They fired me because they think I lied on my time sheets. What can I do?
Q. I was fired from my job after working there 20 years. . . . Never had anything but positive reviews. This even happened one month after a cocktail party was given in my honor. Most employees, myself included, were very shocked by this. The reason given to me was that an employee brought allegations against me and they then did an investigation. They claimed that I was lying on my timesheet, which every week I had signed and one of my supervisors received weekly time reports and never had a problem with. They said my logging onto the computer and my car card for coming into and leaving the building parking lot didn't match my timesheet. Now first off my job didn't always require me being on the computer and I wasn't the only one who used my pass. They never showed me any documentation and didn't fire me right away, they sent me home and told me to call back in two days after I thought about it. My termination letter doesn't state the reason for my termination.
I can keep going but will not waste your time unless you contact me. I want to mention just two more things that might that might interest you. The only person that I reported to (I reported to many senior level people) that was consulted about this is going through a divorce (the reason we hear from his home town is that he was caught cheating) and the person who brought the allegations has not been seen since the day I was let go (people have been told she is out on "disability") and second a few days after I was let go this Senior Vice President and the head of HR (the person who let me go) had discussions with lawyers from our parent company (Marsh and McLennan) who came up to our offices. I feel there was a lot behind this and it wasn't that I was a bad employee, I have since gotten letters of recommendations from Senior Vice Presidents and others that I worked for. Please let me know if I have any sort of case against them, even if it is just getting some severance package.
A. It appears from what you've told me that the basis for your dismissal, from the company's perspective, is that you were lying on your timesheet, a fact apparently established by your computer log-on times and your car card times. These records apparently didn't coincide with what you put on your time sheet. Interestingly, you don't dispute your employer's claim that you lied on your time sheet. You only indicate that your supervisors "never had a problem with" your time sheets, that you didn't have to be on the computer all of the time, and that others had use of your car card.
These sound more like excuses than denials, and, reading between the lines, it may be that you weren't entirely straight forward on your time sheets. Only you know the answer to that question for sure, but if your former employer can establish by way of concrete evidence -- such as car cards and computer logs -- that you were not accurate with your time sheets, they had a basis for dismissing you. Unless you had a contract of employment, which included an exception for inaccuracies on time sheets, you are basically an "at will" employee and, for all intents and purposes, can be dismissed for any reason -- or no reason at all. (There are, of course, exceptions to the "at will" doctrine, but none appear applicable to your situaion.) The fact that your supervisor initially had "no problem" with your time sheets is irrelevant if a subsequent investigation establishes that you were dishonest when you entered information on them. In addition, the fact that you let others use your car card -- as you admit in your question -- may be a basis for dismissal in and of itself, as a misuse of company property.
As far as the additional information you provided regarding your supervisor and her divorce, and the person on disability, and the consultation with company lawyers, I'm not sure what inference you want me to draw. All of these facts seem totally irrelevant to the issue of whether or not you accurately report your hours on your time sheets. (By the way, if you did not, and you accepted pay for hours you did not work, that would constitute theft -- taking money from your employer for hours you didn't actually work. If they can make a case that this is what you did, then you don't have a basis for any claim against your employer for a dismissal and you're better off letting it drop.)
The thing is, even if you didn't lie on your time sheets, and even if you know that you can establish that you worked every hour that you claim you did (for instance by timestamps on computer files, and car card records), the fact remains that, without a contract, your employer can dismiss an "at will" employee, with or without cause. While you could file a claim against the employer, it's doubtful that you would prevail.
You did obtain a nice benefit, though. Those recommendation letters will be very helpful in your job search in the future. Make sure you list the authors of those letters as references on your resume. And, when you get your next job, make certain that you keep meticulously accurate time records.
I can keep going but will not waste your time unless you contact me. I want to mention just two more things that might that might interest you. The only person that I reported to (I reported to many senior level people) that was consulted about this is going through a divorce (the reason we hear from his home town is that he was caught cheating) and the person who brought the allegations has not been seen since the day I was let go (people have been told she is out on "disability") and second a few days after I was let go this Senior Vice President and the head of HR (the person who let me go) had discussions with lawyers from our parent company (Marsh and McLennan) who came up to our offices. I feel there was a lot behind this and it wasn't that I was a bad employee, I have since gotten letters of recommendations from Senior Vice Presidents and others that I worked for. Please let me know if I have any sort of case against them, even if it is just getting some severance package.
A. It appears from what you've told me that the basis for your dismissal, from the company's perspective, is that you were lying on your timesheet, a fact apparently established by your computer log-on times and your car card times. These records apparently didn't coincide with what you put on your time sheet. Interestingly, you don't dispute your employer's claim that you lied on your time sheet. You only indicate that your supervisors "never had a problem with" your time sheets, that you didn't have to be on the computer all of the time, and that others had use of your car card.
These sound more like excuses than denials, and, reading between the lines, it may be that you weren't entirely straight forward on your time sheets. Only you know the answer to that question for sure, but if your former employer can establish by way of concrete evidence -- such as car cards and computer logs -- that you were not accurate with your time sheets, they had a basis for dismissing you. Unless you had a contract of employment, which included an exception for inaccuracies on time sheets, you are basically an "at will" employee and, for all intents and purposes, can be dismissed for any reason -- or no reason at all. (There are, of course, exceptions to the "at will" doctrine, but none appear applicable to your situaion.) The fact that your supervisor initially had "no problem" with your time sheets is irrelevant if a subsequent investigation establishes that you were dishonest when you entered information on them. In addition, the fact that you let others use your car card -- as you admit in your question -- may be a basis for dismissal in and of itself, as a misuse of company property.
As far as the additional information you provided regarding your supervisor and her divorce, and the person on disability, and the consultation with company lawyers, I'm not sure what inference you want me to draw. All of these facts seem totally irrelevant to the issue of whether or not you accurately report your hours on your time sheets. (By the way, if you did not, and you accepted pay for hours you did not work, that would constitute theft -- taking money from your employer for hours you didn't actually work. If they can make a case that this is what you did, then you don't have a basis for any claim against your employer for a dismissal and you're better off letting it drop.)
The thing is, even if you didn't lie on your time sheets, and even if you know that you can establish that you worked every hour that you claim you did (for instance by timestamps on computer files, and car card records), the fact remains that, without a contract, your employer can dismiss an "at will" employee, with or without cause. While you could file a claim against the employer, it's doubtful that you would prevail.
You did obtain a nice benefit, though. Those recommendation letters will be very helpful in your job search in the future. Make sure you list the authors of those letters as references on your resume. And, when you get your next job, make certain that you keep meticulously accurate time records.
posted by David Kendall at
10:14 PM
1 Comments:
wow you're an idiot. for soemeone who is supposed to give objective advice, your response is a joke tbh.
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Anonymous, at 10:52 AM
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