What is the name of your state?From Arkansas:
I started working in CADD for a company in May 2004. About 3 months later, it was mentioned to me that co-workers had complained that I had an unpleasant body odor and they asked that I make sure that my hygiene was kept up. Embarrassing, but okay. I made sure to shower every day.
In mid-October, I was given a written warning regarding body odor. It was written up as a 2nd and Final Notice - referencing what I had thought was a casual observation as the 1st warning. It stated (as best as I can remember, I was never given a copy of it) that if it had to be brought up again, I would be subject to immediate termination.
I responded with a letter stating that I suspected that, if I did have an odor problem, it was rooted in a medical gastro/intestinal problem (I have had major problems with indigestion for years). I asked them if they needed a doctor's note. I expressed willingness to do the following to resolve any problems that may crop up in the future: If someone found my odor to be overwhelmingly unpleasant, I would go to the nearest gym and shower. I would keep a change of clothes on hand. I would buy some air-fresheners for my office. I expressed my shock that body odor would be used as a reason for termination, especially when it was very likely to be rooted in a medical condition. I also said that if these solutions were not sufficient to reverse the final notice, that I wanted a copy of it. I never received a copy. (In fact, they have never given me anything in writing.)
In mid-November, I was told that I had been accused of harassment by a co-worker with whom I thought I had a friendly relationship. I was written up and suspended for a couple of days. I stopped any interaction with this person out of concern that it would be misinterpreted. About a month later, she came into my office, shut the door and asked why I was mad at her. I was told that management had not been approached but had approached her asking if anything I did was bothersome. They had initiated it. She said, "I told them that I did not want you to get into trouble."
At some point during this, I contacted Human Resources due to my stress level, as I was feeling singled out. She told me that if I experienced any more problems, to feel free to contact her. That she was there to help me. I was constantly being assured that they wanted to help me succeed there.
I sweat a lot, and have spent the last 7 months being afraid to sweat. I was a full-time college student with a family of five to support.
On or around May 2nd, my immediate supervisor (2nd in command of the office) came into my office. He said that since I had recently gotten my degree (April 29 A.S. CADD 3.6 GPA), and my work was so good that he was going to see about getting me a substantial raise. He said that I was a miracle worker.
On Friday, May 6th, while playing ping-pong at lunch, the office manager told me, in front of the other players, to put on some deodorant because I had smelled up the whole back office. Note: I immediately went to another, uninvolved, co-worker and asked her opinion. She said I did not smell bad. Later my supervisor said that my office did not smell bad and that I did not smell bad (Please note that I did comply with the manager's request to use some deodorant. No request was made to shower, and I was wearing the same clothes that I had played ping-pong in.)
Note: We were waiting until I had accumulated vacation time to follow-up with the doctor, who had told my wife that my digestive problems could cause stronger than usual odor (though I have NEVER been told my odor was offensive prior to working in this office). He said I would need a full medical work-up to determine the cause of my digestive discomfort (I have experienced a significant increase in stomach pain in the last 8 months), but I did not have any vacation time until my first full year of employment was completed. My personal time bank accrual had been taken up during semester finals.
Since the manager had publically brought up my odor, I told my supervisor that IF he wanted to speak to me about it, I wanted the others there. When he called me to his office, he told them that I was the one who wanted the meeting. Toward the end of the meeting the manager expressed that he was very lenient and did not want to see people fired. He said that he wished this would go away. He stated that since he is lenient, even though this was the third time he had spoken with me, that he would let it go. He said that even if in another six months' time there was a fourth time that he had to speak to me about it, that he would more than likely let that go too, because he was so lenient. He said these things - basically assuring me of the continuation of my employment - in front of the three co-workers with whom I had been playing ping-pong and my supervisor.
Given the fact that the body odor problem (if there IS a problem) is medical (because I still intend to try to get a medical work-up because of the stomach pain, though it will be more difficult since being terminated cuts off my health insurance and the tests are expensive) and I was told that he would not fire me, which is a promise of continued employment, and I've been working under a rather extreme amount of stress (believe me, when you are afraid to sweat, it's stressful - especially when you tend to sweat a lot), and given the verbal praise, initiated by my supervisor, regarding the quality of my work and a promise of working for a raise,(we also spoke about the fact that, although I would like to go back to school to get a B.A., since my wife was starting a masters program this coming fall, I would be there for at least another three years before having to consider whether or not I would be able to work full time while attending) plus I received the $500 bonus that the other employees in the company received.
