if he gets lonely, now that he doesn’t have his job…?”
“Perhaps, though he does some volunteering thing, helping to drag bikes and shopping trolleys out of the River Aire.” He paused, met her gaze. “He’s a nice guy, Thea. We screwed up, big style.”
She’d already known that, in her heart, but even so she was pleased to hear it confirmed.
“Right. So, if you’d known the full story, and if this had happened after you took over Dart Logistics, obviously, how would it have been handled? What would we do differently?”
“We’d have changed his working hours, gone for a more flexible arrangement. He could have had his Monday mornings and Friday afternoons off, and just added a couple of hours to the other working days to make it up. Informally, that’s what he did anyway. He generally worked until six thirty or seven from Monday to Thursday, because on those days he would be going home to an empty house, and he was happy to come in early when needed. He could have changed Melanie’s transport times, but when he asked they told him that would mean dropping her off on Saturday morning and she’d have to return to her residential school on Sunday afternoon. Neither of them wanted that, they saw little enough of each other as it was.”
“Well, that sounds reasonable. But why didn't he tell anyone at work that was what he was doing? What about his time sheets?”
“If Eric’s team back then had cross-referenced Jerry’s absentee record with his time sheets the truth might well have emerged. No one did though.”
Jerry? Interesting. “That was a fundamental error.”
Tony’s grin was rueful. “Yeah, even I can see that.”
“But Mr Malone could have told someone. He could have explained what his problem was, and the solution he’d come up with.”
“Yeah, I asked him about that. Seems he was being treated for depression at the time. He told me he just lost interest in everything during those final few months, let it all wash over him and took a fatalistic view. Dart would do what they wanted anyway, and so on. He expected to get fired, and when it happened he just went quietly.”
“He didn't stay quiet though.”
“No. Like I said, his depression was being treated. He got better. And when he came out of the fog as he tells it, he realised he’d been the victim of a massive injustice, and he wasn’t having it. He got some advice—better late than never—and put in his claim for wrongful dismissal. Even then though he didn't base his case on his circumstances, but on the process. He was able to prove that he hadn’t been offered a union rep or colleague because those were not mentioned in the letters he had from us. That’s in violation of our written disciplinary policy, and the tribunal had an easy time coming to the conclusion we didn't follow our own rules. He was told he’d be onto a sure thing with that, so why bother with the less certain, and much more painful route of laying his personal life in front of the tribunal and hoping they’d sympathise?”
“Makes sense, I suppose.”
Tony nodded. “I thought so. And it worked. He got paid out.”
“But if he’s been out of work for eight months already he can't have much left.”
“The twenty five grand amounted to about a year’s salary after tax, maybe a little more. He’s been living off that, and he’s made some economies so he can manage another six months or so before he runs out of savings. Then he’ll have to sign on. And things could get tricky. The council might not agree to pay for Melanie’s residential school, for example. She’s doing well where she is, which is why he kept her there even though he’s now at home all day and she doesn't need a residential place.”
Thea levelled a shrewd look at him. “You offered to pay for the school, didn’t you?”
He returned her gaze. “That was one option, yes.”
“And the other options?”
“There was only one other option really, apart from doing nothing. That he return to work, in his old job but on a revised contract.”
She lifted one eyebrow, and waited.
“He starts a week on Monday.”
Thea let out a squeal which would have been more suited to their dining room, and leapt across the room at him. She threw her arms around his neck and kissed him on the mouth. Hard.
When she allowed him up for air Tony chuckled. “Mrs Richmond, I’m