I still hate to utter the words, even five months later...I was fired from my first job after only eight weeks. I just applied to a different department, and somehow my application snuck by HR. I had an interview today, and explained the situation to the manager of this unit. At the end, he said that he would contact HR to find out if I was eligible for rehire, and I said that I would also look into it. I spoke with someone in HR who apologized for allowing my application to slip through, but I in fact was not eligible for rehire. She said that the only time that she had seen that decision overturned was when the request came down from the CEO. "If you know some big whigs, you might have a shot".
Is this how it works? You get fired from the only hospital in your town, and that's it??? I would like to fight to change this status, but I don't know where to begin. HR isn't going to help, and I doubt the manager who stuck by his decision to fire me will either. I am in an "at will" state, so I am fully aware that we can be fired without reason at any time, but if hospital policy wasn't followed in the process, or a preceptor blatantly lied about some of the complaints she made against me, who would be the best person to turn to? Any feedback, advice, criticism, backlash, pity partying, or slap in the face is welcome! I still feel that this organization is where I am supposed to be, and it makes the most sense for me right now. I have had several months to reflect on the situation, and have made some life changes. I have always been willing to take full accountability for my actions.
I have never been 17 or more minutes late. 20+ years and counting. I am not saying this to brag but to say that you seem to be glazing over something important. You appear more interested in looking at the policy for loopholes or focusing on the preceptor. If I was the hospital I would see you as a troublemaker who likes to bend the rules.
Three tardies in such a short time as a new employee under probation just isn't smart. I don't understand it. You are lucky you have a 5 minute window, where I work we don't even have a 1 minute window. One minute is 1/2 a sickday! I admit I had a habit of punching late, not by a lot, but it was a habit and I had never gotten called on it, but did after they changed the policy. Guess what I have learned to punch in early and I'm never late anymore. I don't like the policy one bit I think there should be a grace period, but I need my job and want to get a decent raise and not have sick or tardies held against me so I have learned to adapt and change.
Starting a job as a new employee can be rough, you have to prove yourself and you may find yourself dealing with bullies or someone who dislikes you for no apparent reason, but in your case the tardies gave them ammunition against you. I think you should cut your losses and look elsewhere for a job. Hopefully next time you will fit in better and won't be targeted by a preceptor or coworker. Maybe bringing in some bakery occasionally for the staff would win you some brownie points. Also don't be defensive about age you made a comment that implied you were older and your younger preceptor. Get used to working with young workers as well as old. Try to find positives of working with younger workers. I enjoy their enthusiasm, optimism etc of my younger coworkers. We can all get along and complement each others skills and strengths to work as a team to get the job done.
HR confirmed that the hospital's attendance policy is in effect from day one, the 90 day probationary period is different, though attendance may be considered, there's a different corrective action plan for non-attendance issues. I was late twice, made a plan with my manager, and resolved the issue when we changed my schedule.
You said yourself you are in a right to work state where they can fire you for any or no reason and you were on probation and they just decided to let you go even though they may not have followed the policy to the letter. Management always has the final say and leeway to change the terms. There is nothing you can do to change the situation now. Consider it a blessing that you don't have to work with a coworker who would flat out lie that you weren't there for report. Hopefully you were really there taking report and not socializing getting coffee. I say this because I work with coworkers that dilly dally getting their coffee etc while we are all tired and waiting to punch out and go to sleep! It is frustrating when it's quarter after and you still haven't started report because the day shift is clowning around!
I agree with the other comments about tardiness during orientation. That said, if the main issue was that some preceptor *fabricated* that I missed thirty minutes of report 2-3 times and I got fired as a result, I would run, not walk from that creepy facility. Yuk!!!!
HR confirmed that the hospital's attendance policy is in effect from day one, the 90 day probationary period is different, though attendance may be considered, there's a different corrective action plan for non-attendance issues. I was late twice, made a plan with my manager, and resolved the issue when we changed my schedule.
Still defensive.
Here's the deal: If you had 2 tardies during your "best behavior" orientation, what is your attendance going to look like after orientation?
