I got fired from my job today at an oxygen/dme company where I worked for 9 months. My job was delivering oxygen and supplies to patient homes. Recently our company had been cutting back benefits/not allowing us to get the supplies we need etc. Well I recently hurt my back on the job and got workman's comp for 4 weeks of physical therapy. The reason I got fired is because I mentioned to a few employees that since they cut our benefits that I had to start looking for another job. This is only a 10$ hourly job where they work you to death. Anyways, it got back to my boss's boss that I "SAID" (note I only said this I didn't actually act on it or have real intentions of acting on it) that I was looking for a job with a rival oxygen company. I don't know who snitched on me, doesn't matter, but is this a legitimate fireable offense, or are they just not wanting to deal with an employee who hurt their back so they nitpicked to get me fired?

sue them for firing you for getting hurt. ez game

Welcome to the wonderful world of "at will" employment.

You sir................are fucked.

Yep, I have fired several employees for the exact same thing. Had a guy that wouldn't shut up about how he was always looking for another job and such. He didn't even care to say it directly to me and I was his supervisor. He caught me in a bad mood one day and I had finally had enough. Told him I wish him well but he was creating an extremely negative work environment by constantly talking about looking for work elsewhere. Off he went.

Are you:

( ) over 40
( ) born with vagina
( ) not white
( ) disabled
( ) gay

If not, gg, ul.

No they shouldn't

 

Originally Posted by MonkeyCowboy

No they shouldn't

No one should be forced into a relationship against their consent.

if you were still collecting comp, you will still continue to collect comp...indefinitely. If you went back to work for any amount of time you can bet your ass they were waiting for a reason to fire you

 

Originally Posted by towman1

I am pretty sure he is talking about the federal laws in place

Federal, state, local...

 

Originally Posted by Mr. Blonde

if you were still collecting comp, you will still continue to collect comp...indefinitely. If you went back to work for any amount of time you can bet your ass they were waiting for a reason to fire you

I was still working while receiving comp for physical therapy. I was put on light duty (lifting less than 20 lbs) but that's not really possible with my job. I still had to deliver tanks and concentrators (oxygen machines) which weigh over 20lbs. I just couldn't deliver liquid oxygen tanks which weigh over 100lbs.

 

Originally Posted by Mr. Blonde

if you were still collecting comp, you will still continue to collect comp...indefinitely. If you went back to work for any amount of time you can bet your ass they were waiting for a reason to fire you

This. Plus, even if it's a Right-to-Work State(or At Will States)-(like we are in Ind), you're still eligible for Unemployment Benefits. Also, there are some exemptions wherein one may file a Wrongful Termination lawsuit(i.e. discrimination, etc). The only exemption which may applt to you, in Ga. at least, would be the one I bolded:

"Statutory exceptions-

Although all U.S. states have a number of statutory protections for employees, most wrongful termination suits brought under statutory causes of action use the federal anti-discrimination statutes which prohibit firing or refusing to hire an employee because of race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, or handicap status. Other reasons an employer may not use to fire an at-will employee are:
for refusing to commit illegal acts – An employer is not permitted to fire an employee because the employee refuses to commit an act that is illegal.
family or medical leave – federal law permits most employees to take a leave of absence for specific family or medical problems. An employer is not permitted to fire an employee who takes family or medical leave for a reason outlined in the Family and Medical Leave Act.

not following own termination procedures – often, the employee handbook or company policy outlines a procedure that must be followed before an employee is terminated. If the employer fires an employee without following this procedure, the employee may have a claim for wrongful termination."

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/At-will_employment

Sucks man...but for the state...its ok

When keeping it real goes wrong.-.

I may be wrong but I thought you could only go on unemployment if you were terminated through no fault of your own. If anyone has an answer to this I would appreciate it. I've never been fired before so this is all new to me.

 

Originally Posted by UncleLeo

I may be wrong but I thought you could only go on unemployment if you were terminated through no fault of your own. If anyone has an answer to this I would appreciate it. I've never been fired before so this is all new to me.

Like any good answer - it depends. In some states, such as Nevada, if you belong to a certain union, Carpenters for example, the negotiated agreement allows for the collecting of unemployment benefits when times are slow and the member maintains their employment. Yes, collect unemployment AND still have a job.

To take this further, some employers "allow" their employees to bank hour (when working less than 40 hr/wk) in order to claim ZERO hrs worked in a give week so the employee can collect unemployment benefits for that period.

Now, in most cases, you have to be fired for cause if the Unemployment Ins. Commission is going to deny a claim.

 

Originally Posted by BigJohn804

that's a fairly enormous leap to make connecting "Right to Work" laws to low-paying jobs in the way you have, but okay.

ENORMOUS!! Indeed. Google "NAFTA"