HELP! Loosing my job!

Nurses General Nursing

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Don't even know how to start. I am a new nurse. I graduated in May and started working in the doctor's office right away. Got my license in June. In September I got another job offer from a home health care agency (psych branch). During the interview I emphasized to the manager that I only have 2 months of experience. I know that usually this position would require at least one year of experience, nevertheless I accepted the offer. I signed my job description which clearly stated that the requirement for the full time registered nurse position is one year of experience. My manager co-signed it. Today he called me in his office and said that he "screwed up" because according to the agency policy he wasn't suppose to hire a newly licensed nurse. So here I am shocked and speechless. I will probably be fired because of my manager's mistake... I quit my previous job to get this position...

Is there anything I can do?

Thank you.

I think he messed up however you did tell him you only x months of experience. It would be hard for you to go back to your old job. I hope you did give a 2weeks notice. With the nursing shortage you may be able to keep your current job. You are doing well so that is a good sign.

Good luck

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I think he messed up however you did tell him you only x months of experience. It would be hard for you to go back to your old job. I hope you did give a 2weeks notice. With the nursing shortage you may be able to keep your current job. You are doing well so that is a good sign.

Good luck

Yes I did give my 2 weeks notice and left on good terms from the doctor's office. I know, however, they won't take me back. They hired another nurse already. I was so happy to get this home care job and finally thought I can relax and pay my bills on time... How ironic...

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Specializes in Med/Surg, Ortho, ASC.
... I hope you did give a 2weeks notice. With the nursing shortage you may be able to keep your current job...

Hate to tell you, pbilbrey, but there is no nursing shortage.

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The manager needs to give you a letter of reference...before you leave for the last time. I also agree about negotiating a severance package. You should start a thread about that. I'm sure there are those on this board who know how best to approach that sort of thing.

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I wish you best of luck.yes is ironic and not in a good way.

Roser come to Memphis you will be able to find a job. My hospital has at least 93 job postings for RNs. We work short a lot due to no nurses. I do not know where you live but smaller areas do not have a shortage I agree. Came from a small town more LPNs than jobs.

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The manager needs to give you a letter of reference...before you leave for the last time. I also agree about negotiating a severance package. You should start a thread about that. I'm sure there are those on this board who know how best to approach that sort of thing.

I called DEPARTMENT OF LABOR. I can try to negotiate a severance package but it probably won't work. I am still on probation period so can be dismissed without a reason.

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Specializes in Correctional, QA, Geriatrics.

Although the manager may well have made an error in hiring a new grad with less than the desired 1 year of experience the OP did not make an error in signing her job description. That is not a legally binding contract or document. I have signed many job descriptions in my career and none of them were considered a contract of employment. They usually do contain a general description of duties, responsibilities and qualifications but those descriptions are not iron clad. I don't see where the OP did anything irresponsible or deceptive by simply signing the job description.

To the OP I hope your manager grows a "set" and lets his boss(es) know that your work performance so far has been more than acceptable and that he is confident that with appropriate guidance and supervision you will continue to perform well even if you lack the desired 1+year of experience as a RN. It is expensive to hire and train new employees and he would, in essence, be saving the company money by continuing to employ you and provide you with sufficient oversight instead of going through all the new hire hoopla again. Most companies have someone in HR who is supposed to review applicants/new hires to make sure that all the qualifications are met or acceptable substitutes are in place; therefore your manager is not alone in his "error". If I was the manager I would be dang certain that I reminded my boss(es) about that fact.

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Specializes in Emergency, Case Management, Informatics.

Unfortunately, many of the managers in home health agencies and staffing agencies are not nurses, and in many cases have no clinical background at all. The agencies I have worked with, the recruiters are not all that sharp. They're good at what they do - bringing nurses in to fill out applications. But they're not that hot with figuring out if someone is qualified for a position. They just want to get a body on the clock to make money for them. Sad, but true. If you can find an agency that has nurses in management positions (other than just their DON), that's where you should be going for agency work.

As far as your situation goes, you may need to call your local or state labor board to get a better idea of what can be done about your job. If he wasn't sharp enough to figure out that you weren't qualified, he may not be sharp enough to realize that he may not be able to just let you go. Of course, if you work in a freedom-to-work state like Tennessee, you're pretty much on your own. Also, if you signed a document stating that you had 1 year of experience when you did not, you may be in even more hot water and may be better off running.

Put out your feelers now. Start filling out applications now. Who knows? Maybe your dream job is out there waiting for you and this was Fate pushing you in the right direction. One door shuts, another one opens and all that jazz. :o

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Thank you for your optimistic reply DonaldJ! If it turns out that i am officially jobless I will definitely start to look for a new job. But i am very sad because I actually love this job. I thought I found my niche... I hope my sad experience will help other new nurses to avoid similar situations.

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Let's all keep our fingers crossed for you - it may be that he will not want to call attention to his "mistake" by firing you. Better to keep you with good performance reviews, than risk letting everyone know he goofed.

Let us know how it turns out.

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Let's all keep our fingers crossed for you - it may be that he will not want to call attention to his "mistake" by firing you. Better to keep you with good performance reviews, than risk letting everyone know he goofed.

Let us know how it turns out.

Thank you Kesr! I will definitely post the outcome.

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How i see it and please correct me if I'm wrong. If you signed on for a yr that's a yrs worth of wages correct? You singed for the job that he knew himself you were new to nursing and to the field you signed for. Now he's taking heat and wants to get rid of you because of it. Unless what you signed it states he can do that at "any time" with out notice and so on. I think they owe you those wages. But I am not a lawyer and i really don't know the law. I know if you sign for a job here in my state it says in the job paper you sign you can be fired with out notice or you can leave the job with out notice. Might be worth looking in to. Good Luck and I'm really sorry i know these days its hard to find a job. These are my thoughts use them as you wish..

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