work joke gone bad

MayoAreMagic

pgj2015 wrote: »

are you a manager/boss by any chance? Don't take this advice op, do contact a solicitor and look for whatever compensation you are entitled to.

No Im not and I have stated numerous times that she is entitled to be compensated to whatever is deemed acceptable. It is amazing the way people make assumptions about others and therefore their points, just because they are making a different one to themselves.

Maybe I should assume that you are an ambulance chaser?

Part of life my a*se.

I'm not going to descend into a row with a child who's nothing but a danger to themself & others in the workplace. Your advice is dangerous, and nothing more than the kind of victim blaming & intimidation tactics that women have to go through against gamergaters online. Off with you, play with your dollies, leave the workplace to the adults.

pgj2015

MayoAreMagic wrote: »

No Im not and I have stated numerous times that she is entitled to be compensated to whatever is deemed acceptable. It is amazing the way people make assumptions about others and therefore their points, just because they are making a different one to themselves.

Maybe I should assume that you are an ambulance chaser?

No I am far from an ambulance chaser but I just think what happened here is appalling, made even worse by the managers lack of remorse. I agree with other posters who said the act was one of bullying and assault, the manger should be sacked over it and face a charge over the assault, this could effect the op for a long time, plus your point about it having on the op staying with the company, he can always find another job, there is more than one job in the world.

That kind of behavior is childish and pathetic by a woman who is supposedly a leader in a company.

MayoAreMagic

Deleted User wrote: »

Part of life my a*se.

I'm not going to descend into a row with a child who's nothing but a danger to themself & others in the workplace. Your advice is dangerous, and nothing more than the kind of victim blaming & intimidation tactics that women have to go through against gamergaters online. Off with you, play with your dollies, leave the workplace to the adults.

Who said there was going to be a row? Responsible people can deal with things responsibly.
Women? The manager is the woman as I recall. I don't believe the sex of the employee was disclosed.
Victim blaming? Intimidation?
You are raving.

OP, Everyone, I just would like to remind you all of the Ignore option that comes up if you click on a poster's name. If you think another user is posting dangerous advice, then when you ignore them the thread becomes a lot clearer.

OP, you have been well advised by all here bar one. I wish you luck in your proceedings to solve the matter, be they internal or external.

MayoAreMagic

pgj2015 wrote: »

No I am far from an ambulance chaser but I just think what happened here is appalling, made even worse by the managers lack of remorse. I agree with other posters who said the act was one of bullying and assault, the manger should be sacked over it and face a charge over the assault, this could effect the op for a long time, plus your point about it having on the op staying with the company, he can always find another job, there is more than one job in the world.

That kind of behavior is childish and pathetic by a woman who is supposedly a leader in a company.

It was a daft thing to do I agree, but you have to factor in that we are hearing one side here. Maybe there is a culture of joking in the office and the op is a big part of it, maybe the manager didn't actually mean to explode the balloon and others can corroborate this, people are assuming a very black and white view of something that could be far more of a grey area than we realise. I don't accept that it is an assault, the intent cant be proven to be malicious, and truth be told, it wasn't. Id be weary of instructing anyone of taking the nuclear option of getting a lawyer onto their manager at work with the details we have been provided with. By all means be prepared to go that route, but try to be reasonable first.

TallGlass

MayoAreMagic wrote: »

And what if that volume goes up far beyond your expectation and gives the person tinnitus?

Mate, a desk phone firstly isn't going to make you deaf or put you in hospital, I don't know how close you are to your phone in work, but mine is about 2 arm lengths away from my ear.

Regards the meeting by the manager, by the water foundation or in the toilet the person is still a superior and should remember there position no matter where they are and not go on like an idiot. If the roles in this where reversed you can bet your house on it, the guy would be out on suspension.

I will agree with you on one thing, it is very easy for me to sit here and give advise and been honest with you, I wouldn't have said go to the solicitor but after he mentioned his little 'meeting' with her and she showed no remorse for the situation nor the gravity of it. Well, she can go an funk. She and the company will soon she how serious it is once there start seen legal letters from a solicitor.

endacl

MayoAreMagic wrote: »

I doubt there is a person on the thread who hasn't played some form of small joke on a friend at work.r

If there wasn't before, there is now. Pranks/practical jokes are stupid and infantile.

