The overwhelming majority of career seekers and employees have little or no knowledge of their employee workplace rights! This sad truth is a perfect recipe for workplace disaster. For example, Janie Jo accepts a job with WeBully Inc.
After the six month “honeymoon” is over finds herself in a quagmire of sexual harassment, FMLA, FLSA violations, workplace bullying, workplace retaliation and more, all aimed right at HER!
All her academic achievement from kindergarten through graduate school never prepared her for this moment. She was never taught to ask, “How do I learn and protect my employee workplace rights BEFORE seeking and ACCEPTING a job?” Now she is at the mercy of a workplace where violating employee job rights is a way of life. How about you? Does that sound familiar?
Hmm…why is it all the so called “prepare for career success” professionals and organizations rarely if ever offer information and training concerning rights in the workplace to high school graduates, college graduates and others entering the workplace? They are constantly fed things like, “dress for success”, “motivation”, “time management”, “self-awareness”, “changing careers”, “anger management”, “goal setting” on an on. Many of these strategies and advice are of some value. However, when the MOST important career strategy is ignored all the others become meaningless.
Let’s get back to Janie Jo’s situation. Nine months after happily accepting the job of her “dreams” the manager starts making inappropriate comments about “what GOD gave her”. She let’s the manager know in no uncertain terms to leave her alone and his remarks are offensive. She then informs human resources of the situation and is told “We’ll look into it”. Three weeks after the “investigation” she is moved to a new department with HR informing her the investigation was inconclusive. Her former supervisor is also the most popular employee in the organization. By the way, her new manager and old supervisor are best friends and “drinking buddies”. One month later Janie receives an extremely negative job evaluation, she always rated excellent previously.
As a result of the negative employee performance evaluation Janie is disqualified for a pay increase. A month later her new manager informs her she must accept a new “created split” change from first shift due to “business necessity”. Her supervisor stated the needed change was due to problems another employee on third shift was having. According to management the co-worker was having psychological issues requiring his participation in the company’s EAP program. Janie’s new hours are from 2am-10am and also working three Sundays per month from 10am-6pm. Janie is a single mother with two small children both under 5 years of age. Her former manager knew this because he asked her if she had children in the job interview.
Janie spends the next six months struggling to manage her personal and work lives resulting in medical issues requiring her to take prescription medication. This in turn leads to a physician certification to take one full day of rest every two weeks for the next three months. Her employer informs her either she comes to work or she can quit. Adding to Janie’s troubles are three co-workers who constantly undermine, find fault, criticize and trivialize her work product. They also belittle and demean her almost every chance they get.
Coincidentally these co-workers have always been the department managers “pets”. At the end of the month Janie is worn out, stressed out, drugged out with random thoughts of suicide. On the advice of friends and family Janie turns in her resignation. So Janie Jo leaves the “job of her dreams” disillusioned, emotionally scarred, humiliated and defeated.
Two weeks after Janie Jo’s resignation the “created split shift” that was a “business necessity” is not filled by another employee and mysteriously goes away?!! Again, does her story sound familiar? It should because this same scenario gets played out everyday somewhere in the workplace.
Janie Jo had at least six of her employee workplace rights violated in the brief time she was employed by WeBully Inc. How many employee job labor rights violations do YOU see? Do YOU see any at all? If not then you’ve come to the right place at the right time! If you think Janie Jo’s workplace tragedy can’t or won’t become yours you are in for a rude awakening.
The question, “what are your employment rights?” has never been more important. The workplace is under attack like never before. Employee rights education is absolutely critical for anyone with a job and a family to feed! This site is designed to help every job applicant learn and protect, fight for and defend their rights on the job!
Click this link for my EmployeeWorkplaceRights blog.
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