posted
I got "let go" yesterday, after completeing another day at my temp-job. I had been there last week , and until yesterday. The temp-lady said they were "revamping" and didn't need as many people anymore, which sounded odd, since they are slammed with work, and short-handed. I was given an application on Monday, and gleefully filled it out, hoping to get hired "for real", since I liked working there, and liked the people I worked with. I figured they just told the temp service they were re-structuring to get out of paying a penalty and hire me "for real". I DID do well there, worked my hardest, got my work done well, kept my humor clean, maintained a positive attitude, had nothing but good to say and do there, so I was hopeful.
I call the dept phone this AM, and one of the girls I worked with says, "Wow, that's a surprise to me," and acts like none of them knew what was going on. I call back on my supervisors cell, and get the same thing: we don't know what's happened, you did a GREAT job, we'll see if we can straighten it out and find out for you.
So I go to the temp place for my "exit-interview", and the lady says, "I know I told you that they were revamping their operations, but I found out more today for you. It seems that you were overheard speaking about the female anatomy, breasts in particular, and that was overheard by a female employee. (Duh, I worked with 6 women and 1 guy,) This constitutes sexual harassment, and consequently, my area manager tells me we can no loger place you on any assignments. Sorry."
I was like, "WTF?!?" (not verbally, of course,) I did my best there, and the breast reference was actually part of a conversation I picked up on between TWO WOMEN who were discussing Melissa Etheridge being bald. I had said, "Was she trying to promote breast-cancer awareness or something?" They replied, "No, she actaully had it, and that's why she's bald." I said, "Oh, I did not know, I'm sorry for her."
That was it.
There you have everything I ever said at that place regarding "breasts".
I thought it funny that nobody ever pulled me aside and "spoke to" me about it, or anything like it, but all of a sudden, without warning, I am fired? Do you know what I think? I think that someone just didn't like me, and had no reason good enough, so they just threw that one out there... GA is a no-fault harassment state, which means that they can drop me for it without any further review or even solid proof that it happened. All they need is one person saying, "He said, He said!!!" Fuck ME!!! I am soo pissed right now, I can't belive how it even went down in the first place. They smiled at me, and told me I was doing GREAT! Then, behind my back, they shank me with this. Talk about a bunch of shit-eaters... I should sue THEM for harassment, because the lady who was my supervisor called me "baby", all the time, and touched my shoulder every so often and smiled at me a lot. (see? that's not really harassment, but if I had a witness, it could be construed as such.) Best part is, that I can't go to any other temp services anywhere, due to this black mark on my history. NOT that I like temp services, they are just slave traders to me, but what if I go to another temp agency and they find that out? I wouldn't work... I am definately NOT using either the temp service or the company as references, I won't even list them at all... Like it never happened. Best left omitted. I am wondering if any other employers can find this out if they don't press charges or anything.
What do YOU think? Was I skull-fucked by them? Or am I some pervert without even being aware? WHO finds breast cancer sexy? I don't know how that was construed as harassment.
-------------------- I know when I'm licked... all over. Posts: 401 | Registered: Jun 2004
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posted
Sue them! seriously, I'm sick of all this hypersensitivity. Go tell a lawyer everything you said here.
Posts: 292 | Registered: Jan 2005
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I thought about it, and since I can't exactly come up with any witnesses, and really don't want anything made out of this, there really isn't anything I CAN do. If that's the way they are, then fuck them... I don't think a lawyer could really help here... Besides, I don't have the money for that. What's really rich, is that in their "core values" sheet, which is posted on ALL the message boards, the no. one "value" is to appreciate the individual. Talk about hypocrisy. They value the individual only if you are just as stupid, soulless, and devoid of any personality as they are. Oh yeah, and you must listen to really bad "formula" country music, which I HATE. Don't get me wrong, I like some Wayland Jennings, Hank Sr., and a few others, but enough with that cookie-cut-out garbage on ANY and ALL country "music" stations. I was asked by one of my co-backstabbers if I liked it, and I said ,"The old stuff, not this. I like it old-timey." I'm pretty sure thay just don't like me because I don't BUTCHER the english language by saying "might-could", or "If it's wrote on.", or "If you're wantin' to..." GADDAYUM, where do these fruit-loops come from? And why is the status quo so fucking STOOPID? I know the answer to that, it's the public diseducation system, which trains people to work their 40 under supervision, and do a good job. Where have all the slaves gone indeed? They are here in GA, stabbing my back and smiling in my face. They'll smile until they hang you. Pricks.