Thanks again for the feedback, and I understand that life doesn't happen to some people, you will always have excellent attendance, never be late, and never let anything interfere with your job. I never claimed to be on my "best behavior", I wasn't digging for loopholes, I didn't indicate that I didn't care for the hospital, position, or manager. Anyway, so just move on when some know-it-all bully kid uses whatever leverage she has to cost you your job? Is that the general consensus here? I don't "blame" this manager, he took info from a trusted employee and seemed downright upset that I would pull some slap-in-the-face crap after he worked with me to remedy the problem. I definitely wasn't socializing, getting coffee, or screwing off at 0300. This unit was not much different from middle school, and I was there to work, learn, help out my coworkers, and take care of patients, not make friends by talking **** about every poor nurse who walks away for a second. This is why I hate these text based forums, way too much reading between the lines, assumptions, and misunderstanding. So point taken, thanks for the advice :)
I have never been 17 or more minutes late. 20+ years and counting. I am not saying this to brag but to say that you seem to be glazing over something important. You appear more interested in looking at the policy for loopholes or focusing on the preceptor. If I was the hospital I would see you as a troublemaker who likes to bend the rules.
I was only 17 minutes late when the axle broke in my car landing me in a ditch. I called and let them know. Things do happen that are out of our control sometimes.
HR confirmed that the hospital's attendance policy is in effect from day one, the 90 day probationary period is different, though attendance may be considered, there's a different corrective action plan for non-attendance issues. I was late twice, made a plan with my manager, and resolved the issue when we changed my schedule.
Apparently, you have scrutinized the HR attendance policy, your manager, your preceptor and the "not even magnet" facility. Try analyzing your own behavior, starting with why you can't get to work on time.
I have never been 17 or more minutes late. 20+ years and counting. I am not saying this to brag but to say that you seem to be glazing over something important. You appear more interested in looking at the policy for loopholes or focusing on the preceptor. If I was the hospital I would see you as a troublemaker who likes to bend the rules.
This.
They just decided to get rid of you, probably for a reason you may never know. The orientation period is the best time to cut somebody loose if they are not a fit.
Thanks again for the feedback, and I understand that life doesn't happen to some people, you will always have excellent attendance, never be late, and never let anything interfere with your job. I never claimed to be on my "best behavior", I wasn't digging for loopholes, I didn't indicate that I didn't care for the hospital, position, or manager. Anyway, so just move on when some know-it-all bully kid uses whatever leverage she has to cost you your job? Is that the general consensus here? I don't "blame" this manager, he took info from a trusted employee and seemed downright upset that I would pull some slap-in-the-face crap after he worked with me to remedy the problem. I definitely wasn't socializing, getting coffee, or screwing off at 0300. This unit was not much different from middle school, and I was there to work, learn, help out my coworkers, and take care of patients, not make friends by talking **** about every poor nurse who walks away for a second. This is why I hate these text based forums, way too much reading between the lines, assumptions, and misunderstanding. So point taken, thanks for the advice :)
I'm guessing this indignation is because you haven't gotten the responses you feel entitled to.
Life happens to everyone. However, the world doesn't stop spinning on its' axis because life happens. When you are late to work, you inconvenience the person before you who has to wait around to give you report. Whether you have car problems, are in the middle of the storm of the century, or you simply had to stop for your Starbucks fix, you being late impacts others.
When you are late several times within your 90 day probationary period, when most of us really ARE on our best behavior, as I hope you realize you should have been, employers become understandably twitchy. It costs quite a bit to train a new employee, and if you give them any reason to have doubts about you, they're going to toss you overboard without a second thought.
Quite frankly, and I know emotions are difficult to discern in writing, if you came across half as spoiled and entitled with your employer as you have here, I'm not surprised they let you go. For whatever reason, this was not going to work out for you. It was a blow to your ego, but whether or not you were truly wronged, it wasn't a battle you had a snowball's chance in Hell of winning.
One thing I've learned in almost 60 years of walking on the skin of this earth; pick your battles. Some just aren't worth the time and energy needed for the fight. So, yes, move on.
You're going to run into more people who, for whatever reason, just don't like you or want you around. You can't fight all of them, because you will never make any progress in your life. Not everyone thinks people should get a trophy just for eventually showing up. Not everyone thinks you're special (and I mean the general "you", not you specifically). This isn't specific to nursing, it's how it is. Many of us have had to leave toxic work places. Even the "good" jobs can have their moments.
Specializes in Critical Care; Cardiac; Professional Development.
To be honest, my "just move on" advice has more to do with the futility of spinning your wheels over it. Being wound up, upset, thinking you can fight it is only going to hurt YOU. Their business is going on as normal while you sit here and wish for a way to get a do over or revenge or ..... something.....anything......because it is so unfair.
I'm sorry this happened to you and I hope you find something else quickly. But I do think you need to just move on, for your own sake more than anything. There is nothing you can do to change this.
