i think i'm going to be sued.....

[jrobinson]

hi, i hope ul still read this even though so many replies have been made;
in my experiences i do not find anything a suprse thatan employer comes up with to make their employees leave or to get what they want!!!! dont know if any of u have read my blog but my last salon was shut down and now hes tyrying to sue me for something absolutley ridicuolous, he has no leg to stand on, and i think ul find if you go to CAB they will advise you that you were forced to resign, if there is not an actual case with trading standards. find out if there is, speak to CAb free, and dont u dare let them get away with this. you will get compenstation for unfair dismissal if you fight this till the end, and they will not get away with doing it again.
do not let this knocvk your confidence they aRE just petty petty people only out for themselves!!!


phew, my keyboard is steaming now!
:lol::hug:

 

[jrobinson]

what an awful situation you have found yourself in. Hindsight is always easy isn't it! So here's my advice for what it is worth ...

1. find a solicitor that will give 30 mins free advice to see if you can take them to an industrial tribunal - may not be easy as you don't have a written contract, but employment laws change all the time and this may not be a problem these days.


i am currently going to a tirbunal and not having a written contract actually works in the employees favour, you get compensation for it!! so go for it:hug:

 

[BABTAC Manager]

To quote Andi;

"A few years ago when I first started up I had a client come to me for massage. The first time she came all was well so she rebooked. However when she came for her second appointment she complained that the pressure was too light, so I adjusted the pressure and then she complained that it was too firm. The room was too hot, everything was too this, too that, so after about 10 mins I stopped the treatment and told her that I would not be continuing with the treatment as she was obviously looking for a different type of massage! I told her there would be no charge but perhaps she would be better off looking elsewhere for her treatments."

Please, everyone, NEVER do this - or at least if you do so be very, very careful how you do it!

At BABTAC, as I know you will all be aware, one of the membership benefits is insurance (it's just one of them, but that's another thread!). In our members handbook and in our magazine Vitality there's all sorts of advice about how to handle al sorts of situations, including complaints, and I sit on a regular BABTAC panel where we review incoming incident reports and claims, so I have to stress this; telling someone there will be no charge for a treatment is not an admission of liability, but with other evidence it could be considered contributory to an admission!

I know, I know, it's difficult sometimes; but if you DO feel you have to let someone off a charge, it might be best to have something simple printed up which says something along the lines of...

"We're/I'm sorry that you thought our service did not come up to scratch; we/I don't think we/I did anything wrong, but we/I always aim to keep our/my clients happy, so we'll/I'll waive our/my charges this time - and please accept this voucher which will entitle you to 50% off your next treatment! We/I really do want to see you back again."

... and keep a record of everyone you give this to in a small book, along with a detailed record of why you gave the voucher.

By doing so, you're doing two things; you're reassuring the client if it's a genuine, unfortunate, one-off, and you're keeping a record of 'No admission or liability'.

If the client is genuine you might keep them; if they take advantage of your offer, it makes it more unlikely that any court in the land would uphold a claim for the previous incident (how bad could it be if the client went back?).

If there's a worse problem looming (ie a claim) and they don't come back, at least you've covered the reason why you waived the charge and have a record of 'no admission of liability'.

It can be as simple as a laser-printed note on a comp slip or letterhead.

At our regional roadshows in Leeds, Brighton, Cambridge and Bristol this year (which are free to all therapists) in one of the 32 sales, marketing and business seminars our insurance team will be talking about complaints and claims and how to handle them.

If anyone would like to come along you will be welcomed - go to BABTAC - The Official Site of the British Association of Beauty Therapy and Cosmetology and see the button for the BEST Roadshows at the top!

Regards

PHILIP SWINFORD
Marketing Services Manager
BABTAC

 

[Pinkies101]

it must be really hard for you at the moment as anyone knows even the thought that someone doesnt like your work is hurtful enough. Probably nothing anyone can say will make you feel better!

But maybe you could offer your employers a massage, to show them that you are good at what you do, let them restore their faith in you and yours will shortly follow xxx

 

[BABTAC Manager]

Lisa

On the face of it, this seems like a reasonable idea; but please, everyone (and Soda particularly!) be very careful in such circumstances.