MaryAntoinette

The gardai need to be called in, I would be engaging a solicitor also. Will make a nice pay day.

the_pen_turner

popping a balloon besides someone's ear has the potential to hurt someone . it is obviously going to be painful. anyone that cant see that hasn't had a load noise happen beside their ear.
putting the balloon beside the ear meant that they intentionally meant to hurt the victim even if it was only meant to be for a millisecond

if they had popped it a few feet from the victim then you would say there was no intention to hurt



I do agree that there is more to the story than we know .
the OP probably has been part of pranking other workers and this was their tit for tat prank.
or else the OP hates pranks and never does them but has been singled out because of her reactions to other pranks.

either way the manager should know better than to get involve or even start pranking here workers

pgj2015

MayoAreMagic wrote: »

It was a daft thing to do I agree, but you have to factor in that we are hearing one side here. Maybe there is a culture of joking in the office and the op is a big part of it, maybe the manager didn't actually mean to explode the balloon and others can corroborate this, people are assuming a very black and white view of something that could be far more of a grey area than we realise. I don't accept that it is an assault, the intent cant be proven to be malicious, and truth be told, it wasn't. Id be weary of instructing anyone of taking the nuclear option of getting a lawyer onto their manager at work with the details we have been provided with. By all means be prepared to go that route, but try to be reasonable first.

Tell that top these guys who paid for their prank.

http://www.independent.ie/irish-news/trio-jailed-for-18-months-after-air-hose-prank-26096598.html

dr.fuzzenstein

Deleted User wrote: »

.....and what? that's it. OP gets compensated. Wrongdoer gets made an example of so other gombeens realise that Stupid Mistakes Have Serious Consequences.

Guess what? there's something in your ear that won't let you forget. it goes EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE in your ear, day in, day out. That's tinnitus. no different if you had lost a finger to a prank involving a sheet metal press. It'll always be there. Reminding you. Of what they did to you. And you want to turn the other cheek? maybe turn around, bend over and say "shur twas all in good fun, try again!". The Stupid Mistake has been made. The Serious Consequence must follow.

Oh how learned of you. Let's sweep this one under the carpet eh? The evidence that this works is right here! in my brain! Listen to me! Forget the advice from those stuffy suits in the courts, or the Health & Safety Authority. Sure what do they know, they're no craic at all. You know it's all about the craic, right? What's a burst ear drum or a lost limb between lads having the craic, right?

Is that a threat? Because it sure sounds like one to me.

If you're in business, you act professionally. That's it. No bull****. Stupid mistakes have serious consequences. If you can't take that, go play with your dollies & legos & get the f*ck out of business.

Someone needs a hug. It won't be me, you'll probably do me for assault...

spurious

pgj2015 wrote: »

Tell that top these guys who paid for their prank.

http://www.independent.ie/irish-news/trio-jailed-for-18-months-after-air-hose-prank-26096598.html

That was the first thing I thought of when I saw the thread title.

faceman

Wow. This is an incredible story and totally unacceptable behaviour.

The manager who pulled the "prank", her intention is completely irrelevant.

Document and keep your receipts for all expenses incurred.

Talk to HR or if you aren't comfortable with that, talk to a manager you are comfortable talking to.

Nody

//MOD

Right people this thread is on verge of being locked; get back on topic of helping OP and stop debating other side points...

//MOD

Dyr

I would have thought that and injury like this sustained at work the best route would be straight to a solictor, do not pass HR, do not do anything until legal advice is taken

dr.fuzzenstein

faceman wrote: »

Wow. This is an incredible story and totally unacceptable behaviour.

The manager who pulled the "prank", her intention is completely irrelevant.

Document and keep your receipts for all expenses incurred.

Talk to HR or if you aren't comfortable with that, talk to a manager you are comfortable talking to.

One could argue otherwise. Not disagreeing with you, you are one of the more reasoned voices on this thread. A lot of people on this thread have suggested to get the manager for assault, involve the gardai, get a solicitor (certainly with a view of going to court) all to maximize the payout no doubt.
Maybe take a few months (or even years) off sick due to trauma, have the entire head wrapped in bandages and make sure to hire a doctor who "specializes" in injury cases, i.e. who knows how to inflate injury claims to the max.
This is the reason why any kind of insurance in this country is gone beyond the pale, but I can't entirely blame the people who see "injuries" as an invitation to claim to the max and retire on disability. because the insane payouts for owies and scratches in this country would make even the most honest person think twice.

