unjustified termination

[annefromflorida]

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

I have been employed as Exec Asst to the Pres. by a non profit for over a year and a half, my review was great and there have been no problems, just the opposite, I thought everything was great. The Pres. told me several weeks ago that "we're just not clicking, you're not meeting my needs". "It's probably my fault....but you need to find other employment". I was stunned - he said he would let me work for another six weeks while I looked for a job. I think he is going to rehire a former assistant that is now his wife's best friend. I think I deserve some type of severence pay, I appreciate the notice but there is nothing out there, believe me I've been looking, I sure don't want to work for this guy anymore but I haven't done anything wrong. do I have any recourse?

 

[Proserpina]

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

I have been employed as Exec Asst to the Pres. by a non profit for over a year and a half, my review was great and there have been no problems, just the opposite, I thought everything was great. The Pres. told me several weeks ago that "we're just not clicking, you're not meeting my needs". "It's probably my fault....but you need to find other employment". I was stunned - he said he would let me work for another six weeks while I looked for a job. I think he is going to rehire a former assistant that is now his wife's best friend. I think I deserve some type of severence pay, I appreciate the notice but there is nothing out there, believe me I've been looking, I sure don't want to work for this guy anymore but I haven't done anything wrong. do I have any recourse?

Nope. As long as it's not because of a protected class (race, gender etc) you can be fired for just about any reason, and/or no reason at all.

 

[Antigone*]

Hey, you got six weeks notice. He isn't doing anything illegal.

 

[Proserpina]

Hey, you got six weeks notice. He isn't doing anything illegal.

That's actually a good point.

 

[eerelations]

This termination is legal. Severance pay isn't required by law under any circumstances.

 

[commentator]

Even though this is a non profit, you will still be able to draw unemployment insurance while you are looking for another job. Do not tell him this is your intention, or it is possible you will be fired for some made up cause that he will create.This will not keep you from being approved, probably, but it will be more trouble.

Just quietly work out the few weeks you have left. Then if you have not yet found another job, file for your unemployment benefits. If you have a severance letter or a recommendation, anything that says you were terminated because "you were just not clicking" or that he's letting you move on, or that you did good work get a copy of that to the unemployment office. You do not have to have a separation notice in order to file for benefits, though it would be nice if he does give you one. Do not even ask for one.

This is exactly the circumstances that unemployment insurance is designed for. Yes, he can let you go for anything, at will. So he wants to hire a friend and is willing to dump you out on the lousy job market as it is in this day and time.

They will not look at your income, you do not get this money based on need. You do not need to look for a long time for another job before resorting to filing for benefits, which is a mistake some people make. You sign up first, then begin your diligent job search.

File your claim. From the sound of things, you should have earnings in the base period. They will be contacting your employer to verify the reason for your separation. Don't be surprised if he then calls you up, bawls you out, calls you a moocher, a free-loader, a parsite on society, threatens you with a lousy reference. Do not let this deter you. Get your unemployment INSURANCE until you find something else. He should have thought of this before he decided to dump you to hire a friend.

All this I've seen out of employers, especially non-profits, who do not pay regular unemployment taxes, but are taxed when someone draws off them. Which you are fully able to do, under these circumstances. For some reason, as a general observation, the employers at religious and non-profit institutions are far more likely to start lying like mad about the reason a person was let go when they see that unemployment is going to be granted. Go figure....