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Problem with co worker

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ImtheNicest

Junior Member
Wow, it'd almost be worth it to be fired if he got fired too.

I am going to try to file in small claims today. $433 is a lot of money to me. I can't afford to "just let it go".
 


cbg

I'm a Northern Girl
What really frightens me, if I may quote from a classic TV comedy, is that people like this poster are allowed to vote and drive cars.

Not to mention reproduce.
 

ImtheNicest

Junior Member
I really don't understand how they could fire me for suing for the remaining funds, especially if we leave the slander/harassment issue out of it.
 

cbg

I'm a Northern Girl
Then I'll tell you.

Kentucky, like every other state in the US except Montana and even including Montana in some circumstances, is an at-will employment state. That means that you can quit at any time and for any reason, and they can fire you at any time and for any reason that is not specifically prohibited by law.

There is no law in Kentucky or any other state that prohibits the employer from firing you because you're acting like a jackass, misusing company time, and/or letting your personal problems with a co-worker interfere with work.

What's more, there is no law in Kentucky or any other state that requires your employer to treat different employees the same way. The only caveat is that any differences in treatment cannot be based in a characteristic protected by law, which is not the case here.

They do not have to have what you consider "good cause" to fire you. They can fire you because they don't like your shoes. They can fire you because they root for the Cardinals and you're a Cubs man. They can fire you because you wore a green shirt to work.

Your employer's response to your situation clearly suggests that they, rightly or wrongly (rightly in the view of all of us here, wrongly in yours) believe you to be more at fault than the co-worker.

That means that they can fire you for what they consider inappropriate conduct. It also means that they don't have to fire your co-worker even if they fire you.

Google at-will employment.

Any other questions?
 

ImtheNicest

Junior Member
I'm at home today.

Also I don't see why my employer would even have to know that I am suing my co-worker. It's really not any of their business. In that case - them not knowing anything about it - they wouldn't have any reason to fire me.

While it would be nice to nail that jacka-- to the wall for potentially costing me promotions/raises for falsely accusing me of harassment, I would be happy just to get the $433 he promised to pay me. Of course, by the time we actually get to a court, I'm sure I'll have accrued a bunch of interest on my credit card for it as well.
 
I'm at home today.

Also I don't see why my employer would even have to know that I am suing my co-worker. It's really not any of their business. In that case - them not knowing anything about it - they wouldn't have any reason to fire me.

While it would be nice to nail that jacka-- to the wall for potentially costing me promotions/raises for falsely accusing me of harassment, I would be happy just to get the $433 he promised to pay me. Of course, by the time we actually get to a court, I'm sure I'll have accrued a bunch of interest on my credit card for it as well.
He'll probably tell your boss you're suing him. It will be a matter of public record, there is nothing you can do to prevent it. It will be in no way defamation. Since it creates friction in the workplace, it IS their business, and it will be a direct result of your actions.

In the unlikely event you actually win a judgment against him, you won't be entitled to any consequential damages (additional interest) unless you attempt to mitigate your damages. That means submit the hotel bill for reimbursement to your employer and pay the credit card with the money you get. Thinking you're going to get more because additional interest has accrued is as silly as this whole thing is to begin with.
 

cbg

I'm a Northern Girl
You really don't get it, do you? (shaking head in astonishment)

Your co-worker did not cost you anything. You did it to yourself.

If you had the brains God gave a two-by-four, you'd be able to see that.
 

Zigner

Senior Member, Non-Attorney
You really don't get it, do you? (shaking head in astonishment)

Your co-worker did not cost you anything. You did it to yourself.

If you had the brains God gave a two-by-four, you'd be able to see that.
Careful there CBG - you've just ticked off a huge number of 2x4's! :cool:
 

ImtheNicest

Junior Member
Of course he cost me something! He went on the fricking trip! And he's refused to pay me anything! And I haven't received a dime in reimbursement so far, so I have $1800 sitting on my credit card.

He didn't have to come along. Once I told him that I had planned this out as a VACATION for me and my wife, he could have gone to my boss and said he didn't want to go, but NOOOO! He INSISTED on tagging along. He even insisted on staying over the extra day with us.

This was MY proposal.

Couldn't the judge give some kind of gag order to prevent us from talking about it at work? After all, it could be just as damaging to him as it was to me.
 

ImtheNicest

Junior Member
And I don't want to submit my receipts to my employer until I get this mess straightened out with my coworker. I need the receipts as proof of the totals of what he owes me.
 

Zigner

Senior Member, Non-Attorney
1) This was not a "vacation" - it was a work trip
2) You can't blame your coworker for your failure to request reimbursement from the employer.
 

ImtheNicest

Junior Member
Yes, it was a work sponsored conference. But it was my proposal to go - ALONE. And I invited my wife to come and we planned a vacation around it.

Which i explained to my co-worker. He insisted on coming along anyways, even when I said he'd have to split the costs. Which he agreed to. And now he's backing out of.

Why isn't his verbal agreement counting for anything?
 
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