Employer Misrepresentation of Job Requirements

[no_patsy]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? CA

Recently hired for a management position in a small company. So far, being used just to write code and being harassed for not performing up to par. The programming requirement was not at all indicated during the interview process.

If I were to be terminated on the basis of sub-par programming skills, would there be grounds for a wrongful termination action?

I accepted this position based on new employers representation of the position which was to involve setting up and managing a new department for the company. Programming was NOT represented as a must for the position and no discussion yet regarding the 'new department'.

I would have not left my previous employer otherwise. Now at risk for termination.

 

[cbg]

If I were to be terminated on the basis of sub-par programming skills, would there be grounds for a wrongful termination action?

No. A wrongful termination means that a specific law prohibits the employer from firing you for the reason he did. Your job is what the employer says it is, and will very limited exceptions he can change those requirements every day if he wants to.

 

[commentator]

Be looking diligently for another job while still working at this one, since this one doesn't seem to be what it was advertised as and isn't working out. But in the meantime, show up and do your best effort to do what they ask of you. When you find the new job, quit and move on smoothly. Otherwise, unemployment benefits would be your only alternative.

If they do terminate you based on job performance before you can find something else, you'll be very likely to be approved for unemployment benefits while looking for another job. The thing is, if you quit the job, you would have a much harder time proving for unemployment purposes that you had a valid job related reason to leave the job. You'd need to show that you had exhausted all reasonable alternatives to leaving the job (such as discussion of the problem with your supervisors, explaining your misunderstanding of the job before you took it etc.)

But if they threaten around and try to scare you into quitting instead of being fired, don't let them. Because firing someone, particularly for poor performance, is a good way to get them able to draw unemployment benefits if you do it. And this will cost your company money, because your unemployment tax rates go up when someone is approved to draw off your company. If they go on and actually fire you, to keep you from getting unemployment benefits, they would have to show that they had a valid misconduct reason to fire you. You did not misrepresent your abilities when you were be interviewed by them, they are asking you to do something you aren't really claiming to be an expert at, you are showing up and doing your best to meet their expectations, and if it's not happening, it's not really your fault.

They can ask, can set their performance standards up to total perfection, but that does not mean that if you do not meet them, when you're genuinely trying, that you are committing misconduct. You cannot spin gold out of straw.

 

[no_patsy]

Thank you

["Thank you for the sound advice. I'm following the plan."QUOTE=commentator;3300036]Be looking diligently for another job while still working at this one, since this one doesn't seem to be what it was advertised as and isn't working out. But in the meantime, show up and do your best effort to do what they ask of you. When you find the new job, quit and move on smoothly. Otherwise, unemployment benefits would be your only alternative.

If they do terminate you based on job performance before you can find something else, you'll be very likely to be approved for unemployment benefits while looking for another job. The thing is, if you quit the job, you would have a much harder time proving for unemployment purposes that you had a valid job related reason to leave the job. You'd need to show that you had exhausted all reasonable alternatives to leaving the job (such as discussion of the problem with your supervisors, explaining your misunderstanding of the job before you took it etc.)

But if they threaten around and try to scare you into quitting instead of being fired, don't let them. Because firing someone, particularly for poor performance, is a good way to get them able to draw unemployment benefits if you do it. And this will cost your company money, because your unemployment tax rates go up when someone is approved to draw off your company. If they go on and actually fire you, to keep you from getting unemployment benefits, they would have to show that they had a valid misconduct reason to fire you. You did not misrepresent your abilities when you were be interviewed by them, they are asking you to do something you aren't really claiming to be an expert at, you are showing up and doing your best to meet their expectations, and if it's not happening, it's not really your fault.

They can ask, can set their performance standards up to total perfection, but that does not mean that if you do not meet them, when you're genuinely trying, that you are committing misconduct. You cannot spin gold out of straw.[/QUOTE]