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Fired and took away unemployment

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deysoxfan

Junior Member
What is the name of your state?Indiana
My wife got back from a six week maternity leave, and the manager called her in and told her that he'd like her to be the manager of the company. A couple of days later a co-worker complained that she thought she was getting less than a different co-worker so the two looked at the pay books. The boss somehow found out about it and asked them individually. After three times the co-worker finally admitted to looking at the payroll. He then asked my wife three times, and she denied it all three times. That night she couldn't take the guilt and called him and admitted to her mistake. The next day he told her she should resign because of what happened. She said that she didn't think that what she did deserved her to resign. He asked again, and once again she refused to resign. She said, "If you want me to leave you know what you have to do", so he fired her. She then (a week or so later applied for unemployment). A week after that she found out her boss was keeping her from obtaining unemployment because she "was discharged due to a work-related breach of duty." Now this was based on the fact that she was manager, BUT she was never officially made manager. There was no paper work stating this. No raise. No other employees knew she was the manager. The co-worker that was with my wife was NOT fired and did the exact same thing. I find this very unfair. Either my wife should get her unemployment or the other worker should have been fired also. With our second child, it is going to be very, very hard to make ends meet. We've already had to use a credit card check to pay a house payment and find the whole situation very unfair.
 
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Unfortunately what your wife did was not only unethical, she also lied about it 3 times. It doesn't matter if she was a manager or not. Payroll information is always confidential. The employer had a right to fire her for either looking at or sharing that information with another employee who had a bone to pick. It is unfair that they didn't fire the other employee too, but the employer has a right to keep or fire who they wish. Sorry about that but I don't think she can do anything except look for another job.
 
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Beth3

Senior Member
She said that she didn't think that what she did deserved her to resign. Wow. :eek: Your wife sharing the payroll records with an employee was grossly inappropriate - and then she lied about it three times. Her boss was doing her a favor by giving her an opportunity to resign. I sure wouldn't have.

The co-worker that was with my wife was NOT fired and did the exact same thing. But your wife was in the manager's role and she knew it and your wife was the one who made the decision to share the payroll data. I'd have fired the employee for lying about it but it wasn't my call to make.

Either my wife should get her unemployment or the other worker should have been fired also. Your wife clearly engaged in willful misconduct. I can't imagine the UC office making a determination that she will be eligible for benefits.

With our second child, it is going to be very, very hard to make ends meet. We've already had to use a credit card check to pay a house payment and find the whole situation very unfair. Your wife should have thought about the consequences of her actions before deciding to dive into the payroll records and then lie about it.
 

cbg

I'm a Northern Girl
Jackie is 100% correct.

What anyone else is making is none of anyone else's business. Your wife and the other coworker had no business looking at the payroll. Having done so, she should have had the courage to admit what she did instead of lying about it.

Whether any of the other employees knew she was the manager is irrelevant. She knew and the upper management knew. They are free to hold her to the higher standard whether the promotion had been officially announced or not.

As I keep reminding people, the employer does not make the decision as to whether or not to grant unemployment. They have the same right to contest her getting benefits as she has to appeal the decision. The state, not the employer, decides if she qualifies.
 

mdowney80

Junior Member
This is just my opinion and doesn't really have anything to do with this persons problem but why do people get so offended about two people discussing there pay? I think if two people want to talk about how much they make then they should be able to and if the other employee's don't like it then they can go to hell. I'm sure the employer's dont like it but I dont think anyone should be fired for it. I mean really why do people get so pissed to over hear two people talking about there pay.... yet if they hear that the two people make less than them they suddenly dont care and if the two do make more than them then they have to have a childish fit and complian. Grow up!
 

cbg

I'm a Northern Girl
If I want to tell Beth what I make, I can. If Beth wants to tell me what she makes, she can. But if I look in the payroll records and tell Beth what Jackie is making, I'm out the door. It's Jackie's decision, not mine, whether to tell Beth what's she's making.
 

cbg

I'm a Northern Girl
But that was the issue. It wasn't two people talking about what they make; it was the poster's wife giving out info about other people's pay.

And it is illegal to fire someone because they voluntarily talked about their own pay with another employee.
 
When I first started in my career, I had a coworker fired because she kept asking me how much I made. She was incessant in her pursuit to know my salary. I told her several times I wasn't going to discuss it, and when I got fed up with it I went to my boss. She was fired shortly afterward, as well she should have been. I felt badly about her losing her job, but she really crossed a line by asking me. It's nobody's business how much money you make.

If I caught my employees discussing their salaries with each other, I would reprimand them. Nothing good can come from it.
 

mycarlb

Member
I totally agree! The main problem with discussing pay is because lets just say I was hired last week into a position help by 4 other people, all with the company for 10+ years... I was started at $42,000 because of my experience, etc... and the other's were only making 30,000 after dedicated service... do you think anything good will come from that???

When I became assistant manager of a retail chain I was given instructions NOT to discuss my salary because they did infact start me out with more money because of my experience...

For the OP, your wife, in a position of management should have, and most likely did, known it was completely wrong to do what she did, and the termination was appropriate, as well as denying unemployment benefits. Unfortunately now she will also have a hard time getting a new job if this bit of info comes out.
 

mdowney80

Junior Member
"This is just my opinion and doesn't really have anything to do with this persons problem but..."

I knew this was the issue that's why I stated what I stated above I just didn't feel like starting my own thread.
 

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