If you made any mistakes at all during any such 'demonstration' of your abilities AFTER an incident which could, maybe, possibly, potentially result in a claim, and it was witnessed, the flawed demonstration may itself perhaps be used as what is sometimes called Simlar Fact Evidence of your alleged incompetence in a later claim.

In truth, these employers do not sound like particularly pleasant or supportive people. If you dance with the crocodile, always bear in mind that his smile looks the same as his snarl when the music stops...

Regards

PHILIP SWINFORD
Marketing Services Manager
BABTAC

 

[Lil Linz]

well what you've said does sound a little strange to me. keep ur chin up hun, sending loads of hugs to you :hug::hug::hug::hug:

good luck with the mobile business! if you want to pm me your phone number, i sometimes get people ringing me from lincoln wanting a mobile nail tech so i can forward your number if you want? (im about 20 miles away from lincoln, but i dont actually cover lincoln as a mobile tech)

 

[sodabubble]

thanks Linz! I am taking this as a lesson learned - and in a strange way found comfort in knowing that I'm not the only one this kind of thing has happened to! xx

 

[luci106]

done a couple of massages on client x, the most recent one being a swedish about 3 weeks ago. I just got a phone call from my emplyoer who says that client x has been in touch with trading standards as she is a pro massager and i (apparantly) dont know what the **** i am doing! both times i have seen her i have done thorough consultations, and as far as I am aware shes a landscape gardener! that last time she visited me after the treatment was over she threw her arms around me and gave me a kiss and a tip! yes, she is a big lady, very tall and i did the massage as firm as I could, although i did ask her what sort of pressure she liked during the consultation, and asked her if the pressure was ok during the treatment.

i just feel like giving up and shriveling away....:cry:

don't panic, if your insured and qualified then you have no worries you are doing her a service if she doesn't like it she can go elsewhere, remember you cant please everyone no matter how hard you try.
keep smiling :lol:

 

[mrs o]

How is it that if your massage is so bad ,she books to come back and pay for a second one????????
I think you were too impulsive to hand in your notice and i think your employer was far too quick to accept it.
This client was also weird to contact Trading Standards as most people unhappy for whatever reason ,will contact the Salon where they most likely will be offered an explanation or a treatment at no charge or failing all that a refund.What can she hope to gain by contacting T.S?
If it were me i would politely ask your employer for the clients name and no,and the contact name of the person from TS who they say spoke to them,about the treatment you performed.I would then have a calm third party contact both to hear the truth.

If you are having your reputation blackened, ( as your employer says )you are entitled to defend yourself.
There is nothing to sue about,no damage,therefore no damages.
I think you are wrong to walk away from this situation as it appears you have done nothing wrong,but you have taken a huge knock to your confidence and career- and all on the say-so( without any facts or proof)of your employer.Sort it out and then leave-who wants to work for someone like this ?

 

[sodabubble]

bit too late I am afraid - I have left already! but I am glad that I did, looking back I dont think I would have ever got anywhere working where I was, I realise now after reading all of the replies that I was far too hasty in handing my notice in, but I panicked and reacted badly. I did ring trading standards, and they said they had no record of a complaint about me or the salon I previously worked at.
All I can do now is try really hard to make a success of being mobile, and put it down to experience.
Thanks for the advice everyone xx

 

[soriminah]

Sometimes the universe works in mysterious ways. It'll give us a good kick up the bum if it thinks we need it usually turning our life upside down in the process. Maybe that was the universes way of telling you you were wasting your time and needed to work for yourself or someone else which is better for you in the long run. If you're meant to be heading in a certain direction and you keep stalling, the Universe makes sure that you get to where you're supposed to be, and if it means throwing your life into turmoil to get you to do it, it will.

As I said previously, when one door closes another opens.

I know that I'm the sort of person who needs a good kick up the bum to get me moving. Otherwise I'll stick with the familiar rather than take a risk.

 

[sodabubble]

wise words soriminah! xx

 

[Florriedee]

So what happened? Did you sue for constructive dismissal (which it def sounds like you should have done) or did it all just go away when you left? Sorry just want to know for my own future reference! Lx