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The return of the disgruntled employee

Posted by Andrew Grant on Wednesday 23 Jun 2010, 07:05:00

The shit's about to hit the fan, again....

So I figured let's get this out in the open, once and for all. Only this time I have a better understanding of how to deal with this menace.

I got this email yesterday:

"I now have a court order for the amount I am due. I waited to speak to you the other morning but you left while i was standing there.

I will be publicising this court order very shortly. If you would prefer the court order not to go public, i suggest you pay me what i am due - quickly. I trust with your new international clients that you will be able to pay me now.

There is another court order from another source ready to join my own in the public domain, and im sure more will follow.

I will allow 48 hours for you to respond. Yet again i am giving you the kind, easy first option to pay me and settle the matter - the way it should have been over a year ago.

Ramsay MacFarlane
DESIGN & CREATION"

Last time I avoided the facts. So let's start there this time. Ramsay Macfarlane was employed by Nation1 in December 2009 to help us complete the Powerleague website. Ramsay was recruited by Victor Brierley, my Managing Director in Glasgow at the time, who is also Ramsay's uncle.

At the end of Ramsay's month at Nation1 Victor informed me we had to agree what to pay him. With total astonishment I demanded to know why this hadn't been agreed BEFORE he started to work for us. There was no adequate response. Ramsay then demanded £4,500. I refused to pay this to a 23 year old guy with two years experience (its about the same take home pay as a 70k salary). I offered £1,750, which was duly paid to Ramsay.

Ramsay then took Nation1 to court for the full amount, where even the judge said he was unlikely to win and should consider accepting my offer of an additional £500. He didn't.

Eight months later, he called me up to threaten me with the 'pay now, or regret it' chat. And we all know what happened next.

During this time I had accepted an investor in the business and in order to ensure the most tax efficient method of investing my accountants proposed to shut down Futurecomm International Ltd and set up Nation1 Group Ltd where the new investment would be placed (the new company would have no value and no assets, thus avoiding CGI). Nation1 Group UK Ltd then set up and owns Nation1 Glasgow Ltd and Nation1 London Ltd. Providing me with a structure to attract top talent and offer options in local offices.

I never bothered to incur the further costs of a lawyer to defend Ramsay's court action, given the plans to shut down Futurecomm (which is not yet liquidated fully).

Shortly after the Ramsay incident I terminated Victor Brierley’s contract.

Trading conditions over the last 18 months have been harsh for our industry in Scotland and I have been grateful to everyone that has supported me: from my competitors who have said I dealt with the Ramsay issue well, to clients that have stood by me and above all the loyal staff that work at Nation1.

I don't think the employee in question realizss what he is doing to his own reputation as well as mine, however the fact he has enough time on his hands to continue with his attacks, threats and blackmail suggest to me he's got spare time on his hands.

I have learnt a lot during this experience and I recognise that ultimately people are the most important asset. This could all have been avoided if my MD at the time had done what he was employed to do, instead of leaving me to now carry the can.

I'm not flawless, I've made mistakes and I have regrets but I continue to learn and accept when I'm wrong.

Have I dealt with this the right way? Who knows? Will Ramsay grow up and go away, I doubt it. Will Nation1 survive and grow, there is no doubt.