And another one bites the dust ... oh, wait

Add my condolences to the list.
Sounds like they were looking for an excuse to get rid of you, no matter how flimsy. Once that's the case, sometimes it's better to be done with it than being miserable and stressed every day.

 

Sorry to see that. Sounds like the manager was working from the J. Todd Foster page on firing by vendetta.

 

Sorry dude. Sucks for no reason.
But I have a question, and I'm not being a dick. Why didn't they want you in that office. Was there a problem/conflict?

 

That blows, my condolences.

 

First off Rhody, I'm sorry. This is flat-out crap.

Funny how newspapers demand reasons from everyone else, yet cannot turn the mirror and look at themselves.

 

Rhody,

That's messed up but I've come to believe it's becoming the norm. The fact they won't give you a reason probably means it had nothing to do with anything you did... that it had been in the pipes for a while now.

So, you could file a wrongful termination lawsuit, which would almost force them to disclose their reasons, whatever those might be. Or you could coast on UI for a while while pursuing a better gig.

While the situation is nothing to laugh at, I did chuckle at your mention of "office in the middle of the state and drive to the office in the south of the state". Said "he must not be working in Montana or Texas".

Best wishes to you moving forward. If you still want to be in the business, you certainly can be.

 

If you know any lawyer in employment law well enough to give you an off-the-cuff semi-consultation over a cup of coffee, call 'em up. Or as others suggest, check and see if there are any state resources (although in some states this will be WORSE than a waste of time -- you could end up worse. In some states the state 'employment office' staffers are complete stooges for the employers).

It's hard really to tell from your account whether their decision is legally justifiable, although a couple things smell funny about the whole thing.

Generally companies which follow the asshole-prick model of labor management will fight unemployment tooth and nail. The fact they aren't doing this COULD be an indication they're not really sure they're on totally solid legal ground -- they may figure they'll concede on the UI benefits and not risk losing their asses in legal action.

It does depend to a great deal on your state and local laws, but somebody with an actual knowledge of employment law would probably have a much better idea of whether you have any recourse.

 

Here's one thing people often overlook in their frustration over these situations: Even if I sued and won, do I really want to go back and work for these back-stabbing SOBs? How long before they find some other way to jack with me?

 

Oh yeah, that's absolutely true -- whatever 'recourse' Rhody may have is probably going to be limited to squeezing some bread out of the bastards. In all likelihood it doesn't sound like a place I'd want to go back to work, unless there are major changes in the chain of command.


Although I have known of a couple cases like this where the whole deal was the result of a personal vendetta pushed by one person, and all it took was legal action -- or even the threat of it -- to smoke this out, and the grand poohbahs higher up the food chain suddenly have a revelation, "holy shit, this is the third time Vic Vendetta has fired somebody and we've gotten hauled into court each time, maybe Vic himself is the problem."

Doesn't happen often, but it does happen. All the more reason to sit down and talk with somebody who knows what they're talking about.

 

God, this sucks, Rhody. Best to you going forward.

 

Sorry to hear it Rhody. You'd think bosses would see the body of work and try to ignore the stupid petty bullshit. Instead, they can't, and that's why their businesses struggle. Good luck.

 

Condolences, Rhody. Other than the being in the room with a loved one when the doctor confirmed a catastrophic illness, there's no gut-punch like being fired out of the blue.

But unless you're in some sort of a well-protected class, I wouldn't waste my time considering the lawsuit route.

I would instead use the latest in job-hunting resources -- InDeed.com, LinkedIn, Twitter/Personal Website, etc. -- and get the hell out of the industry.

Here's a hint: The amount of work and effort you described in the days leading up to your firing is indicative of an employee earning at least twice what you did as a reporter.