I was suddenly brought into my managers office one am a month ago and told that HR was drawing up termination papers for me. She said I might want to think about resigning ... if I do I could work somewhere for one year I be rehired at the hospital. I mentioned that I would try to get unemployment since I am the wage earner in my family.
My husband has just recently been diagnosed with early onset Parkinson's disease. She said the hospital would fight me on that...So I applied and was awarded. DE only pays $320/week..period. But since I did some agency work I never actually was paid anything. So last week I get the denial from Unemployement with my EX employers statement. They said I was never told I would be terminated..and I left on my own accord.
I don't want the money ... it's not enough to pay my bills...but what would You do? ESP. Since I don't know what my EX employer is telling my new prospects when I am called for interviews.
The ltc I work for has lost an unemployment claim through appeals for an employees who was terminated for substaintiated abuse. I guess it depends on the unemployment appeals judge.....I would never have thought that former employee would have one the case. I also had a friend who was termed dt 2 complaints by her employees ( she was an admin at a hh agency) saying she was mean, and she appealed her denial and lost her case
You seem to be quite embittered by people utilizing a state program they may be entitled to. Are you equally angry with people who qualify for disability or Social Security?
Not embittered at all. I have received unemployment benefits in the past when I was abruptly downsized out of a job along with 140 other people working at the same location.
I do have opinions on the apparent, IMO, extreme leniency of states where it is allowable to voluntarily resign from a position and still receive unemployment benefits, but I will leave politics out of this thread. And my opinion certainly has no bearing on whether or not the OP will ultimately prevail in her attempt to collect unemployment.
I did take issue with one poster's comment which I interpreted to imply a lack of understanding that there is a cost to businesses to provide unemployment benefits. That particular poster could be viewed to be equally *embittered* in his/her belief that it's no great shakes what the cost ramifications are to businesses to provide unemployment benefits. And that is a view I find to be short sighted.
Hospitals are utilizing whatever means possible to get rid of liabilities. Technically she couldn't be fired on FLMA because of the FLMA. But , hospitals don' t want sick/disabled nurses no matter how good they are.......personal experience.
My wish is that you never have to witness the discrimination that accompanies being sick. Not all nurses with chronic illnesses are horrible employees even if they call out sick. But they can and have been accused of many infractions that are extremely damaging, morally devastating and difficult to prove.
Trust me I know the behind the scenes outtakes and have been a victim myself. Nothing is more devastating that to be tossed aside by they very people you have devoted a lifetime working in the care of others and in the improvement of the profession itself.
It's really quite the devastating betrayal.
This, this this this this. Lol, I just don't know how to express how much I agree with this post, Esme- you put into words what I couldn't.
And it IS DEVASTATING. I had only invested 3 1/2 years in this place, but they were my formative years in nursing- new PCA to experienced PCA to new grad nurse to older new grad nurse (slightly over 1 year)... then it was over. I am proud of myself for not having to use FMLA yet at my current job, but I know that the realities of this chronic illness (depression) make it likely that I will need a "tune-up"- inpatient- soon. :/ As much as I hate it, it is what it is.
Jodyangel....:hug:. As you can tell, nurses have very strong opinions and there are a wide variety of opinions on this subject. Nurses are notorious for being strong minded, intelligent and opinionated. We have to be it's the nature of the job. Most of us may growl but never bite and some of us who may bite might need to utilize muzzles.......(joking) occasionally......but all of us are really lap dogs at heart.
State laws vary state to state. Reviewers/appeals will vary case by case. Whether or not you will receive unemployment will vary from person to person. There is no reason that you can't apply all they can say is no. Have no guilt about using the services provided by our government paid for by the very tax dollars removed from your check every week.
The state will know if suddenly there is a rash of applications for unemployment from a particular facility and may make judgements accordingly. The more a facility pays out of unemployment the more they have to pay"back" so to speak. Kind of like your car insurance. If you are a high risk....you pay more in premiums because they are always repairing your car.
Therefore if a manager wants to keep her job......she has been told she needs to "get rid" of X amount of employees in a way that won't lead to having to pay any benefits. Voluntary resignation is one of them. There is a greater chance of not getting benefits if you resign than if you are fired or laid off. That is why I don't believe the unemployment numbers for they don't account for those why don't apply, can't apply and those who have been unemployed so long they have run out of benefits.