-------------------- I know when I'm licked... all over. Posts: 401 | Registered: Jun 2004
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posted
That's easily one of the most ludicrous things I've ever heard before. If we've gotten to the point where we can't say the words "breast cancer" to a fellow employee without it being interpreted as lewd conduct by management, then I feel sorry for all of us.
posted
My view is that hypersensitivity to this sort of thing is fostered by the government. They either under-react or over-react, there is no happy medium. So now, instead of just protecting people who were truly victims of sexual-harrassment, they call out the lynch-mob whenever somebody says anything that could be remotely put in a sexual context.
If you only mentioned "breast" the one time, and it was about breast cancer, I recommend you consult a lawyer. Some may have free consultation fees. Look at the facts:
1. If you're talking about going to lunch and say "I think I'll have a chicken breast", does that mean they can fire you? The same thing is happening here. It reminds me of that Ben Stiller movie, Meet The Parents, where he gets dragged off the plane near the end of the movie because he refused to check his baggage and said "It's not like I have a bomb in here!" When he was being interrogated by the airport authorities, one guy said "But you said the word bomb!"
2. The lady at the temp agency disclosed the real reason your job was terminated. If the company you were assigned to tries to hem and haw their way out of it, and claim that they were just "restructuring", the temp agency most likely filed the truth in your record. Plus, they probably got another temp assigned in your place, which will prove they were full of shit when they told you they were revamping.
3. The fact that they didn't tell you the real reason they were firing you tells me that they knew the issue wasn't in black and white. Sure, if you walked up and grabbed one of your co-workers jugs and yelled "Breasts! Honk! Honk!" then they could've been more direct. Probably they realized your statement was in an uncertain gray area in the eyes of sexual harassment law and thought up some lame excuse so you wouldn't fight it.
Based on what I've seen, you have nothing to lose. If you're out of a job, and the only jobs you were working came through this temporary agency, then you may want to seek financial damages. I suggest you at least talk to a lawyer and find out if your side of the situation is defensible.
If saying the word "breast" in reference to the female anatomy is in fact viewed as sexual harrassment, no matter what the context, then you may not have a case. Just clarify it.
Posts: 228 | Registered: Feb 2004
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quote: Sure, if you walked up and grabbed one of your co-workers jugs and yelled "Breasts! Honk! Honk!" then they could've been more direct.
LMAO! Sorry to be so light-hearted within a serious topic, but that was hilarious Tweener.
vasduten, my Bro, I found myself getting more and more angry over the lies and deceit that this whole situation reeks of as I read what happened. Man, I am so sorry to hear about all this. I'd say these Bro's have a good point, in that you should at least try and nail down a lawyer you can talk with for free about it, see what your rights are and everything. Maybe doing that much can give you some peace of mind.
However, and I hate to sound like a doom-sayer, unless you can find a lawyer with the balls to go after a corporation on behalf of a man with a "sexual harrassment" charge, and got the money to go full steam ahead if and when you do, you're pretty much better off just not listing the company or anything about this on future applications, like the whole thing didn't happen, and try to put the whole mess behind you.
I too have faced similar bullshit at workplaces...not sexual harrassment charges, but just little nitpick crap that bored paper-pushers do to the workers to keep the scopes from higher up off of them. Matter of fact, something stupid like this happened at my job today, and I'm looking at a write-up here in the next day or so over it. I won't go into detail over it because I don't want to re-direct the attention on my problems when you're going through the fire...but if it makes you feel any better, just know that you're not alone...bullshit can and does happen to good people, that's what happens when we've got too many special interest groups getting taken too seriously in this society.
Do what you think would be best, but for the immediate time being, I'd say take a day off (if you can financially swing it), drink you a beer or three, and see this for what it is...a damned witch-hunt...you were the poor guy holding the black cat at the wrong time, that's all...
Best of luck to you Bro. I hope what I typed up helped out a little.
-------------------- Like Girls? LikeReal Barefoot Girls?! Then this place is for you! www.dennis-n-mara.com Your best source for some Real Deal Hardcore Barefoot Girls! Posts: 5427 | Registered: Jul 2003
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posted
Well, Calico Jack, it was not interpreted by the management, but by a co-worker who didn't like me. Probably one of the girls who I was actually talking to "on-topic", about Melissa Etheridge.
And Tweener, I don't have the money to get a lawyer on the case, and frankly, I don't want to get down in the mud with them at all. I'm better than that. In fact, I feel pretty good about myself despite having been stabbed in the back and terminated over something so obviously made-up. If a person actually DOES say something lewd, and they actually LIKE the person in the first place, then they would by all means take said person aside and talk to them, maybe give a warning. Since this did not happen, I believe that they did NOT like me, and this was a "no-fault" and iron-clad way to get me gone for good.
