Fired for accusation of being involve in stealing at work.
I work at a warehouse where we sell restaurants supplies. on July 17, 2012 myself and other co workers were brought up to the boss office for questioning. I was told that there has been people stealing at work and selling the items online. My boss asked me if I was involve and i responded no. He said that someone heard me talk about stealing and selling items online. which is not true. He also asked me if I knew people that were doing that, and again I said no. He also asked me if I had an Ebay account, I told him yes. So my boss says that the compony hired people to buy the items online to very if those items where the ones our company buys. They did matched several items serial number and got two ebay accounts. So my boss told me that they have me on camera (which where we pack orders a camera is pointed in that direction)standing looking like a lookout. He did not showed me the video as I asked him to. I'm assuming that he thinks that because they believe one of the ebay accounts is mine. I told him that wasn't true and that if he wanted I could pull up my ebay account and paypal so he can see my statements and check that I did not had anything with selling or being involve with what they are accusing me. He refused and said I was going to be suspended until invistigation was done. so today 7/23/2012 I recieved a called from my boss saying i was terminated from work for suspicion of being invovle. They did not showed me any evidence of me stealing or being involve in what he calls a theft ring, other then someone heard me which I don't even think that's actual proof. What can I do? is there any legal action I can take. I do also know that there is two other co-workers who got fired for same thing, suspicion of being involve in theft at work.
1 answer | asked Jul 23, 2012 5:48 PM [EST] | applies to California
Answers (1)
** No attorney-client relationship is created based on this communication. Please consult with an experienced employment attorney as soon as possible to better preserve your rights.**The following comments are for information only and must not be taken as legal advice. The Spencer Law Firm has not analyzed the details of your potential claim. The Spencer Law Firm cannot and does not give legal advice based on contacts from web sites or e-mail, or based on partial information. The Spencer Law Firm will not take any action on your behalf unless you and The Spencer Law Firm sign a legal services agreement.All legal actions have time limits, called statutes of limitation. If you miss the deadline for filing your claim, you will lose the opportunity to pursue your case. Deadlines can be as short as just a few days. For referrals, you may contact the Lawyer Referral Service of the San Diego County Bar Association at (619) 231-8585, or the county bar association for your county. Also, you can find lists of plaintiffs employment attorneys at
, , and . You are in a tough situation, I'm sorry to say. The harsh reality is employees and job applicants have very few employment rights, and employers have a lot of leeway in how they choose to run their businesses. In general, an employer can be unfair, obnoxious or bad at management. And an employer can make decisions based on faulty or inaccurate information. An employer has no obligation to warn an employee that he or she is not performing as the employer wants. It’s not a level playing field. An employer hires employees to provide work for its benefit, not for the benefit of the employees. Don't expect the employer to take care of its employees; it doesn’t have to and it rarely does.There are some limitations on what an employer can do, mostly in the areas of public policy (such as discrimination law or whistle blowing), contract law, union-employer labor relations, and constitutional due process for government employees. Please see my guide to at-will employment in California which should help you understand employment rights: http://www.avvo.com/legal-guides/ugc/an-overview-of-at-will-employment-all-states. After you take a look at the guide, you may be able to identify actions or behavior that fits one of the categories that allows for legal action. If so, an experienced plaintiffs employment attorney may be helpful.You might be able to pursue a claim for defamation, if the facts are right. Defamation can be libel (written) or slander (oral). Generally, defamation is a false and unprivileged statement which exposes a person to hatred, contempt, ridicule or injury, or which causes the person to be shunned or avoided, or which has a tendency to injure the person in his or her occupation. Some kinds of defamation require the plaintiff to prove actual harm. Other kinds of defamation constitute defamation per se, which means harm is assumed due to the nature of the defamation.Now, with a better understanding of your legal rights -- which are very slim -- you may want to consider a strategic solution rather than a legal solution. First, if you have not (yet) been fired, it is important to do what you can to prevent termination because that is far easier than convincing an employer to reverse an action it has already taken. Understand your boss or someone else at the company may be scared of any consequences from what happened, may have misunderstood what took place, may be friends with or related to others involved, or could just be a bully who is picking on you because its easy or your boss thinks its easy. Maybe company policy is to fire everyone who might be trouble. Or maybe your boss feels there is something unsatisfactory about your performance but never told you about it.Sometimes it's helpful to tackle this kind of thing directly, but only if you can be professional and respectful in doing so. You might ask to speak with your boss in private, and if your boss agrees, ask if there is a reason the employer thinks you were responsible in any way for what happened.Maybe something took place that your boss misinterpreted, though probably not. But if so, you can explain your side. More likely your boss will not tell you what is really bugging him or her -- if there is anything -- but a mature conversation may cause your boss to change the way he or she acts toward you and maybe even result a change in the decision. Whatever you do, don't challenge your boss’ authority. Indicate at all times that you want only to continue your working relationship because you value your job and your boss’ guidance, and you want that relationship to improve. Explain how much you value your job and try hard to do it well. Point out your good work record, if you have one. Explain that you would never intentionally do anything against the company's interest. Do not blame anyone else even if you really believe someone else is at fault; there is no way such an accusation can benefit you. Only talk about yourself, how you want to do the job well, and that you regret the situation that took place. Ask what you can do to improve things so that the same situation (false accusation) doesn't happen again. Don't give your boss any reason to get angry. Don't tell your boss why you think he or she is doing this or did this . . . let your boss have a graceful way out rather than backing the boss into a corner. It is possible this could backfire, as could anything you do to try to fix the situation. For example, if you go to the boss’ supervisor or to personnel, your boss may become angry and lash out at you even more. However, if you approach your boss with respect (even if you don't feel it) and your boss overreacts, then you can go to your boss’ boss or personnel after that. And when you do, be respectful and use the same approach. You might follow up with a note thanking the boss (or HR, or whomever you spoke with) for hearing you out. Repeat that you want to do a good job and regret that this situation took place. Keep a photocopy of the note. Perhaps your boss or the company will see you in a more favorable light after this. Even if this doesn’t save your job, it may prevent the employer from fighting a claim for unemployment and may even result in a good job reference.Yes, I know it's annoying to have to do something like this when you didn't do anything wrong, but as I mentioned above, an employer doesn't even need a reason to fire you. And as we all know, the current economy is pretty tough, and we all need to keep our jobs. Employment rights come from the state and federal legislatures. One of the best things working people can do to improve their employment rights is to vote for candidates who have a good record on pro-employee, anti-corporate legislation. Another way to protect employment rights is to form or affiliate with a union, or participate in the union already in place.I hope you can resolve your situation and wish you the best. Marilynn Mika Spencer is licensed to practice law before all of the state and federal courts in California. She can also represent clients throughout the country in courts on a pro hac vice basis and before federal administrative agencies.
posted by Marilynn Mika Spencer | Jul 23, 2012 6:53 PM [EST]
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