The OP is entitled to be compensated for this mishap, but this aggressive "screw the bastards for every penny you can get OP" attitude is worrying.

the_pen_turner

dr.fuzzenstein wrote: »

One could argue otherwise. A lot of people on this thread have suggested to get the manager for assault, involve the gardai, get a solicitor (certainly with a view of going to court) all to maximize the payout no doubt.
Maybe take a few months (or even years) off sick due to trauma, have the entire head wrapped in bandages and make sure to hire a doctor who "specializes" in injury cases, i.e. who knows how to inflate injury claims to the max.
This is the reason why any kind of insurance in this country is gone beyond the pale, but I can't entirely blame the people who see "injuries" as an invitation to claim to the max and retire on disability. because the insane payouts for owies and scratches in this country would make even the most honest person think twice.

The OP is entitled to be compensated for this mishap, but this aggressive "screw the bastards for every penny you can get OP" attitude is worrying.

I agree with you that exaggerating claims is wrong and is the reason for such high insurance claims but in this case the OP could have long lasting hearing problems that could effect the rest of their lives and could potentially result in them not working etc.

doolox

I recall a stag party at work that went wrong when a worker was shoved into a waste bin by other workers as a joke but the bin contained a corrosive waste material which scarred his face permanently.

Another incident similar to the compressed air incident detailed in the newspaper in a previous post resulted in the death of a trainee mechanic about 30 yrs ago.

Workplace pranks should be cut to the minimum or done away with altogether as they can quickly escalate into actionable incidents which cost companies and society money.

I would strongly advise the OP to seek advice from a good injuries lawyer and get their advice for a start.

pgj2015

dr.fuzzenstein wrote: »

One could argue otherwise. Not disagreeing with you, you are one of the more reasoned voices on this thread. A lot of people on this thread have suggested to get the manager for assault, involve the gardai, get a solicitor (certainly with a view of going to court) all to maximize the payout no doubt.
Maybe take a few months (or even years) off sick due to trauma, have the entire head wrapped in bandages and make sure to hire a doctor who "specializes" in injury cases, i.e. who knows how to inflate injury claims to the max.
This is the reason why any kind of insurance in this country is gone beyond the pale, but I can't entirely blame the people who see "injuries" as an invitation to claim to the max and retire on disability. because the insane payouts for owies and scratches in this country would make even the most honest person think twice.

The OP is entitled to be compensated for this mishap, but this aggressive "screw the bastards for every penny you can get OP" attitude is worrying.

The rising cost of insurance is of no concern to the op, all the op cares about is the reasons he is off work and the concern over his hearing being permanently damaged and having tinnitus for the rest of his life (and rightly so), if his hearing is permanently affected then it is as serious as if the manager tripped him and he gained a permanent limp for the rest of his life because of it. You might not be so worried about rising insurance costs if you had tinnitus as a result of a moronic prank played by a "manager". Tinnitus is shown to cause suicide to a large percentage of people who suffer from it.

dr.fuzzenstein

pgj2015 wrote: »

The rising cost of insurance is of no concern to the op, all the op cares about is the reasons he is off work and the concern over his hearing being permanently damaged and having tinnitus for the rest of his life (and rightly so), if his hearing is permanently affected then it is as serious as if the manager tripped him and he gained a permanent limp for the rest of his life because of it. You might not be so worried about rising insurance costs if you had tinnitus as a result of a moronic prank played by a "manager". Tinnitus is shown to cause suicide to a large percentage of people who suffer from it.

I wouldn't do them for assault.

granturismo

Arbiter of Good Taste wrote: »

There's some good advice here. Keep in contact with HR, record everything in writing, Speak to a solicitor as you don't want anything said or agreed to now to prevent you from taking a case against them in the future.

Also, a good rule of thumb to remember is that HR are ultimately there for the good of the employer. They are not on your side. So I would consult with a solicitor before signing anything or agreeing to anything

mad m wrote: »

Afaik if it was an accident at work you should not lose any money whatsoever, plus if you are out sick because of this for more than 3days your job has to contact the HSA...

http://www.hsa.ie/eng/Topics/Managing_Health_and_Safety/General_Application_Regulations_2007/Accident_Reporting/#reportableaccidents

Also did you fill out an accident form?

