MidwestTech
Member
Hello. I live in Illinois.
I work in the event industry. I work trade shows, charity events, mall promotions, etc.
These event jobs require a worker to work on his feet. So, if a worker is not on a break,
the worker is on his feet.
Furthermore, these are short-term jobs. Some jobs can last 1 day. Other jobs can last 5
days. Etc.
Some of these jobs are "W-2 employee" jobs, and some are "1099 contractor" jobs.
Recently, I was hired to work a certain event. This would be a "W-2 employee" job. The pay
would be $20 per hour before taxes. Sometime after I was hired, I was told that my schedule
would be as follows:
Day 1, 11am - 3pm
Day 2, 8am - 10:30pm
Day 3, 7am - 9:30pm
Day 4, 8:30am - 5:30pm
On Days 2, 3, and 4, there would be one hour of unpaid break.
Please keep in mind that, on Days 2, 3, and 4, outside of that 1 hour of break time, I
would be on my feet. Also, these would be four consecutive days.
So, we have two consecutive 14.5-hour days (Days 2 and 3). On top of that, each 14.5-hour
day has only one hour of unpaid break. On top of that, there are only 8.5 hours between the
end of Day 2's shift and the start of Day 3's shift. I would have only 8.5 hours to go
home, have dinner, sleep, have breakfast, and get to the event venue.
I was not very happy with this schedule.
I raised the issue with one of my superiors ("Superior #1") in email.
While the email discussion was happening, I wanted to get the opinions of some other people
in the event industry. I wanted to find out whether my negative opinion on the schedule was
warranted. So, I went to an online forum where event-industry workers from all over the
United States congregate.
In this forum, we are required to be registered under our real names. On this forum, I said
that my personal opinion was that such a schedule was bad, and I asked for other people's
opinions. I did NOT mention the name of the employer or the name of the event.
Opinions were split. Some people had no problem with the schedule, while other people
thought that such a schedule was very exploitative.
Unfortunately, one person figured out the name of the event. She had recently worked the
exact same event for the exact same employer with the exact same schedule, but in a
different city. She identified the event on the forum, and she said some negative things
about the working conditions that she had endured.
In my aforementioned negotiation with Superior #1, we did agree that I would work a reduced
number of hours on Days 2 and 3.
However, on the next day, another of my superiors ("Superior #2") sent me an email, telling
me that he had seen my post on the online forum. He said something like the following:
"You complained about working conditions on the forum. Because I am a nice and considerate
person, I do not want you to work in bad conditions. Therefore, I am removing you from the
event."
I told Superior #2 that Superior #1 and I had already agreed on new hours, and that I
therefore no longer had any issues with the conditions. But Superior #2 said that Superior
#2 did not want to present me to his client (the company organizing the event) because I
had criticized the event online. Basically, Superior #2 admitted that he was firing me
because I had criticized the working conditions online.
I pointed out to Superior #2 that I had avoided mentioning the name of the event and the
name of his company, and that it was not my fault that someone had figured out which event
I was talking about. Unfortunately, that did not change Superior #2's mind about firing me.
My understanding is that, under the National Labor Relations Act, W-2 employees can not be
fired for complaining about working conditions in online forums. So, given the
circumstances that I described, did the employer violate the Act by firing me? If yes, what
kind of punishment or penalties can be imposed upon the employer?
Thanks for any information.
I work in the event industry. I work trade shows, charity events, mall promotions, etc.
These event jobs require a worker to work on his feet. So, if a worker is not on a break,
the worker is on his feet.
Furthermore, these are short-term jobs. Some jobs can last 1 day. Other jobs can last 5
days. Etc.
Some of these jobs are "W-2 employee" jobs, and some are "1099 contractor" jobs.
Recently, I was hired to work a certain event. This would be a "W-2 employee" job. The pay
would be $20 per hour before taxes. Sometime after I was hired, I was told that my schedule
would be as follows:
Day 1, 11am - 3pm
Day 2, 8am - 10:30pm
Day 3, 7am - 9:30pm
Day 4, 8:30am - 5:30pm
On Days 2, 3, and 4, there would be one hour of unpaid break.
Please keep in mind that, on Days 2, 3, and 4, outside of that 1 hour of break time, I
would be on my feet. Also, these would be four consecutive days.
So, we have two consecutive 14.5-hour days (Days 2 and 3). On top of that, each 14.5-hour
day has only one hour of unpaid break. On top of that, there are only 8.5 hours between the
end of Day 2's shift and the start of Day 3's shift. I would have only 8.5 hours to go
home, have dinner, sleep, have breakfast, and get to the event venue.
I was not very happy with this schedule.
I raised the issue with one of my superiors ("Superior #1") in email.
While the email discussion was happening, I wanted to get the opinions of some other people
in the event industry. I wanted to find out whether my negative opinion on the schedule was
warranted. So, I went to an online forum where event-industry workers from all over the
United States congregate.
In this forum, we are required to be registered under our real names. On this forum, I said
that my personal opinion was that such a schedule was bad, and I asked for other people's
opinions. I did NOT mention the name of the employer or the name of the event.
Opinions were split. Some people had no problem with the schedule, while other people
thought that such a schedule was very exploitative.
Unfortunately, one person figured out the name of the event. She had recently worked the
exact same event for the exact same employer with the exact same schedule, but in a
different city. She identified the event on the forum, and she said some negative things
about the working conditions that she had endured.
In my aforementioned negotiation with Superior #1, we did agree that I would work a reduced
number of hours on Days 2 and 3.
However, on the next day, another of my superiors ("Superior #2") sent me an email, telling
me that he had seen my post on the online forum. He said something like the following:
"You complained about working conditions on the forum. Because I am a nice and considerate
person, I do not want you to work in bad conditions. Therefore, I am removing you from the
event."
I told Superior #2 that Superior #1 and I had already agreed on new hours, and that I
therefore no longer had any issues with the conditions. But Superior #2 said that Superior
#2 did not want to present me to his client (the company organizing the event) because I
had criticized the event online. Basically, Superior #2 admitted that he was firing me
because I had criticized the working conditions online.
I pointed out to Superior #2 that I had avoided mentioning the name of the event and the
name of his company, and that it was not my fault that someone had figured out which event
I was talking about. Unfortunately, that did not change Superior #2's mind about firing me.
My understanding is that, under the National Labor Relations Act, W-2 employees can not be
fired for complaining about working conditions in online forums. So, given the
circumstances that I described, did the employer violate the Act by firing me? If yes, what
kind of punishment or penalties can be imposed upon the employer?
Thanks for any information.
