What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Canada
Although I am in Canada, laws that I will refer to are similar in the USA.
======================STORY==========================
In late summer I had an interview for a supposedly accounting job at a well known chain of hotels. The job was 1,100 km from the place where I was established with my family. Both me and my wife had small jobs which were unrelated to our academic backgrounds, so we both wanted a change. The job offered was definitely better than what I had at the time. The business was owned and managed by East Indians.
I remembered what my father told me many years ago when I was a kid , crazy about exchanging stamps. "Do not send anything to India or Pakistan because in most cases you will get nothing back." We had no bias - it was all based on experience and statistics.
Why should I think that East Indians in Canada are the same as East Indians in India or that all East Indians are the same?
So I accepted the job, but thought that I should first give it a try before bringing the whole family with me. The job consisted of work at two hotels both of them owned by the same people, both of them in the same town, but both of them having different corporate names which were still different from the business names on their walls.
I was accommodated at one of them and was told that my first week is free, but that I should pay $200/week for each additional week of stay. This did not sound completely unreasonable but it made me speed up the move, because we could not afford to pay double rent too long.
During the first 3 weeks on the job things seemed OK. I spent the first week in training at Hotel 1 and the other 2 weeks in training at Hotel 2. Then I went back and we relocated to this new town, which was quite an experience with two kids and a wife who does not drive.
The moment that I arrived, my employment was down to only 2 shift /week (15 hours). I started asking questions "why". It turned out the east Indians had hired another East Indian at Hotel 1 and had given him 2 of my shifts there plus more work of other type.
I then filed for EI and let Services Canada know about the situation. I also sent a letter to my employer letting them know that I had to apply for EI as they were not offering me enough work.
Both hotels were unionized so I called the union as well. The person I spoke with told me that what I am going through has been the norm for this place. She asked me if I want to file a grievance which did not seem like a good idea.
After a week and lets say this is mid October, I was given a letter in which there was an ROE slip. This ROW slip was for Hotel 1. It stated that I had "Quit".
Five days later I get another letter with another ROE slip (an amendment to ROE1 where the only thing different is the reason. Now it says "Terminated within probationary period". There is a letter with the slip stating that I had not met their expectations (only after 5 days, all of which were training). The termination date was backdated to when I had just finished the training at Hotel 1, two weeks before I went back to relocate my family.
So, now I was working only at Hotel 2 for the same guys who terminated me at Hotel 1 for "poor performance" doing the same job. They now offered me more employment under the push of the Union or Services Canada, or just knowing that this time they must be more careful. The work they gave me was front desk work. I am not all that suitable for that, but what could I do.
Three weeks later they terminate me as now the business is slowing down and they do not need me after the hire of their guy anyways.
==============================================================================
Follow up:
I knew what was going to happen so I copied all of my accounting sheets for each day of work. I collected all kinds of evidence I need. I got a statement from the Union mentioning that 'these guys never let anyone make it through the probation period except for their East Indian guys'. The person gives me names of 25 people she knows of that were hired and fired in the past 2 years. I also did a quick statistical calculation to figure out the probability of having 3 East Indians in a front desk team of 6 people in BC. If hiring was done without bias, the probability is 0.1%. Then you take a look at the other hotel which is the same and the owners and managers who are all East Indian without exception.
QUESTION:
I filed a Small Claim, asking to be compensated for all travel costs X 2 (assuming I have to relocate again), plus lost wages (for the period they only offered me 15 hours per week) plus $2,000 for lost future wages (who knows how long I will be out of work) plus $4,500 for general damages of many kinds including losing extended health coverage and driving a whole family of 4 insane.
Was this the proper thing to do?
Are we not entitled to a higher compensation given the situation? maybe this was not supposed to be filed as a small claim? Any ideas?
Although I am in Canada, laws that I will refer to are similar in the USA.
======================STORY==========================
In late summer I had an interview for a supposedly accounting job at a well known chain of hotels. The job was 1,100 km from the place where I was established with my family. Both me and my wife had small jobs which were unrelated to our academic backgrounds, so we both wanted a change. The job offered was definitely better than what I had at the time. The business was owned and managed by East Indians.
I remembered what my father told me many years ago when I was a kid , crazy about exchanging stamps. "Do not send anything to India or Pakistan because in most cases you will get nothing back." We had no bias - it was all based on experience and statistics.
Why should I think that East Indians in Canada are the same as East Indians in India or that all East Indians are the same?
So I accepted the job, but thought that I should first give it a try before bringing the whole family with me. The job consisted of work at two hotels both of them owned by the same people, both of them in the same town, but both of them having different corporate names which were still different from the business names on their walls.
I was accommodated at one of them and was told that my first week is free, but that I should pay $200/week for each additional week of stay. This did not sound completely unreasonable but it made me speed up the move, because we could not afford to pay double rent too long.
During the first 3 weeks on the job things seemed OK. I spent the first week in training at Hotel 1 and the other 2 weeks in training at Hotel 2. Then I went back and we relocated to this new town, which was quite an experience with two kids and a wife who does not drive.
The moment that I arrived, my employment was down to only 2 shift /week (15 hours). I started asking questions "why". It turned out the east Indians had hired another East Indian at Hotel 1 and had given him 2 of my shifts there plus more work of other type.
I then filed for EI and let Services Canada know about the situation. I also sent a letter to my employer letting them know that I had to apply for EI as they were not offering me enough work.
Both hotels were unionized so I called the union as well. The person I spoke with told me that what I am going through has been the norm for this place. She asked me if I want to file a grievance which did not seem like a good idea.
After a week and lets say this is mid October, I was given a letter in which there was an ROE slip. This ROW slip was for Hotel 1. It stated that I had "Quit".
Five days later I get another letter with another ROE slip (an amendment to ROE1 where the only thing different is the reason. Now it says "Terminated within probationary period". There is a letter with the slip stating that I had not met their expectations (only after 5 days, all of which were training). The termination date was backdated to when I had just finished the training at Hotel 1, two weeks before I went back to relocate my family.
So, now I was working only at Hotel 2 for the same guys who terminated me at Hotel 1 for "poor performance" doing the same job. They now offered me more employment under the push of the Union or Services Canada, or just knowing that this time they must be more careful. The work they gave me was front desk work. I am not all that suitable for that, but what could I do.
Three weeks later they terminate me as now the business is slowing down and they do not need me after the hire of their guy anyways.
==============================================================================
Follow up:
I knew what was going to happen so I copied all of my accounting sheets for each day of work. I collected all kinds of evidence I need. I got a statement from the Union mentioning that 'these guys never let anyone make it through the probation period except for their East Indian guys'. The person gives me names of 25 people she knows of that were hired and fired in the past 2 years. I also did a quick statistical calculation to figure out the probability of having 3 East Indians in a front desk team of 6 people in BC. If hiring was done without bias, the probability is 0.1%. Then you take a look at the other hotel which is the same and the owners and managers who are all East Indian without exception.
QUESTION:
I filed a Small Claim, asking to be compensated for all travel costs X 2 (assuming I have to relocate again), plus lost wages (for the period they only offered me 15 hours per week) plus $2,000 for lost future wages (who knows how long I will be out of work) plus $4,500 for general damages of many kinds including losing extended health coverage and driving a whole family of 4 insane.
Was this the proper thing to do?
Are we not entitled to a higher compensation given the situation? maybe this was not supposed to be filed as a small claim? Any ideas?