On Tuesday, May 10th, I was called into the manager's office. The woman from Human Resources was there. I was fired. They told me verbally it was due to my body odor. They expressed the possibility that I would not lose my job if I acknowledged that I had smelled bad. (He said he was giving me a chance to fight for my job.) I said that I did not believe that I had stunk up the office and they terminated me. Again, nothing was given to me in writing.
In researching the situation, my impression is that this was not a lawful termination. Especially since effort was made to get me to sign a claims release at the final interview. He seemed very concerned when I said I would not sign anything then and that I would take the form home with me. At the end of the "information gathering" such as, what office are you in, what is your current wage, why are you leaving, etc There was a small papagragh that mentioned claims release. I found out later that if I had signed, I would have - unknowingly - signed away my right to legally challenge the actions of this company.
Although Arkansas is an "at will" state, there was the promise of continued employment given via the praise and mention of raise AND via the fact that the manager said that he would not fire me this time and probably not even if it happened again. And was my privacy broken by his calling me out publically about the deodorant and then mentioning the fact that this was the third notice in front of them during the meeting?
Here are the issues that I see (so far):
Promise of continued employment
Privacy issues (mentioning the number of notices in front of other employees)
Using a medically related problem as a reason for the termination
No mention of COBRA at the final interview (my wife told me about COBRA yesterday and asked what the company had told me to do to enroll. She was surprised that I didn't know what it was. Info that she has looked up indicates that they, legally, should have informed me about my health insurance options.)
Attempt to get me to sign a claims release at the final interview
None of this makes sense to me. I wonder how many other employees may be working there with a written final notice hanging over their heads.
I am deeply disturbed by the way this has been handled and want to find out if it should be addressed legally.
So. What next?
Thanks in advance for your input.
Mr. G.
I started working in CADD for a company in May 2004. About 3 months later, it was mentioned to me that co-workers had complained that I had an unpleasant body odor and they asked that I make sure that my hygiene was kept up. Embarrassing, but okay. I made sure to shower every day.
In mid-October, I was given a written warning regarding body odor. It was written up as a 2nd and Final Notice - referencing what I had thought was a casual observation as the 1st warning. It stated (as best as I can remember, I was never given a copy of it) that if it had to be brought up again, I would be subject to immediate termination.
I responded with a letter stating that I suspected that, if I did have an odor problem, it was rooted in a medical gastro/intestinal problem (I have had major problems with indigestion for years). I asked them if they needed a doctor's note. I expressed willingness to do the following to resolve any problems that may crop up in the future: If someone found my odor to be overwhelmingly unpleasant, I would go to the nearest gym and shower. I would keep a change of clothes on hand. I would buy some air-fresheners for my office. I expressed my shock that body odor would be used as a reason for termination, especially when it was very likely to be rooted in a medical condition. I also said that if these solutions were not sufficient to reverse the final notice, that I wanted a copy of it. I never received a copy. (In fact, they have never given me anything in writing.)
In mid-November, I was told that I had been accused of harassment by a co-worker with whom I thought I had a friendly relationship. I was written up and suspended for a couple of days. I stopped any interaction with this person out of concern that it would be misinterpreted. About a month later, she came into my office, shut the door and asked why I was mad at her. I was told that management had not been approached but had approached her asking if anything I did was bothersome. They had initiated it. She said, "I told them that I did not want you to get into trouble."
At some point during this, I contacted Human Resources due to my stress level, as I was feeling singled out. She told me that if I experienced any more problems, to feel free to contact her. That she was there to help me. I was constantly being assured that they wanted to help me succeed there.
I sweat a lot, and have spent the last 7 months being afraid to sweat. I was a full-time college student with a family of five to support.
On or around May 2nd, my immediate supervisor (2nd in command of the office) came into my office. He said that since I had recently gotten my degree (April 29 A.S. CADD 3.6 GPA), and my work was so good that he was going to see about getting me a substantial raise. He said that I was a miracle worker.
