J W F
I've been overseas for five weeks without internet access so I've only just caught up on threads that I have an interest in. Seems that your situation is still very much alive and kicking.
The instructor I had a problem with gave a very similar story of his version of events to those that would listen. I had different view of course.
Whilst I was away, my guy and another instructor decided that they would not relay a probelm to me and thought a better proposition would be to steal student record cards, tell everyone the club had gone bankrupt, write to all the students suggesting they go fly with him at a school in close competition to mine and generally cause a lot of grief.
With the above, I thought at the time that the instructors concerned where entitled to nothing, but I stopped my Directors short of legal action believing that nothing would come of it other than more problems for everybody. It also seemed pointless to go down a road that would no doubt blight the reputation of the instructors and me in this small community that is GA. Anger and revenge never did anyone any good in the long term.
This was my version of events of course. I still strongly believe that this was the case and that I was well and trully shafted, and got very upset and angry at the whole scenario, as you could imagine.
I guess the unbiased truth is somewhere in the middle.
In retrospect, I prefer to be philosophical about it all, blaming the behavior of this otherwise professional and all round nice bloke on human nature when things are bad. Everyone needs someone to blame in a crisis and I liken it to a messy, acromonious divorce. People say and do things they would otherwise never get involved in normally.
The instructor, having failed to put the club out of business all together, decided a CCJ would be worth a shot. Although I also took the Club away from a parent company that I had no control over, that company is still very much alive as far as I know and I don't know if the instructor has continued with his legal action against them. Having lost money myself in the thing, I wish him good luck.
Now with the Club standing on its own two feet, I thought that I still had a moral obligation to ensure that no-one was shafted and settle a couple of outstanding disputes from a time when, after all, I was the Operations Manager.
The instuctor and I did manage to have a civil conversation some months later and both put our hands up that we were as bad as each other and agreed to call it a draw. Lifes to short. We agreed that some money was owed morally and I said I would pay it out of my own pocket as long as we could put it behind us and get on with life, at least now managing to be civil to each other if ever our paths crossed. I gave him some money at that point with the undestanding that more would be forthcoming when I had it, although it may take some time. We are just as well apid as instructors!!. All happy, I thought. Of course, if he finds himself a little short he may well decide to kick up a fuss publically without the courtesy of getting in touch with me.
So you see there are two sides to every story. And the stories get worse as time goes on if direct communication is not established.
Maybe, J W F, you find yourself in a similar postion. Maybe you feel agrieved still because, in you own mind, you only believe your version of events and there is another side to your story. I'm certain from your postings that you are still owed something so why don't you make direct contact rather than going down a road that leads to a lot of twisted stories and moderator censorship before the truth is finally established??
Personally, I will always take a telephone call or a visit from the instructor that I have outstanding issues with. Its the only proper and professional way to deal with things.
I wish you good luck, JWF, in solving your dispute shortly without going down a road that you have recenly started. Just the wrong way of dealing with it IMHO. If I can help in any way by giving you an insight into what its like on the other side of your fence, you can always ask.
After all, naming and shaming works both ways.