harpy of a wife, who had gotten pregnant (again). Neighbours had started complaining that he would invite himself to their houses and not leave until the early hours.
And, I earn an equivalent of precisely 2x the wage he paid me. And my current boss is LOVELY. (Altho his new partner's a bit of a cow, hey ho, leaving in a couple of months anyway, and now I don't let it get to me).

I'm just happy that I'm no longer there. Anything else is a glorious bonus!
(Psyche finishes work at the end of June! Yay!!!, Fri 15 May 2009, 16:40, 9 replies)

Bloooooody hell
sorry for the essay... must've got a bit carried away!
(Psyche finishes work at the end of June! Yay!!!, Fri 15 May 2009, 16:40, closed)

Don't be sorry for the eaasy!
I'm glad you got out of there. I had to watch a good friend be bullied out of a job. Nothing I could do as any intervention would have just made it worse for him, except pick up the pieces when he left. I'm going to remember what you have said about the report though, and pass that on to anyone who needs it. I just wish I could have done it for my mate.
(Potty Jag har smör i min rumpspringa, Fri 15 May 2009, 17:03, closed)

Oh my god,
It was the only thing that took me through that last month! Print off EVERYTHING, no matter how minor. Oh, and diary any events and how they made you *feel*. Apparently they are good evidence in unfair dismissal cases. At least your mate's out now.
(Psyche finishes work at the end of June! Yay!!!, Fri 15 May 2009, 17:06, closed)

Same here
A colleague was bullied out of their job because our practice manager thought he was "gay". The harrassment of this bloke took several unpleasant turns and at no point did management do anything to stop it - far from it, the firm needed a whipping boy/girl to blame everything on.

I've seen grown men pissing in cups of coffee, incriminating documents shredded, the social exclusion of specific employees by the firm's partners and certain individuals suspected of having emotional difficulties overloaded with work until they cracked.

It's a great pity you never took your firm to the cleaners, I suspect that they'd have paid a fortune to keep the case out of the newspapers.
(Bicycle Repairman "you're also a bit of a wanker", Fri 15 May 2009, 17:11, closed)

I sometimes wonder about that...
But at the time I think a legal battle would've finished me. And contrary to what you hear, the CAB are useless, if you wanna fight, be prepared to fight alone.

And I don't think I'd have liked to take money for what I'd been put through. Just left alone. But it was nice to imagine him sweating!
(Psyche finishes work at the end of June! Yay!!!, Fri 15 May 2009, 18:07, closed)

I found a pretty decent legal firm when I put in a claim for unfair dissmissal
The company settled in the end (it was only over a couple of weeks wages) but the legal co was pretty helpful and not too expensive. I'd recommend it.

Edit: I think at the time, you got 90 days to file a complaint. I'd been pestering them for 3 months for the money but they stonewalled me. They finally wanted to talk to me when I said I was going legal but I told em it was too late. I managed to lump in a whole lot of other stuff and potentially I think they could have got into a lot of trouble with various agencies. I just wanted my wages though.
(Richy_T hundreds if not thousands of dollars, Fri 15 May 2009, 20:34, closed)

fuck me.
that's bloody shit.

I'll punch him for you when I get there. And his bitch of a wife.
Be happy you're free. :)

/hugs
(Poppet some assembly required., Sat 16 May 2009, 7:08, closed)

Ooh!
That'll be nice! I shall look forward to it immensely!
(Psyche finishes work at the end of June! Yay!!!, Sat 16 May 2009, 10:00, closed)

I smell bullshit
Why would the owner of a law firm need to soend thousands of pounds on professional advice on a letter you wrote?
( currantbun is nubtnarruc backwards, Sat 16 May 2009, 10:10, closed)