There is no morality in their behavior and that is hard to accept.....for we as nurses have this idea that our bosses are honorable and trust worthy because they are nurses. Unfortunately......they need their jobs as well and they know perfectly well that if they don't comply they too will be on the unemployment line (even thought there is not a "real line" as most is online).
Hospitals have learned, and I believe perpetuated, that the creating the present nursing surplus by creating a "shortage" was to make sure money from the government was "made available" for the education of nurses all with the ultimate goal to cause a surplus decreasing our demand and bargaining power.....and with it our salaries and benefits.
The job market stinks out there right now. Hospitals are behaving badly. It is better to be fired than to be threatened that if you don't resing you will be fired.......we as nurse believe that we are less of a nurse if we are fired. There once was a time that you "really had to be incompetent or a drug addict" to get fired and in some ways that was right......before the economy dumped.
If you voluntary force resign...get it writing or get a recommendation letter and stand your ground....for they will always lie behind your back. Hospital administration are not your friend and neither is HR.
One door closes and another will open......:hug: I wish you the best.
Esme for the win! You just described a great deal of what was happening at my former hospital. I'm not convinced that they didn't purposely treat their employees so poorly and make working conditions so horrible to try to drive people away.
The exact situation that the OP describes happened to a former colleague of mine... one who'd been working on this floor for almost 20 years. She was "forced to resign" on the premise that if she didn't she'd be terminated. She believed their lies that it was better to resign than face termination. Someone even told me they heard that she was told that if she was fired, she wouldn't qualify for COBRA benefits for health insurance for her kids. Which is 1. a lie and 2. if she was fired and had to go on unemployment, no doubt she and her kids would have qualified for state Medicaid. IMO, it's always financially in your best interest to be terminated than to resign under duress with no replacement job lined up.
Specializes in Critical Care, ED, Cath lab, CTPAC,Trauma.
Thanks Kel and sapphire, my wisdom has come as the result of a lot of heartache and personal experience. This is happening and it is real.
We need to be kinder to each other for we are getting beaten up enough by everyone else. we need to remember that we all have our opinions and that we can all disagree and not be disagreeable. :loveya:
On this one think of getting a lawyer. Why? Because if what you say is true, you are not the first one. And most lawyers are smart enough to realize that a threatening letter that goes like this will do the trick:
My client states that she was coerced into quitting--meaning resign or else.
Mr/Ms employer keep in mind that once a suit starts we shall subpoena the name of every employee who has resigned over the past two to three years.
If this is a game that's being played, that would do the trick.
It is common for a facility to automatically object to any former employee's unemployment claim. Objecting costs the facility nothng and if the applicant does not file an appeal, the faclity does not have a mark against their umemployment insurance policy. If the facility does object, make sure you immediately file an appeal and outline why you believe you should be given the unemployment benefits. After the appeal is received, you will get a date for a hearing. At that time you and the employer will state your side of the issues infront of a commissioner. If the facility does not show up, you win. If they do, make sure you have all the information prepared to present your case. It may be possible that even if you are denied UE benedits, that the state will penalize you and after a certain amount of time, if you are still unemployed, you can get UE benefits. Best of luck.
Specializes in Peds/outpatient FP,derm,allergy/private duty.
Im afraid to do anything until I secure another job tho...is this wise?
If you secure another job or enroll in school - that is traditionally the end of your unemployment claim for that period of time. Some states run their own job training sites, but other than that you must be able to accept work at any time. My brother told the UI representative that he would be unavailable to work on the day of our mother's funeral and it took him weeks to get things back on track.
The lawsuit route is expensive and time-consuming as they have nothing to lose by dragging things out for years.
I don't know if your city is similar, but we have a non-profit legal services clinic in our area that can give you advice for no or low cost. It is run by attorneys but often will have a graduate law student go over your case with you. They call it the "self help legal clinic" because your aren't actually retaining them as counsel in the strict legal sense. I know people who have had really good experiences with that. Just another idea to think about . . .
No..I mean I'm sort do afraid that if I fight the unemployment denial before securing another job that the managers won't give me a reference. I have had two interviews to date..and have been told by both hospitals that until I get at least 2 references from managers that they can't offer me the position. So I gave them a few new names today. I'm afraid that by fighting it now...they'll def try to screw me. Should I wait?
(joking) occasionally......but all of us are really lap dogs at heart.
OCNRN63, RN
5,979 Posts