{"id":2018,"date":"2022-06-08T15:33:18","date_gmt":"2022-06-08T15:33:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/claytonemploymentlaw.co.uk\/?post_type=articles-papers&p=2018"},"modified":"2022-06-08T16:19:01","modified_gmt":"2022-06-08T16:19:01","slug":"senior-executive-exits-a-case-study-in-how-not-to-handle-a-protected-conversation","status":"publish","type":"articles-papers","link":"https:\/\/claytonemploymentlaw.co.uk\/articles-papers\/senior-executive-exits-a-case-study-in-how-not-to-handle-a-protected-conversation\/","title":{"rendered":"Senior Executive Exits \u2013 a Case Study in How NOT to Handle a Protected Conversation"},"content":{"rendered":"

One of my essential top tips for employers when considering the exit of a high earning senior employee is to make sure you get the process off to a good start.<\/p>\n

However, in a recent case before the West Midlands Employment Tribunal in which I successfully represented the claimant, the employer\u2019s handling of its very first supposed protected conversation with my client was judged to be so woeful that it was of itself an unjustifiable repudiatory breach of the implied term of trust and confidence, which entitled my client to resign and regard herself as constructively dismissed.<\/p>\n

My client was subsequently awarded approx. \u00a395,000 in damages which included the maximum amount that the Judge was able to award for her unfair dismissal and wrongful dismissal.<\/p>\n

So, just how did it go so badly wrong for the employer??\u2026..<\/p>\n

Well, in my opinion, the manager was far too over-zealous about sharing his end-game during what he thought would be a protected conversation.\u00a0The manager clearly wanted my client out of his team and out of the business, and whilst he did not say as much in express terms, he didn\u2019t make it very hard for my client (or for the Employment Judge) to read between the lines that whether my client accepted the company\u2019s settlement offer, or not, he was always going to find a way to remove her.<\/p>\n

From there on, it was a case of one calamitous improper comment after another:<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

–\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Beginning by revealing plans to \u2018restructure<\/em>\u2019 my client\u2019s team, the manager was unkind enough to tell my client that \u201cknowing you as I do\u2026.your skill set will not sit within that new structure<\/em>\u201d(indicating a pre-judged redundancy selection exercise);<\/p>\n

–\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0He went on, \u201cI think that it could lead ultimately to performance management<\/em>\u201d (his colloquialism for dismissing my client for performance reasons when her performance had not been an issue at any time in the previous 5 years..);<\/p>\n

–\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0And \u201cI am trying to offer you a way out of this that allow you to leave with dignity<\/em>\u201d (in other words, if she rejected the offer, my client would be subjected to an undignified departure);<\/p>\n

–\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Not satisfied with leaving things there, and without reference to any particular evidence or potential charges, the manager told my client that he could take \u201cdisciplinary actio<\/em>n\u201d which would see her leaving the business with \u201cno money<\/em>\u201d.<\/p>\n

At no point during the ET case was any evidence produced to suggest that my client had committed any act of misconduct whatsoever.\u00a0The sole purpose of this comment was to pressure my client into accepting the company\u2019s (poor) offer.<\/p>\n

It was also a salutary lesson for the employer in this case that they thought, wrongly, that they could keep evidence of the alleged protected conversation from the Employment Judge simply because the manager also uttered the words \u201cwithout prejudice\u201d at the outset.<\/p>\n

The Judge had no difficulty finding that his statements were not without prejudice, as there was no pre-existing legal dispute between the company and the employee before the conversation began.<\/p>\n

Likewise, the conversation was not \u201cprotected<\/em>\u201d in law under section 111A of the Employment Rights Act 1996 either, because of the manager\u2019s \u201cimproper behaviour<\/em>\u201d (the inappropriate statements referred to above) which meant that the details of the conversation were wholly admissible in evidence at the full hearing of my client\u2019s case.<\/p>\n

If your business may need to make personnel changes at a senior level in the near future and would like to have a conversation about how I might help you, please do not hesitate to contact me at\u00a0https:\/\/claytonemploymentlaw.co.uk\/<\/a><\/p>\n