On Friday, May 6th, while playing ping-pong at lunch, the office manager told me, in front of the other players, to put on some deodorant because I had smelled up the whole back office. Note: I immediately went to another, uninvolved, co-worker and asked her opinion. She said I did not smell bad. Later my supervisor said that my office did not smell bad and that I did not smell bad (Please note that I did comply with the manager's request to use some deodorant. No request was made to shower, and I was wearing the same clothes that I had played ping-pong in.)
Note: We were waiting until I had accumulated vacation time to follow-up with the doctor, who had told my wife that my digestive problems could cause stronger than usual odor (though I have NEVER been told my odor was offensive prior to working in this office). He said I would need a full medical work-up to determine the cause of my digestive discomfort (I have experienced a significant increase in stomach pain in the last 8 months), but I did not have any vacation time until my first full year of employment was completed. My personal time bank accrual had been taken up during semester finals.
Since the manager had publically brought up my odor, I told my supervisor that IF he wanted to speak to me about it, I wanted the others there. When he called me to his office, he told them that I was the one who wanted the meeting. Toward the end of the meeting the manager expressed that he was very lenient and did not want to see people fired. He said that he wished this would go away. He stated that since he is lenient, even though this was the third time he had spoken with me, that he would let it go. He said that even if in another six months' time there was a fourth time that he had to speak to me about it, that he would more than likely let that go too, because he was so lenient. He said these things - basically assuring me of the continuation of my employment - in front of the three co-workers with whom I had been playing ping-pong and my supervisor.
Given the fact that the body odor problem (if there IS a problem) is medical (because I still intend to try to get a medical work-up because of the stomach pain, though it will be more difficult since being terminated cuts off my health insurance and the tests are expensive) and I was told that he would not fire me, which is a promise of continued employment, and I've been working under a rather extreme amount of stress (believe me, when you are afraid to sweat, it's stressful - especially when you tend to sweat a lot), and given the verbal praise, initiated by my supervisor, regarding the quality of my work and a promise of working for a raise,(we also spoke about the fact that, although I would like to go back to school to get a B.A., since my wife was starting a masters program this coming fall, I would be there for at least another three years before having to consider whether or not I would be able to work full time while attending) plus I received the $500 bonus that the other employees in the company received.
On Tuesday, May 10th, I was called into the manager's office. The woman from Human Resources was there. I was fired. They told me verbally it was due to my body odor. They expressed the possibility that I would not lose my job if I acknowledged that I had smelled bad. (He said he was giving me a chance to fight for my job.) I said that I did not believe that I had stunk up the office and they terminated me. Again, nothing was given to me in writing.
In researching the situation, my impression is that this was not a lawful termination. Especially since effort was made to get me to sign a claims release at the final interview. He seemed very concerned when I said I would not sign anything then and that I would take the form home with me. At the end of the "information gathering" such as, what office are you in, what is your current wage, why are you leaving, etc There was a small papagragh that mentioned claims release. I found out later that if I had signed, I would have - unknowingly - signed away my right to legally challenge the actions of this company.
Although Arkansas is an "at will" state, there was the promise of continued employment given via the praise and mention of raise AND via the fact that the manager said that he would not fire me this time and probably not even if it happened again. And was my privacy broken by his calling me out publically about the deodorant and then mentioning the fact that this was the third notice in front of them during the meeting?
Here are the issues that I see (so far):
Promise of continued employment
Privacy issues (mentioning the number of notices in front of other employees)
Using a medically related problem as a reason for the termination
No mention of COBRA at the final interview (my wife told me about COBRA yesterday and asked what the company had told me to do to enroll. She was surprised that I didn't know what it was. Info that she has looked up indicates that they, legally, should have informed me about my health insurance options.)
Attempt to get me to sign a claims release at the final interview
None of this makes sense to me. I wonder how many other employees may be working there with a written final notice hanging over their heads.
I am deeply disturbed by the way this has been handled and want to find out if it should be addressed legally.
So. What next?
Thanks in advance for your input.
Mr. G.