Stress test email refusal?

beetlebailey

My company are changing The terms of my bonus and their new proposal means it will be harder to achieve due to many factors out of my control.
This has been ongoing for months now and I have had many discussions detailing why I believe it unfair but my employer is not interested.
I mentioned that I was finding the whole process stressful as I'll most likely be down money as a result.
My manager had a chat asking if I would take a stress test and that he would like to sit in on it as he has never done one! I declined this offer. I thought nothing more of it then a 2 weeks later I received a memo from my manager copying my personal file stating that I refused a stress test.!

How do I reply to this stating that firstly I wasn't aware that what was discussed during our chat was being noted and a memo would follow quoting what I said.
Also if I need a stress test I would get one from a independent professional .

How could I say this by email as a record of my reply to the memo??

davo10

For the most part bonuses are discretionary unless guaranteed in your contract, so your employer may be able to alter bonus payment without discussing it with you.

In relation to your record, your employer was correct to note your refusal of a stress test. If you need to take time off due to illness, they will be able to show that they were proactive when you told them you may be experiencing stress related symptoms at work. If they did request a test, and you did indeed refuse it, I'm not sure what you can do about it going on your record, it's not inaccurate.

You can of course get your own test done, and you should for the good of your health if you are stressed. But that won't change the fact that you refused their one.

beetlebailey

davo10 wrote: »

For the most part bonuses are discretionary unless guaranteed in your contract, so your employer may be able to alter bonus payment without discussing it with you.

In relation to your record, your employer was correct to note your refusal of a stress test. If you need to take time off due to illness, they will be able to show that they were proactive when you told them you may be experiencing stress related symptoms at work. If they did request a test, and you did indeed refuse it, I'm not sure what you can do about it going on your record, it's not inaccurate.

You can of course get your own test done, and you should for the good of your health if you are stressed. But that won't change the fact that you refused their one.

That's fair enough.
Just thought it was odd he wanted to sit in on it as I thought it would be confidential and carried out by a qualified person

OldMrBrennan83

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davo10

Patww79 wrote: »

Refusing their one is one thing, but there's no way a manager should request to be present for it. I'd definitely chase that avenue of complaint.

Ya, that sounds a bit creepy to me. Perhaps that's the way to spin it in your favour op, you refused the stress test as you were uncomfortable with the manager being there. Ask for that to be noted n your record.

whatnext

I'd reply to put the record straight that "you refused one with you manager present for the test." I'd also state that you were not aware it was a formal request.

I'd imagine it's just a case of covering their backs. You mentioned stress they feared a possibility of this being the potential start of something. No matter how small the chance, they probably felt better safe than sorry

AndrewJRenko

davo10 wrote: »

Ya, that sounds a bit creepy to me. Perhaps that's the way to spin it in your favour op, you refused the stress test as you were uncomfortable with the manager being there. Ask for that to be noted n your record.

Patww79 wrote: »

This post has been deleted.

Good advice here ^^^^ - your response should also find a nice, subtle way to highlight that you weren't offered support to deal with the stress - you were just offered a stress test. I'm presuming that it wasn't made clear to you that the stress test was the first step in a process of dealing with your stress.

beetlebailey

JayZeus wrote: »

I would have to question just what exactly you hope to gain from any of this given that the bonus is not a default entitlement.

I can't ignore that I remember your earlier post and that it's absolutely 100% related to your current thread.

An internal IT/ERP type system was replaced quite some time ago which meant your employer could no longer calculate your BONUS using the original performance/productivitiy targets, seeing as the replacement system doesn't provide the metrics required to do so.

You and your colleagues asked that they pay your bonus anyway in full which they agreed to do. That sounds like a very fair position for both parties, pending either restoring the original reporting capability or its replacement with a more appropriate metric and target.

Now they're implementing a replacement bonus/incentive plan and you want to play the 'stress' card, because you'll be 'down money'?

I can sympathise. Nobody likes to take a hit on their income. But fair is fair in the sense that you and your colleagues have been paid a bonus for a long time now that you may or may not have earned. They've paid it as a type of goodwill gesture, but you're not entitled to it and the fact you got used to having it every month is your own problem, not theirs.

I hear what your saying and you have a point , but our main issue is that the new incentive plan includes so many factors that our out of our control that we have little chance of meeting the new targets being set and therefore through no fault of our own the result will be a reduction in our take home pay.