Notice period

[Egmoz]

Hi,




I am after some advice if possible. I resigned from my job the day before I went on holiday. Although contractually I only needed to give 7 days notice I offered them 6 weeks notice to provide handover.

I went away on holiday thinking I would be coming back in a couple of weeks to work until the end of this month. However whilst on leave I was short paid and then on the last day of my holiday got a leavers survey to my personal email account. Upon returning from holiday on 1st September I had a letter from HR saying that further to my managers email on 19th August (I was on annual leave from 17th and not accessing work emails) my last day of employment was 22nd August and I was to claim any expenses and return an IT equipment by this date - this was despite them knowing I had annual leave booked and not returning until 3rd September, so I could not action this or respond. When I tried to log into my work accounts when I got back from holiday to see this email and also put my expenses through everything had been disabled. I only got an email from my manager on 6th September after I queried what has happened which is where he told me that they chose to turn down my 6 week offer and go with the required 7 days notice. I know they are within their rights to do this but as they sent this when I was on holiday to my work email and I didn’t get any confirmation of this until 6th September - can they end my contract and reduce my pay or should it be from when I received confirmation of their decision stick with the 7 day notice ? I have also found out that my manager told colleagues that I had left the business whilst I was on holiday, therefore theoretically they new I had left before I did.




Any advice would be appreciated.

Thanks

[efpom]

I am cannot see from your writing what the issue is.

The facts, as I understand them, are that you resigned on a certain date. Your contract required that you give 7 days notice, that notice period ended 8 days later - the law on contracts does not count a part of a day, when serving a contractual notice, unless the contract expressly says otherwise.

You offered to extend that notice period to 6 weeks. That offer was rejected.

You were unable to comply with your employer's instruction to file your expenses and return all employer's property, by another certain date, because you were on holiday and therefore not placed to obey that instruction.

Questions:
1 Have you now returned, or taken steps to return, all of your employer's property?
2 Have you been paid your expenses and all wages due to you?
3 If the answer to 2 is no -do you anticipate any refusal to pay?

If the answer to 1 & 2 above is 'yes' to both, and the answer to 3 is 'no', there is no legal issue here, as far as I can see, unless you argue that the date of resignation runs from the date of its receipt, and not the date of its sending, at most 2 days, if 1st class post was used to serve the notice.

[Egmoz]

Thanks for your advice, I was just trying to ascertain whether they were in the wrong to notify me of enforcing the 7 day notice and not accepting my extended notice whilst I was away on holiday. But sounds like there is no issue there.

I’ve told them if they arrange someone to collect the IT equipment I’ll box them up ready for collection. I wasn’t willing to do it at my own expense as I’m still owed nearly £300 in previous expenses.

Can I wait for the expenses to be paid before sending the kit back? I don’t want to be difficult with them, I just want what I am owed.

[efpom]

Questions:
On what date did you submit your expenses claim?
What is your estimate of the value to you of the ex employer's items?
Have you been paid your wages including wages arising because of any unspent holiday entitlement?

You have not yet answered my previous questions, so that makes it difficult for me to give advice until you do.

[Egmoz]

I haven’t submitted my expenses claim, I tend to do them at the start of the month for the previous month so when they blocked access whilst away on holiday mid August I have not been able to claim these. My ex employer is aware that there are unpaid expenses as I emailed them

With regards to pay and holiday, yes they paid up until the end of the 7 days notice with no holiday pay owing.

I would say the IT kit is worth around £2k

[efpom]

This forum is about the law and how it might be applied to a factual matrix.

You are in no position to retain possession of items that belong to your employer until you are paid your expenses, when you have not submitted any claim for those expenses.

I think it wise that you make that claim immediately, asking for payment to be made by return, stating quite clearly that you are exercising a lien on your ex employer' goods until payment is made. I suggest that be made by 1st class post, with proof of post - free from the post office.

On receipt of full payment, you must make the goods available for collection.

On lien here: One important reason writing about that that, is to counter any assertion to the authorities that you have stolen the goods.

If there is then any dispute about the amount, you may be entitled to exercise a lien on the ex employer's goods in your possession until the dispute is settled.

You will recognise, of course, that following this path will not endear you to your ex employer, and you may wish to consider the wider implications for future employment.