So why do I feel good right now? I'll tell you. First, during my entire stint at this place, everybody I worked with was nice to me, (to my face,) and kept telling me what a good job I was doing. they never let on that I was about to get the axe. They didn't like me, but decieved me into thinking they did. Second, they waited until I had left to fire me, with no meeting, and used the chicken-shit approach, within the terms of my temp-agency's contract. (For this, I am not totally peeved, since if I WAS some kind of wierdo, it would avoid any unpleasantries in the workplace.) Thrid, the temp agent lied to me about why I was being let go. Fourth, when I called the dept. phone to let them know what was going on, two different people whom I thought liked me lied as well, and claimed they "didn't know anything about it, and that it was a surprise to them". Fifth, the temp agent, on the following morning, lied again, and said that her "area supervisor" had decide to not place me on any new assignments, when I knew that it was ust her and her friend in the office, and that they both ran the show there. Also, her eyes kept darting about, and when she metioned her "area supervisor", the girl at the next desk tried to act like she wasn't listening, and fake-ignored us. Do you see why I am so proud of myself? The reason is this: Through all of this, I was the ONLY person who did NOT lie, and maintained my composure and grace when I was being fucked up the ass by these responsibilty-dodging, back-stabbing, and cowardly tools. I am not the problem here, I am a good man who was black-balled by some cunts. Cunts who felt threatened by a person with a strong personality, who is sure of himself, intelligent, and obviously someone who is capable of doing all of their jobs easily and make them look like the boring, unimaginative lemmings they really are. The more I reflect on this, the more I forgive them for being so selfish and for not being strong enough to accept themselves for who they are. If they did, they wouldn't feel so threatened. (This is some of that power I spoke of in another post, Lou) So, I love them, unconditionally, but feel bad that they are so lost that they would actually resort to stooping this low to get their designs to work for them. I happen to know that most of them claim to be Christians, and I can't help but wonder what Christ would say about honesty and integrity in one's personal AND professional lives. Would he O.K. lying, decieving, and going behind someone's back to get someone sacrificed? Probably not, but I know he'd forgive them nonetheless, as I am trying to do. So even though I'm not a Christian, I still see the sense here, and have risen above it... Funny that they don't see it. Or maybe they do, and just stuff it down with all of those unresolved feelings that they try to hide from themselves. It makes me feel bad for them. I hope they grow, and learn to be more human.
Would a Lawyer help me to realize all of that? I doubt it. I don't want to add any fuel to the bonfire of this litigious culture we live in. A nation of victims. Not ME, bitches!!! I AM somebody!
-------------------- I know when I'm licked... all over. Posts: 401 | Registered: Jun 2004
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quote: I happen to know that most of them claim to be Christians, and I can't help but wonder what Christ would say about honesty and integrity in one's personal AND professional lives. Would he O.K. lying, decieving, and going behind someone's back to get someone sacrificed? Probably not, but I know he'd forgive them nonetheless, as I am trying to do. So even though I'm not a Christian, I still see the sense here, and have risen above it... Funny that they don't see it. Or maybe they do, and just stuff it down with all of those unresolved feelings that they try to hide from themselves. It makes me feel bad for them. I hope they grow, and learn to be more human.
Bro, I'll be the first one to tell you that some of the biggest black-eyes ever punched into Christianity have been done by hypocrits like these people...talking the talk but not walking the walk. I had to walk on a job I had worked for 5 and a half years because of a "Christian" like that...some supervisor I had, big deacon at his church, never used cuss words, etc...but this goofy basturd made my life a living hell. I somehow got selected to be his whipping boy, and I honestly think he got off seeing how far he could push me. I won't go into all that mess, but to make a long story short I HAD to walk or I'd be in jail right now, probably on death row because I caught myself figuring out ways to take him out for good.
Not trying to sound like a bad-ass, just saying that that was how far I'd gotten, and I knew he or I both wouldn't be safe if I hung around. Management blew me off, so I had no choice...So I know exactly what you're saying...
And no my Bro, Jesus won't forgive that kind of behavior if they keep it up. If they change their ways, sure, but being a Christian doesn't mean you've got a "get out of jail free" card, just read Matthew 7:22-23, (yeah, get that Bible out! ).
You're definitely the better person in all this. Like I say, I'm sorry to hear about it, but rest assured you'll land a better job eventually and this'll all be a laughable memory years from now.
-------------------- Like Girls? LikeReal Barefoot Girls?! Then this place is for you! www.dennis-n-mara.com Your best source for some Real Deal Hardcore Barefoot Girls! Posts: 5427 | Registered: Jul 2003
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Sorry, I'm not trying to make light of the situation. Are all these co-workers of yours truly religious?
Posts: 228 | Registered: Feb 2004
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posted
I think it is kind of weird that breast was questioned and bald wasn't. I think whoever said bald should get the can, because that can also be mistaken too in this case.
Posts: 2853 | Registered: May 2004
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Sorry to be so light-hearted within a serious topic, but that was hilarious Tweener. ![[Cool]](cool.gif)
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