This job was a non union position.
After 13 years and 11 months of service,my supervisory position was eliminated in March of 2003,and filled by a younger employee making less money as a team leader. At the time of being let go I was 47 years old. Within the past 2 months he is a supervisor doing the same job that I performed. I believe the reason for my dismissal was for the company to save money. My question is, can a company eliminate a supervisory position for a team leader and then make the team leader a supervisor? Thank you.
1 answer | asked Jan 6, 2005 8:31 PM [EST] | applies to Florida
Answers (1)
Wrongful termination in Florida
If you lived in New Jersey, California, or some other states, your employer would need to have cause to fire you. Not so in Florida. Florida is an at-will state, which means an employer may fire, demote, hire, promote and discipline employees for pretty much any reason, or no reason at all. The only way to change that is to urge your state legislators to pass more protections for employees.
That doesn’t mean there are no protections for employees. You should ask yourself the following questions to see if you might be covered under some employment law:
Did my supervisors make any comments indicating bias? If your supervisor made racist or sexist jokes, said they thought you were too old or your disability made you unable to do the job, required you to work on religious holidays, or made other comments that would indicate a bias, you may have direct evidence of discrimination.
Was I treated differently than others in the same situation? If you don’t have direct evidence of discrimination, you may be able demonstrate you were treated differently than those of a different race, sex, religion, national origin, age, or other protected status under the same circumstances. Try to think of people who are of a different race/age/sex, etc. and were treated differently from you. Find out if there are people who have also been the victims of similar discrimination.
Why was I really fired? Most employees have a pretty good idea why they were fired. If you made a worker’s compensation claim and were fired a week later, that’s a good indication you were fired in retaliation for making the claim. If you reported your supervisor for medicare fraud, and then the supervisor fires you, you may have a whistleblower claim.
Is my employer saying something false about me? If potential employers say you are going to be hired if your references check out, and then the job is mysteriously filled when you call back, your employer may be giving false or damaging information about you. There are professional reference-checking companies who will call for you and see what an employer is saying about you. If you can prove it’s false, you may be able to sue for defamation.
Am I in some protected category? If you were fired after you took some protected action, you may be able to sue for retaliation. Think about whether you recently made a worker’s compensation claim, performed jury duty, served in the military, took family/medical leave, served as a witness in a lawsuit, provided testimony or evidence to EEOC, refused to participate in illegal activity, reported illegal activity, or engaged in protected free speech.
If you believe something illegal has happened, contact an attorney to discuss the possibility that you may have a case.
Donna Ballman
posted by Donna Ballman | Feb 15, 2005 4:43 PM [EST]
If you lived in New Jersey, California, or some other states, your employer would need to have cause to fire you. Not so in Florida. Florida is an at-will state, which means an employer may fire, demote, hire, promote and discipline employees for pretty much any reason, or no reason at all. The only way to change that is to urge your state legislators to pass more protections for employees.
That doesn’t mean there are no protections for employees. You should ask yourself the following questions to see if you might be covered under some employment law:
Did my supervisors make any comments indicating bias? If your supervisor made racist or sexist jokes, said they thought you were too old or your disability made you unable to do the job, required you to work on religious holidays, or made other comments that would indicate a bias, you may have direct evidence of discrimination.
Was I treated differently than others in the same situation? If you don’t have direct evidence of discrimination, you may be able demonstrate you were treated differently than those of a different race, sex, religion, national origin, age, or other protected status under the same circumstances. Try to think of people who are of a different race/age/sex, etc. and were treated differently from you. Find out if there are people who have also been the victims of similar discrimination.
Why was I really fired? Most employees have a pretty good idea why they were fired. If you made a worker’s compensation claim and were fired a week later, that’s a good indication you were fired in retaliation for making the claim. If you reported your supervisor for medicare fraud, and then the supervisor fires you, you may have a whistleblower claim.
Is my employer saying something false about me? If potential employers say you are going to be hired if your references check out, and then the job is mysteriously filled when you call back, your employer may be giving false or damaging information about you. There are professional reference-checking companies who will call for you and see what an employer is saying about you. If you can prove it’s false, you may be able to sue for defamation.
Am I in some protected category? If you were fired after you took some protected action, you may be able to sue for retaliation. Think about whether you recently made a worker’s compensation claim, performed jury duty, served in the military, took family/medical leave, served as a witness in a lawsuit, provided testimony or evidence to EEOC, refused to participate in illegal activity, reported illegal activity, or engaged in protected free speech.
If you believe something illegal has happened, contact an attorney to discuss the possibility that you may have a case.
Donna Ballman
posted by Donna Ballman | Feb 15, 2005 4:43 PM [EST]
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