I'm guessing this indignation is because you haven't gotten the responses you feel entitled to.
Life happens to everyone. However, the world doesn't stop spinning on its' axis because life happens. When you are late to work, you inconvenience the person before you who has to wait around to give you report. Whether you have car problems, are in the middle of the storm of the century, or you simply had to stop for your Starbucks fix, you being late impacts others.
When you are late several times within your 90 day probationary period, when most of us really ARE on our best behavior, as I hope you realize you should have been, employers become understandably twitchy. It costs quite a bit to train a new employee, and if you give them any reason to have doubts about you, they're going to toss you overboard without a second thought.
Quite frankly, and I know emotions are difficult to discern in writing, if you came across half as spoiled and entitled with your employer as you have here, I'm not surprised they let you go. For whatever reason, this was not going to work out for you. It was a blow to your ego, but whether or not you were truly wronged, it wasn't a battle you had a snowball's chance in Hell of winning.
One thing I've learned in almost 60 years of walking on the skin of this earth; pick your battles. Some just aren't worth the time and energy needed for the fight. So, yes, move on.
You're going to run into more people who, for whatever reason, just don't like you or want you around. You can't fight all of them, because you will never make any progress in your life. Not everyone thinks people should get a trophy just for eventually showing up. Not everyone thinks you're special (and I mean the general "you", not you specifically). This isn't specific to nursing, it's how it is. Many of us have had to leave toxic work places. Even the "good" jobs can have their moments.
Thanks, I would probably throw a similar response out there. Yes, I got defensive, while trying to argue every rebuttal, apparently I came off as "spoiled and entitled", and certainly didn't mean that. I've already come across plenty of people who just don't like me, or I don't like them. I have a bit of life experience under my belt as I've been walking, crawling, and pushing through this life for nearly 40 years.
My point was completely missed, and then buried in my pathetic attempt to explain the assumptions being fired at me. While I did mention policy and preceptor in OP, I was asking who to turn to to ask for another chance. I wasn't trying to fight the termination, I don't even really believe that I shouldn't have been fired, and apologize for coming off that way. I've made it this far with "life happening" to me, and should have handled this one differently. In the six weeks between accepting the position, and starting we lost our rental house (to mold, not for not paying rent or anything), couldn't find a place, moved my family's stuff into my sister's garage, stayed between her house and the car for a month, found a place, got settled, turns out the house was in the middle of some family dispute, and we had to get out. There's my sob story, haha, I know it's life. What I should have done differently was NOT begin this job under these circumstances. It is difficult enough coming into this as a new nurse, but when life outside of work is in shambles, it's exceptionally difficult. I wish that I had went to my manager, explained it all, and started later, but after putting my family through several years of nursing school with this "light at the end of the tunnel" promise that I would give them this better life I figured I'd push through like always and make it work. I was wrong.
My point with trying to explain myself was that there were issues in the first couple of weeks, and this manager was willing to work out a solution. When preceptor went to him the last week with her accusations, he was genuinely Pissed off with me considering he had worked with me in the beginning. When she went to him again only three shifts later, he was done. He really had no reason to take my word over hers. After the initial bump in the road until the end things were going very well. Patients had given a great deal of positive feedback about me, I had caught on and was feeling comfortable, and my preceptor had not given me an ounce of negative criticism or feedback. I don't expect everyone to like me, I could care less, I haven't had a single thing handed to me in my life, and wasn't expecting a second chance to apply for another position on a different unit, but did figure it couldn't hurt to ask. I wouldn't have approached it with a "spoiled and entitled" attitude. I never even got a damn trophy for showing up! I planned on using a humble and apologetic approach, I planned on showing what I had done wrong, what I would have done differently if I had a 're-do, what I have done in the meantime to remedy the issues that had gotten in my way of success, and that I have a solid plan in place to ensure ongoing, future success in this organization. No blaming involved, no finger pointing, poor me, boo boo crap. No fighting the termination or trying to hang the bully preceptor out to dry (she'll learn her own life lessons one day). I just figured it might be worth a shot, and if the answer was no, it was no.
Sorry again for coming off that way, I didn't come into this with that intention at all.
Conqueror+, BSN, RN
1,457 Posts
I have never been 17 or more minutes late. 20+ years and counting. I am not saying this to brag but to say that you seem to be glazing over something important. You appear more interested in looking at the policy for loopholes or focusing on the preceptor. If I was the hospital I would see you as a troublemaker who likes to bend the rules.