Well they terminated me because I told them I was leaving for a competitor, which is common in the industry. The thing is, when someone is terminated, they are generally paid for the two weeks they were willing to work. This was the case with several employees before me who left to go to competitors.

Instead, they terminated me and paid me for the day that I was there for the exit interview rather than for the time I was willing to work before the new job started.

Anyway, it makes them look unprofessional and childish. It was purely done out of spite since ultimately it took from my pocketbook. They are the ones who look bad

Some state are "at will" meaning you work at your will and their's with no reason or notice needed to quit or be fired. They can just come in and say "you're fired" with giving a reason. There are a few laws around this but as with all laws it gets complacated fast. My state KY is an "at will" state.
Other state have a "right to work" clause meaning the employer has to have a reason regardless of how weak it is to fire you. It could range from going to work for a competitor to you violated the dress code. It varies from state to state.

Dave

The bottom line in this day and age is big companies have taken the mindset that "you are all replaceable".
Most care more about the almighty dollar than your needs and wants(or how many mouths you have to feed). Knowing all the time that it's the guy out on the floor or field doing all the work while upper managemant drives their desk crunching figures and counting beans. They will always get their bonus even if you took a pay cut at Christmas.
My Mom was diagnosed with MS and about 6 months later her company was bought out by a larger company so in return for her 17 years of faithful service(quite a few 60 hour work weeks, weekend and holidays) they rewarded her with a pink slip and a much younger replacement. Now she has no insurance and $1,000 a month in medical bills for all her meds.My father- in -law was laid off from Rockwell (Boeing) after 19 years. So now he's got a Engineering degree, a secret security clearance, but his age really made it hard for him to get another job in the Aerospace industry, so he's a security guard.
Say what you want about Unions,but at least you have somebody to stand up for you when The Company tries some underhanded crap. They (the Unions) actually care about the working man and woman. Btw I am a Shop Steward with the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers Local 47, so hello to Babva and all Union brothers and sisters out there.

Sorry if I tend to get hot about this subject. I'm stepping off the soapbox. BulletTooth good luck to ya. Don't let the bastards get you down.

She definitely should consult a good lawyer. She seems to have a case for age discrimination since the job wasn't cut completely and a younger person is now doing it. She may also have recourse under Americans with Disabilities Act.

when i started reading i thougth u ditched ur company for another one but finaly they changed their mind and made you jobless lol

were i work with my dad, people keep ranting about hte guy who draws the plans for the dumb trucks and the peices to build that thing that goes on the truck in back( eee sry, dont know what there called in english) so wtv, after a year of complaining, my boss decides to fire the guy:-? so far so good, but the bad part is, it was the last day of work before christmas break! as if that wasnt enought he did hte same thing this summer with some other employee!!! and the second part of it is that he's supposed to tell my the people in charge of hte section he worked in that the guy would get fired but didnt.

if your not startign your job yet and you have 2 weeks off, that means plenty of building time

Frank

Al, that's the first person my Dad called when she got home that day. So they're talking it to court now.

I still have the mindset of a "disposable person" myself. After I got out of the Army in 97, I had a very tough time finding a job. I spent many years at different Temp agencies. They all promised that sooner or later, I would be hired.

No, they never hired me.

I've learned much while I've been in the civilian sector. I learned that I should not trust what they say and to stay paranoid.

Sounds fun, huh?

I now have a nice little job as a webmaster and am still very sensitive about my job security.

I'm the child of a Union family. My father is IBEW (Int'l Brotherhood of Electrical Workers) for 27 years and my mother is CNA (California Nurses Association) for 21 years. Though I'm not in a Union myself, I will always be pro-Union because they made sure my parents always had work and I had health insurance.

I don't want this to turn into a Union debate, I just wanted to share that I am pro-Union and that I believe they do still stick to their core values - the worker and his/her family. Unions are no more corrupt than any government, business, or church

Oh, I agree BT, I hope everybody didn't think I was trying to stir up a Union twist on your thread, I just thought it had relevancy to the discussion, not trying to get people all fired up .

That's also illegal over here and the company would be dragged through the courts and it would get national press coverage they wouldn't come out smelling of roses we do have some good employment laws even better if they make you redundant and replace you with someone else. There was a case involving my company a few years ago were an engineer was suffering from kidney failure and had to have time off from work for dialisis so they sacked him sadly he died but his parents took them to court and had him reinstated this helped get some money from the company andinsurance policies his family were entitled to his work benifits as well .........but it just shows how low a comany can sink to when someone is so ill

Hehehehe, no worries Skywrench. I knew you weren't trying to stir anything up

A point:

I think some people misunderstand what the "Right to Work Act" actually does. It makes sure you that do not have to be in a union to get or keep your job. Indiana is not a "right to work" state. The foundry I work in is a "closed shop." That means that after 90 days when your probationary employment period ends you either automatically join the union and pay union dues or hit the door. (I am in management so it doesn't apply to me.) A lot of people have problems with this for various religious and political reasons. One of the big problems is unions spending dues funds to back candidates in elections that some of the rank and file union members don't support. It essentially forces some union members to make campaign contributions to politicians they disagree with and would never support otherwise.
Link to "Right to Work" website:

http://www.nrtw.org/rtws.htm

I know too much about this too...
And, like I said it doesn't apply and makes no difference to me personally one way or the other...

Shaun

You know, when I first read this thread a couple days ago, I was thinking, man what would I do if I were to be let go. Now understand, I work as an appointee to the Office of the Governor and every 4 years I know I have a change ahead of me and that's two years away. Then yesterday, at 3PM, I was called into the Chief of Staff's office and given a two week notice to clear out my office and finalize any open projects I may have going on. So the only thing for me is, I knew it was coming but it came 2 yrs early.

Bummer. Happy New Year...

BulletTooth - you are in California. Contact the Department of Labor, Division of Labor Standards Enforcement. Your employer very well may have violated either the Labor Code or Business and Professions Code. In either case the DLSE can advise you whether you can file a claim against your former employer for wages. If allowed you can also ask for penalities equal to a days wage up to 30 days.

Give them a call. It might be well worth it.