Email\u00a0will.clayton@constantinelaw.co.uk<\/a><\/p>\n

\n

Or call:\u00a007563 145981<\/a><\/p>\n

<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":2039,"parent":0,"template":"","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"default","ast-site-content-layout":"","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"default","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"default","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"yoast_head":"\nSenior Executive Exits \u2013 a Case Study in How NOT to Handle a Protected Conversation - Clayton Employment Law<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/claytonemploymentlaw.co.uk\/articles-papers\/senior-executive-exits-a-case-study-in-how-not-to-handle-a-protected-conversation\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_GB\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Senior Executive Exits \u2013 a Case Study in How NOT to Handle a Protected Conversation - Clayton Employment Law\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"One of my essential top tips for employers when considering the exit of a high earning senior employee is to make sure you get the process off to a good start. However, in a recent case before the West Midlands Employment Tribunal in which I successfully represented the claimant, the employer\u2019s handling of its very […]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/claytonemploymentlaw.co.uk\/articles-papers\/senior-executive-exits-a-case-study-in-how-not-to-handle-a-protected-conversation\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Clayton Employment Law\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2022-06-08T16:19:01+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/claytonemploymentlaw.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/06\/1654594512611.png\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"624\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"359\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/png\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Estimated reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/claytonemploymentlaw.co.uk\/articles-papers\/senior-executive-exits-a-case-study-in-how-not-to-handle-a-protected-conversation\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/claytonemploymentlaw.co.uk\/articles-papers\/senior-executive-exits-a-case-study-in-how-not-to-handle-a-protected-conversation\/\",\"name\":\"Senior Executive Exits \u2013 a Case Study in How NOT to Handle a Protected Conversation - Clayton Employment Law\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/claytonemploymentlaw.co.uk\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/claytonemploymentlaw.co.uk\/articles-papers\/senior-executive-exits-a-case-study-in-how-not-to-handle-a-protected-conversation\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/claytonemploymentlaw.co.uk\/articles-papers\/senior-executive-exits-a-case-study-in-how-not-to-handle-a-protected-conversation\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/claytonemploymentlaw.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/06\/1654594512611.png\",\"datePublished\":\"2022-06-08T15:33:18+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2022-06-08T16:19:01+00:00\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/claytonemploymentlaw.co.uk\/articles-papers\/senior-executive-exits-a-case-study-in-how-not-to-handle-a-protected-conversation\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/claytonemploymentlaw.co.uk\/articles-papers\/senior-executive-exits-a-case-study-in-how-not-to-handle-a-protected-conversation\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/claytonemploymentlaw.co.uk\/articles-papers\/senior-executive-exits-a-case-study-in-how-not-to-handle-a-protected-conversation\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/claytonemploymentlaw.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/06\/1654594512611.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/claytonemploymentlaw.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/06\/1654594512611.png\",\"width\":624,\"height\":359},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/claytonemploymentlaw.co.uk\/articles-papers\/senior-executive-exits-a-case-study-in-how-not-to-handle-a-protected-conversation\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/claytonemploymentlaw.co.uk\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Articles and White Papers\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/claytonemploymentlaw.co.uk\/articles-papers\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":3,\"name\":\"Senior Executive Exits \u2013 a Case Study in How NOT to Handle a Protected Conversation\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/claytonemploymentlaw.co.uk\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/claytonemploymentlaw.co.uk\/\",\"name\":\"Clayton Employment Law\",\"description\":\"\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/claytonemploymentlaw.co.uk\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":\"required name=search_term_string\"}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Senior Executive Exits \u2013 a Case Study in How NOT to Handle a Protected Conversation - Clayton Employment Law","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/claytonemploymentlaw.co.uk\/articles-papers\/senior-executive-exits-a-case-study-in-how-not-to-handle-a-protected-conversation\/","og_locale":"en_GB","og_type":"article","og_title":"Senior Executive Exits \u2013 a Case Study in How NOT to Handle a Protected Conversation - Clayton Employment Law","og_description":"One of my essential top tips for employers when considering the exit of a high earning senior employee is to make sure you get the process off to a good start. However, in a recent case before the West Midlands Employment Tribunal in which I successfully represented the claimant, the employer\u2019s handling of its very […]","og_url":"https:\/\/claytonemploymentlaw.co.uk\/articles-papers\/senior-executive-exits-a-case-study-in-how-not-to-handle-a-protected-conversation\/","og_site_name":"Clayton Employment Law","article_modified_time":"2022-06-08T16:19:01+00:00","og_image":[{"width":624,"height":359,"url":"https:\/\/claytonemploymentlaw.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/06\/1654594512611.png","type":"image\/png"}],"twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Estimated reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/claytonemploymentlaw.co.uk\/articles-papers\/senior-executive-exits-a-case-study-in-how-not-to-handle-a-protected-conversation\/","url":"https:\/\/claytonemploymentlaw.co.uk\/articles-papers\/senior-executive-exits-a-case-study-in-how-not-to-handle-a-protected-conversation\/","name":"Senior Executive Exits \u2013 a Case Study in How NOT to Handle a Protected Conversation - Clayton Employment Law","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/claytonemploymentlaw.co.uk\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/claytonemploymentlaw.co.uk\/articles-papers\/senior-executive-exits-a-case-study-in-how-not-to-handle-a-protected-conversation\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/claytonemploymentlaw.co.uk\/articles-papers\/senior-executive-exits-a-case-study-in-how-not-to-handle-a-protected-conversation\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/claytonemploymentlaw.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/06\/1654594512611.png","datePublished":"2022-06-08T15:33:18+00:00","dateModified":"2022-06-08T16:19:01+00:00","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/claytonemploymentlaw.co.uk\/articles-papers\/senior-executive-exits-a-case-study-in-how-not-to-handle-a-protected-conversation\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-GB","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/claytonemploymentlaw.co.uk\/articles-papers\/senior-executive-exits-a-case-study-in-how-not-to-handle-a-protected-conversation\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-GB","@id":"https:\/\/claytonemploymentlaw.co.uk\/articles-papers\/senior-executive-exits-a-case-study-in-how-not-to-handle-a-protected-conversation\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/claytonemploymentlaw.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/06\/1654594512611.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/claytonemploymentlaw.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/06\/1654594512611.png","width":624,"height":359},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/claytonemploymentlaw.co.uk\/articles-papers\/senior-executive-exits-a-case-study-in-how-not-to-handle-a-protected-conversation\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/claytonemploymentlaw.co.uk\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Articles and White Papers","item":"https:\/\/claytonemploymentlaw.co.uk\/articles-papers\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"Senior Executive Exits \u2013 a Case Study in How NOT to Handle a Protected Conversation"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/claytonemploymentlaw.co.uk\/#website","url":"https:\/\/claytonemploymentlaw.co.uk\/","name":"Clayton Employment Law","description":"","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/claytonemploymentlaw.co.uk\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}],"inLanguage":"en-GB"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/claytonemploymentlaw.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/articles-papers\/2018"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/claytonemploymentlaw.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/articles-papers"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/claytonemploymentlaw.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/articles-papers"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/claytonemploymentlaw.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2039"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/claytonemploymentlaw.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2018"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}