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wrongfully terminated (Employment & Labor Law)

Sun, 19 Dec 2004 09:41:00 GMT
Tags: absolutly, case, company, confidential, employment, grounds, labor, law, materials, situation, terminated, wrongfully

Recently, I was terminated on the grounds that I had looked at confidential company materials. Which is absolutly not the case. I knew of a situation that one of the employees of the company had looked at the documents, and had mentioned this to me in passing. I knew of the company rules concerning this, and really wanted no part of it. I spoke to a seperate employee from a different department about the situation. I thought in confidence. when I returned from a business trip, I was told to meet the president of the company and the operations manager outside of the office. When I went to the meeting. I was terminated without any previous warning. when I tried to explain that I had not looked at anything confidential, and had no part of it. I was told that the person responsible would be terminated as well. and because of my knowledge that I was still at fault. As far as I know, that employee is still working there and did not suffer any negative effects. The outlying circumstances are that I gave some references to different employees when they were activly looking for a job, and the management did not like it. I have been with my former employeer for 2+ years (located in Maine), with no disciplinary actions, and stellar job reviews. I myself was passivly looking for a job. and had gone on an interview the friday before I left for the trip. I was supposed to have the day off, but agreed to come in and work for a while to get the office caught up. I was also looking into the possibliity that the employer did not classify my position correctly (exempt /non-exempt status) and I was due overtime pay retroactively since October. I know that the employer was desperatly trying to change my job title and job requirements so that they would not have to pay any overtime before anyone caught on. The company was not happy with the fact that I was looking for a different job, and the job classification. It would seem that he best that the could come up with to terminate me was from looking at the documents. Which is a lie that they are unable to prove, and when asked that could not comment on it. This is after the fact that the presidents dog bit me while I was working in the office 2 weeks ago. I am confused as to what to do next... I would just like to put this behind me and find another job with an employer that is less shady in their dealings. but I am
worried that this will have a negative impact on any new job prospects that I might find. as well as not being able to collect unemployment in the time that it will take me to find another job, which might financially ruin me. Any advice that anyone could give me on what actions to take next would be a godsend.
Thank you

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  • Sun, 19 Dec 2004 17:09:00 GMT(1)
  • In general, employers can terminate employment of an employee for any reason at any time, unless the employment is governed by an employment contract or if the decision to terminate is based on a discriminatory reason, such as on the basis of gender, race, religion, etc. or as a retaliatory measure for a person protected his/her legal rights, such as filing a claim of discrimination or raising a concern about safety that is in violation of OSHA standards.

    I'll address each of the questions you raised below:

    1) You said you gave references on behalf of two employees looking for a job. Was this, by chance, a violation of policy? Many companies have a policy prohibiting the provision of references. However, if the policy is regularly violated, it would b difficult to say that it should be reinforced against just one person.
    2) Overtime - If you had filed a wage claim about your exemption status and overtime, it could be retaliation and, therefore, illegal. However, if you haven't filed a wage claim with the state, it wouldn't be retaliation.
    3) You looking for another job - There is nothing prohibiting an employer from terminating someone over the perception that the person isn't loyal to the company.
    4) The dog biting you - Was there any injury done - did you file a workers compensation claim. Some states prohibiting retaliation against persons filing a claim. However, if you hadn't filed a claim, it wouldn't be retaliation.

    If you were a stellar employee, you may wish to go back to the employer and ask them for reconsideration. If they refuse, ask them if they would consider changing your termination into a job elimination, so that you can claim unemployment and your wouldn't have this blemish on your job history as you search for another position.

    Let me know if you have any other questions.
  • Sun, 19 Dec 2004 16:25:00 GMT(2)
  • It did have to do with an employee, it was not a big secret. the president leaves things like this lying about on the copier, and the fax machine. it was basically a review for one of the other employees.
  • Wed, 29 Mar 2006 04:43:00 GMT(3)
  • All I can tell you is your boss appears to be a jerk and you're be much better off with another company. As long as you are paid at least minimum wage (if nonexempt) or $455/week-prorated, if necessary, for your final week of work (if exempt) the federal wage and hour laws with be complied with.

    Wrongful termination means that you were terminated in violation of a specific law; that is not the case here. It's a tough break and I agree it isn't fair, but truly, you should be better off, and happier, at a company who appreciates your contributions. File for unemployment immediately and good luck with the job search.
  • Sun, 19 Dec 2004 15:40:00 GMT(4)
  • Without giving away the confidentiality, can you tell me about the nature of the confidential materials - was it related to other employees? Was it related to a classified program with the government? The nature of the material does make a difference here.
  • Tue, 28 Mar 2006 21:06:00 GMT(5)
  • I started with a company at the first of February. The owner kept saying what a wonderful job I was doing and I was bringing in sales above any other salesman they had. I don't drink, do drugs or anything like that. I had been working 12-18 per day and finally on this past Saturday after my appointments had been met, I turned my cell phone off to enjoy Sunday with my family and no disturbances. I get a knock at the door and it is my Operations Manager who said they had been trying to get in touch with me and were "worried about me!" One day I take off and I get this?????????
    Then I go to check my schedule for Monday and I have been deleted off the schedule. After several telephone attempts and emails, I finally get a email from the owner that said since I had dropped off the radar they had no choice but to delete me and that they would agree to pay a commission --not my base salary---for two months---(he seems to do this for everyone he terminates) is this some type of statute of limitations or something that he has established------- by the way, after contacting some of the other guys that have been - let go---they have not recieved any compensation--- if I would keep a button on everything and continue to work the leads. What do you think. I feel low & cheated of my valuable time as a Professional Salesman who has mouths to feed. Give me some insight please.

    Lawrenceville, Georgia
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