Just another "I was fired from my job today" rant

[Digit]

It was a sweatshop call center job, but came close to paying the bills. I was actually beginning to enjoy it somewhat, since everything was beginning to make sense with the coding, etc. They would make me Y-jack on others from my class, and I was shocked at how little they knew. I was able to point out the next step they needed to take.

My termination notice was filled with inaccuracies, exaggerated incidents, etc. My supervisor was there and it was his input and his alone which decided my fate. I asked that the tech watching over me be there, as he was saying I knew my stuff, but they said he had left for the day. My supervisor said the techs were reporting differently.

Luckily, I was able to write my response on the notice. I said that I disagreed with the assessment of my abilities, and I had been improving, which I HAD. I am the third in my class to go...all of us over 55 years old.

No, I had never been late, or accused of any misdeeds.

I may have overstepped my bounds when I asked if it had anything to do with parking in a handicapped accessible parking spot. (I need a knee replacement, and do have a placard)
The HR person almost lost it. Maybe I should not have mentioned it, but another company I worked at did mention that particular issue. In the back of my mind, I cannot help but wonder if these companies think that I would be some kind of liability because of some unknown health issue.

As I left this evening, after being terminated...I noticed the handicapped spot where I always park was immediately outside her window. Hmmmmmm

Anyway, I am going to try to make lemonade out of the lemons I have been left with.
I am going to have the damn knee replace asap.

It is probably all for the best, but it still hurts, and I still have bills to pay.
Oh, and of course this is a "right to work" state.

Thanks for listening....and for those of you who have it worse, I am truly sorry.
It sucks being in this predicament and being the sole income for your family (as I am).

[I Have A Dream]

1. I'm so sorry, Digit.

:(

:hug:

[Digit]

2. I am making my lemonade list.....

Thanks for the hugs.

:hug:

[Midlodemocrat]

3. Questions:

Is this a right to work state?

You are a protected class as a female over 50.

Look into it.

[Digit]

4. Who do I "look into it" with?

I was within my probabationary period, and of course this is a right to work state. I am also female and over 55.
I hate that aspect of NC.

[Midlodemocrat]

6. I missed the probationary period part.

Right to work doesn't preclude discrimination based on age or gender. That is why I posted what I did.

[Capn Sunshine]

5. Good luck and godspeed to you

we all need to hang on. Things are going to get better with Obama in charge.

[Digit]

7. Yes, it will, thank goodness.

I was unemployed before landing this job and since I had alot of time on my hands, I volunteered at my local Obama headquarters and did some phone banking.

Here in NC, we went blue for the first time. I am proud to have been a part of that. Nobody can ever take that away from me.

I just showed up at the door and said I lacked the money to contribute, but found I had plenty of time on my hands to help make a difference.

[Lil Missy]

8. Call centers are the most oppressive places EVER to work.

I worked at one for a high end hotel chain for a couple years. Christ, they even monitor the time it takes to go make a piss! And I sat next to a guy who got written up for going 20 SECONDS over alloted break time. Fuckin' ridiculous.

They have such high turnovers for a reason, so I wouldn't take it personally. But I know that is easy for me to say and it hurts to be without a job/steady income.

Best of luck finding something else soon.

:hug:

[Digit]

9. Yes, they monitor everything

Luckily, I was not ever accused of going over on breaks or anything like that.

I mumbled codes I was entering over the phone, just to let them know they still had a live connection...I did not have a mute button.

I would interject questions to the customer about their viewing habits, etc, but I had to do lots of coding to get things correct.

They made a big deal of it.

[emilyg]

10. I am so sorry.

[Digit]

11. Thanks, I am trying to get everything back to Earthlink as we speak

I don't want anything to remind me of the "other" cable company I worked for.

(I am on hold with Earthlink now....)

[Tuesday Afternoon]

12. get the knee fixed...can you schedule the surgery before the end

of the month? Do you have insurance for the rest of December?

[Digit]

15. I have insurance for the rest of December...but this is from a WC Case

Actually, another employer is having to pay for it due to worker comp...case is still active. Just in case something else shows up or whatever, I guess I will be covered by my "former" employers health insurance. As they say, just more health insurance. I am going to try to force the knee replacement while I still have health insurance.

If that is the case, I might be on here alot, since there is not much else I will be able to do besides type. If I am in pain and whine from time to time, please forgive.

Time has a way of healing the pain, I know this. Just say, "hang in there", and I will.

[Tuesday Afternoon]

20. Will do. Hope you can get the surgery and that all goes well.

:hug:

[ThomCat]

13. I am very, very sorry.

:hug:

It's unlikely that a company deliberately discriminates against people because they are older or disabled, but I think many companies discriminate none the less. They just don't own up to it.

I'm sorry that you lost your job. :(

[Digit]

16. Thanks, I will be okay

I appreciate your well wishes tho.

[SeattleGirl]

14. My advice:

File for unemployment and fight this. Unemployment isn't a lot, but it's something. Sounds to me like you were wrongfully terminated.

That happened to me in August, and I fought it. I had documentation that proved my side of the story. All the employer had was "Well, we HEARD her say....". That wouldn't stand up in court, let alone at an unemployment hearing.

Good luck to you.

[Digit]

17. I wasn't there that long, and was receiving benefits before...

I will just show them the papers that I was terminated....it was not for any wrong doing anyway.

I really believe that only 4 out of 20 of my classmates are going to make it anyway. They will just continue making a mere 11.00 per hour and will not make the commission promised, until they realize what is up, or how it works. I did get an inkling as to what was going on with commissions early on, but they did not give us information about how it worked until we were 3 weeks into training. The younger (more naive) set is oblivious and think they can make 90K per year.

I really wish them the best of luck, but I don't see it happening.

Anthony, if you see, this, kudos to you for helping me out, you the man. You are going to go far.

[mwooldri]

18. Oh dear *hugs*

From someone who works in a call centre and will have been come April 2009 (if we don't get downsized too badly come Q1 2009) it's a shame. I don't know the set up of the place you worked at but here yes things are micromanaged too but things seem to be better documented here than they were at your place if your termination notice was filled with inaccuracies. Call centres are stressful places, no doubt about it... leading cause of dismissal here is absenteeism - people get let go for running out of sick time first and running up unauthorized unpaid leave time. Second is poor quantitative performance... too many surveys from customers saying you didn't perform excellent service for them, too long average handling time, too many documented quality errors with recorded conversations to back them up. After that there's not a lot else... sometimes insubordination, sometimes being completely rude to a customer (but that's recorded). From what it seems like, your termination was more qualitative - the judgment of your "supervisor".

Makes me wish that I (or you) could have said during that disciplinary hearing "I'd like my union rep to be present during this conversation."

Good luck in your new job... it started when you were "terminated". Congratulations; you are now a professional job seeker. May you terminate this unwanted new-found job real soon.

Mark.

[Eurobabe]

19. So sorry

My mom is "losing" her temp job that was paying her extras, she's been there since Sept. and so wanted to stay. She was filling in for someone on FMLA. A little different situation I know, but the economic insecurity is there as well.

Hope you find something else soon. :hug: