I need advise. My beautiful D2 called me this morning and told me she was fired. I still cannot grasp this.
She started at the firm as a temp with opportunity to be hired by the firm. She was hired by the firm full time as an admin and was told it was one of the fastest temp to hires ever because they were so pleased with her work.
7 months after going permanent and 9 months after starting, she had her official performance review, last Dec.Her boss had no recommendations for improvement because he said there were none. She was performing exemplary in her job.
Fast forward a few months. D2 met with a new Doctor. To make a long g story short, he started her on some new medications. A new birth control pill and an anti anxiety/migraine medication because she briefly mentioned she sometimes experienced both. ( I use to get migraines as a teen and my Grandmother also had them. This was new to my D2 and I didn’t even know she was having them)
After a short time she fell into a deep depression. She hid it from us. In retrospect, there were signs. But you do not notice the signs if you are not looking for them. Or you attribute them to something else, as I did. She apparently was showing up late for work and was down. A friend intervened and told her to see her Doc.so she would not get fired. She did and was immediately taken off the Meds. Apparently she was having some of the stated side effects. Her Doc recommended a two week disability break from work so that she could get back to normal. D2 also decided to start seeing a therapist because of some of the dark feelings that came out. She went through HR and got the disability approval for two weeks.
After she went back to work it seems nothing was the same. She seemed to become a leper. She says one of the guys she supported barely spoke to her after her return and another admin felt real resentment for having to cover for her during the two weeks.
D2 was given no warning or chance to improve. However, she works in Mass., which is an At-Will state. But it does seem her firing is discrimination because she was mentally impaired because of the reaction to medication.
Admittedly, I may not have all of the info from my D2.after returning to work. But up until the two week disability leave a month or two ago is accurate.
Does it seem like we have a case of discrimination against the firm? We are not looking for money. But this devasted her life, at a worst, and detrimentally affected her future employment. All because she had a severe reaction to medications. I won’t even go into the Doc. He recently reccommendated the same medication. But that story is another thread.
Many companies have a one year trial period. If she’s an at will employee, they can fire her for any reason but a protected one.
If she received an employee handbook, you might look through it and see if they violated any of their own policies. Did they have to give her a warning? Did it have to be in writing?
This happened to a woman at a place I worked at. She also went on disability due to mental health. Upon her return she was let go. She did take the firm to court. It took 2 years to settle. I don’t know how much she got. The lawyer got paid through her settlement.
Did your D get fired for cause? It is important that wasn’t the case. It would prevent her from getting unemployment and it would also limit her ability in getting a job in the future. Recently when I was looking for a job, many firms asked me if I was ever fired from a job. I think instead of spending time on filing a law suit, I would get a lawyer to negotiate better separation terms - severance, no disparaging remarks of your D, possible recommendation letter. The firm maybe amiable to those terms for fear of law suit. I have negotiated all of those things myself, but your D may not be up to standing up to the big, bad company.
This is not fair. I would be very angry too. It is devastating to be fired from a job. Tell your D that it happens to everyone. Often time, it is not a reflection on her.
What were the terms of her separation from the firm? Was there severance involved and if so did she sign any agreements in exchange? What was the reason given to her when she was terminated?
You D should contact the Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination. They can provide information on whether she has a valid complaint. See http://www.mass.gov/mcad/
Most companies do not like law suits. If the firm is contacted by a lawyer, it can often be resolved quickly. But no matter what, she is not going to get the job back, and that’s a hard thing to get over. I am sure she has a lot of emotions about it.
this is definitely something a lawyer who specializes in employment law in that state needs to review… nothing is ever black or white on this subject. I feel for you and your daughter. mental illness is the last frontier were discrimination is somehow “OK”. most people are ignorant about it unless they themselves or a loved on suffer from it. and sadly many otherwise really good people think mental illness is something you just snap out of or a sign of weakness.(but I digress)
I agree with oldfort - concentrate on what she needs to move forward - get the best possible severance terms. She needs to be able to say she was laid off (not fired for poor performance). Companies lay off people every day by the thousands and people who hire don’t see this as a negative. Also, by law, most employees can only confirm employment dates when called for a recommendation. Any medical/disability issues are strictly confidential and cannot be disclosed.
Make sure she gets COBRA medical coverage (if she needs it.)
Getting fired after medical leave is a tricky issue (I know somebody who get laid off due to a reduction in staff while on a leave and got a nice settlement from the company - took maybe two years to settle).
She had side effects from a medication. That is probably not a disability. Yes, she had a medical condition. I feel badly for your daughter, but I handle these cases all the time and I’m not sure she has a disability discrimination argument at all. I’m just trying to be realistic here. I would check with a lawyer if that’s really what she wants to do.
kiddie
“Also, by law, most employees can only confirm employment dates when called for a recommendation.” it is not by law it is by smart HR practice. companies want to avoid lawsuits. sometimes the prospective hiring staff try really hard when they call to extract more info…a skilled recruiter will try to pierce the dates of employment response. as a former employer I recommend never giving more info , in fact I would request a fax for employment verification, which no matter what questions are asked I respond only to dates of employment and starting and final salary. all other question I would x out. sometimes you are shielded from lawsuits and obligated to inform a future employer if a former employee was a danger. but that is an entirely different and fairly rare situation. I never dealt with that and if it ever came to be… the first call i would make would be to the company I work for outside employment attorney on how to handle it. ( I pray in a non religious way I never deal with that situation)
She was told she could work until August 1st. I found that to be odd. I told her to continue and work and be as professional as she can. I also told hero see if she can get a decent reccommendation from the boss who gave Hera good performance review.
Morrismm, personally I would advise against pursuing a case against the firm, for reasons that others have stated and from my own personal experience, which causes me PTSD even now just thinking about it and it happened 20 years ago.
I agree with sylvan8798 lawsuits have many downsides (even if there is cause) for the plaintiff in these situations. I would ask for a letter of recommendation and resign prior to august 1. I also would not sign any papers releasing the company from liability. (whether or not you pursue a lawsuit…which may not even have justification) there is no benefit to signing anything unless they give your daughter a nice severance and agree not to disparage her or her reputation with any potential future employers. the problem is these conversations with a boss/hr can be very uncomfortable to have at any age especially for somebody if they are young and new to the workforce.
As a business owner I know there is an eeoc protected class, and as far as I know in an at-will state she does not qualify under that. Keep in mind, a lawyer will cost you money and in the end she will probably get nothing out of it. For her own mental health, perhaps she should put her energy into recovering and finding a new place to work.
This is not the end of the world to her, and please repeat to her - this does not define her, her value, her work product, etc. This is a company where frankly she doesn’t want to work if they operate like this. Thank goodness she found out now! I would think twice about using them as a reference, it is legal to answer if the person is rehirable. (is that even a word?) Use the temp company as the reference.
She should work hard now to find a new job - if she doesn’t get one before 8/1 then she should just say she was let go. No need to explain further during interviews. Don’t be quick to quit (if she doesn’t have anything lined up) she shouldn’t jeopardize her unemployment benefits (check your state laws they vary).
Also, I agree with not signing anything - even if you have no idea of hiring a lawyer (and I don’t think you should) - she should say I don’t want to sign this until I have it reviewed by a lawyer.
I would recommend she consult a lawyer, not necessarily to file a lawsuit, but to get advice on how to handle this with her current employer and future employers.
This is a persistent myth. Many companies may simply give dates of employment by policy, but it’s not due to a law. In my industry, references will often state whether or not the nurse is eligible for rehire. If the answer is no, that speaks volumes.
From “The Four Biggest Myths About Job References:”