This is the best advice so far and others have given similar.

OP - check out vicarious liability.

hardCopy

pgj2015 wrote: »

No I am far from an ambulance chaser but I just think what happened here is appalling, made even worse by the managers lack of remorse. I agree with other posters who said the act was one of bullying and assault, the manger should be sacked over it and face a charge over the assault, this could effect the op for a long time, plus your point about it having on the op staying with the company, he can always find another job, there is more than one job in the world.

That kind of behavior is childish and pathetic by a woman who is supposedly a leader in a company.

HR reps are trained to get the company out of trouble and give the employee as little as possible, that's what they go to college for.

"Doing the honourable thing" and leaving the solicitor out of it will result in them running rings around the OP.

All a solicitor will do is ensure a fair resolution. It might cost the employer a little more in the long run but they have insurance for that.

Also the manager's idiotic behaviour should be highlighted at the highest levels in the company, they're the one in the wrong here.

Alex Meier

The main cause of tinnitus is usually infection.

granturismo

Alex Meier wrote: »

The main cause of tinnitus is usually infection.

The cause of tinnitus is not exclusively an infection.

screamer

The managers actions were stupid particularly as a manager she has a duty of care to get direct reports but bullying seriously that is laughable.

OP you should report the incident it's important to do so and your manager or employer will have to pay your medical costs.

Tinnitus is not always permanent either and finally I guess you need to consider your job do you like working there? Sometimes people suing is looked on very dimly especially in SMEs so I'd consider the longer term too from that point of view. Its just another angle to think from thats all.

I hope you feel better soon tinnitus is so annoying

Amsteresident

Thanks all for the replies and the really encouraging advice on here.

An incident report was filled in, I managed to get a copy of it but not from the manager.

Since all of this she has been on-off horrible to me. From addressing me in a harsh manner to talking to me as if I was the one who did something wrong in all of this. I also came in late a couple of times because I'm just not sleeping well, it takes a while to fall asleep so on days where i'm not completely jaded tired the ringing keeps me awake. Then if I'm late I'll have a comment from her about it when I come in.

Basically the physician passed me over a psychologist who works in the practice, she said they need to ascertain that stress management is in place to support me, and that I take adequate measures to ensure that the tinnitus is not prolonged due to the stress/distress the whole incident brought on.

I contacted a solicitor who is reviewing the summary of my case, it's been a while since I heard back from him so I will be following up on that this week.

I don't know what else to do now while I'm still working there. The HR department washed their hands of me and the follow up meetings I was supposed to have just never happened.

I'm looking around for another job because I can't stay in that office, it's like I'm working under duress, it's all very unnatural and I can't relax in that environment. That woman is arrogant and to be honest I keep thinking she's going to do something similar again. I go to work because I care about my job but this whole incident has set me back.

Thanks again for the support.

MarkAnthony

Healthwise - that's not good, but legal casewise, happy days - I'm frequently astounded by how stupid HR departments are.

Uncle Ben

Amsteresident wrote: »

Thanks all for the replies and the really encouraging advice on here.

An incident report was filled in, I managed to get a copy of it but not from the manager.

Since all of this she has been on-off horrible to me. From addressing me in a harsh manner to talking to me as if I was the one who did something wrong in all of this. I also came in late a couple of times because I'm just not sleeping well, it takes a while to fall asleep so on days where i'm not completely jaded tired the ringing keeps me awake. Then if I'm late I'll have a comment from her about it when I come in.

Basically the physician passed me over a psychologist who works in the practice, she said they need to ascertain that stress management is in place to support me, and that I take adequate measures to ensure that the tinnitus is not prolonged due to the stress/distress the whole incident brought on.

I contacted a solicitor who is reviewing the summary of my case, it's been a while since I heard back from him so I will be following up on that this week.

I don't know what else to do now while I'm still working there. The HR department washed their hands of me and the follow up meetings I was supposed to have just never happened.

I'm looking around for another job because I can't stay in that office, it's like I'm working under duress, it's all very unnatural and I can't relax in that environment. That woman is arrogant and to be honest I keep thinking she's going to do something similar again. I go to work because I care about my job but this whole incident has set me back.

Thanks again for the support.

Constructive dismissal along with everything else.

granturismo

PM sent.