Terminated illegally I believe

Nurses General Nursing

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I am going to try to make a very long story short. I was terminated Friday because I would not sign a non-compete agreement which was very vague and given to us with no explanations and a dead-lineo f 2 days to sign and if we didn't we are fired. Oh yeah, I work at an LTACH for 6 very rocky months as a nurse manager. The place is run awfully by a non-clinical CEO who decided to do this out of no where. i knew my job wasn't safe there, and this non-compete agreement would have not let me work within 10 mi of "Company" for 2 years after termination or leaving. There are many hospitals within a 10 mi radious, inclusing the one I left and started my career at to take this job.

I made a meeting with the CEO to ask for an amendment to the agreement before I sign. He is trying to say we can't work at another LTACH, but the agreement just says "company" he took this opportunity to go off on me, tell me I was doing a crappy job, and told me if I do not sign, I am terminated. I told him I would not sign unless he amended it to say LTACH. He said, fine then you are terminated. In front of the director of HR I made him say he was terminating me for the reason of me not signing the agreement. He was very clear about that. he said as of that day I was terminated and have 2 weeks.

SO, later HR (I am friendly with her) calls and tells me he will forget everything if I sign the agreement. I say no. not unless it is ammended, and after the attack, I don't feel safe signing it, he'll just fire me for other reasons. Then way later, my ex nurse manager form my other facility who works there also calls me and says he went into the office and sais he would not sign the agreement unless he changed it to LTACH. The CEO then says "sure, I'll change it" WTH? he told me he wouldn't and I should just take his word for it.

he wants to give me a chance now to sign the ammended agreement. I and others feel he is saying that because after he terminated me for not signing it, he consulted his lawyers, found out what he did was illegal and trying to go back on it now.

I have been told I have a case. I believe I do. I go back, then he fires me for a totally different reason. He terminated me for not signing the agreement without the ammendment THEN went and changed the agreement to exactly what I asked, and now is trying to save his butt by giving me a chance to sign it? Hell no!

So I will be talking to a lawyer on Monday. I was just wondering, should I go into work monday, even though he said I was terminated and had 2 weeks. Me going into work is simply me going as a terminated employee , getting my last paycheck and tying up lose ends, because i care aboutt he others I work with.

ANy thoughts at all on anything I wrote would be appreciated

Specializes in Med-Surg, Cardiac.

At my old (nonmedical) company they had noncompete agreements that we had to sign. A number of people who left the company ended up suing to overturn these agreements and the cases were settled out of court. Basically they were allowed to work for competing companies, but not in certain projects. The reason the agreements didn't hold up supposedly is that you can't deprive a person of the ability to pursue a career on their field. Granted these were professional jobs and don't know if the same would hold up in the blue collar nursing area.

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Specializes in NICU, Post-partum.

I can tell you, with 100% confidence, that it is illegal to terminate you for not signing a non-compete contract with ANY job AFTER you are already hired.

Employers can legally require this before they hire you, but cannot require this later.

Stick to your guns. You are in the right on this one.

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Specializes in NICU, Post-partum.
At my old (nonmedical) company they had noncompete agreements that we had to sign. A number of people who left the company ended up suing to overturn these agreements and the cases were settled out of court. Basically they were allowed to work for competing companies, but not in certain projects. The reason the agreements didn't hold up supposedly is that you can't deprive a person of the ability to pursue a career on their field. Granted these were professional jobs and don't know if the same would hold up in the blue collar nursing area.

Non-compete clauses are very common in many professions, especially sales. These are legal contracts and I would be very careful in assuming that they were "settled out of court" unless you personally saw the court orders, because more often than not, courts will side with the employer.

The difference is that you took the job AGREEING to the conditions of employment.

I managed at a company where we provided training for a particular job (valuable training) and employees that were completely inexperienced signed a non-compete clause stating that they could not work for a competitor for 3 years after termination or else they would owe a $30K reimbursement to prevent us from training them and them going to another firm, because the training was specific to an industry, not just our company.

We had a few that got better salary offers and quit and I personally know (because I was involved in the case) that the company SUCCESSFULLY won judgments from these employees that signed these contracts.

I do know that in every state, there are legal limits to how far out a non-compete clause may go (in my state, for example, they could not be longer than 3 years).

The difference with the OP is that they were trying to shove this down her throat after she started the job...that isn't going to fly with any court.

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Specializes in NICU, Post-partum.
You are in an at will state. They will not pay you unemployment. I can almost guarantee it. What state are you in? They can terminate you anytime for anything in an AT WILL STATE.

It was even in the Wall Street Journal that employers in these states are not paying unemployment benefits.

This is not true.

Living in an at-will employment state has NOTHING to do with unemployment compenstation benefits. That has to do with actions an employer has to take with regards to hiring/firing.

The majority of states are at-will and I live in one of them. Here, ANY employee can SUCCESSFULLY collect unemployment if you were fired for a job for ANY reason with the exception of GROSS MISCONDUCT

Gross misconduct would mean, getting fired for violating existing company policy, such as stealing, failing a drug test, showing up late, etc.

A disagreement with your boss (which is the case with the OP), is not going to fall under the category of gross negligence because it is not a case of insubordination..he was trying to force her to sign a legal contract after hiring her that could adversely affect her future earnings.

http://lwd.dol.state.nj.us/labor/ui/aftrfile/fired.html

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Specializes in Transplant/Surgical ICU.

Sorry to hear what happened to you, but if you are going to seek legal consultation then you may want to stop talking about your potential case on the forums. Good luck with whatever options you choose.

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Specializes in ICU.

I would not have signed that agreement upon hire. It was emailed to me 6 moths in with no explanation. I would have never given up my old job to sign that and take a chance with a 6 month old company. I know they are normal in other companies, but not in this capacity. I've been up all night thinking about this.

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Specializes in ICU.
I can tell you, with 100% confidence, that it is illegal to terminate you for not signing a non-compete contract with ANY job AFTER you are already hired.

Employers can legally require this before they hire you, but cannot require this later.

Stick to your guns. You are in the right on this one.

100% confidence? I like that! Even in an at-will employment state? I have a little hope

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I live in NJ, and advise you to not go to work on Monday, when he said you're terminated AND HR is present as witness = you're fired at will. Now the reason was for not signing that agreement is ILLEGAL. Yes, they can base their hiring decision on whether you sign it or not but not after the fact of already being hired and working.

When you go meet a lawyer, ALWAYS ALWAYS ALWAYS meet more than 2 to not only get a better picture of the law but see who is more COMPETENT (NJ is overflooded with bored, incompetent lawyers putting their names up on rental condos)

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The employer must have been Kindred.

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Specializes in Critical Care, ED, Cath lab, CTPAC,Trauma.
The employer must have been Kindred.

:hhmth: I was thinking the very same thing myself!!!!!!!!!!!

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Specializes in OB-Gyn/Primary Care/Ambulatory Leadership.
My uncle has been in the insurance business for years and years and had worked with hospitals and says this is illegal. Especially where He terminated me for not signing the agreement even though I would sign the amended agreement. he then later in the day amended the agreement when someone else came to him, with the same exact amendment I was looking for

Sadly, if you live in a right to work state, I don't think he's done anything illegal. He can fire you for whatever he wants, as long as it's not for being in a protected class.

ETA: now that I've read a few more posts, I will amend this - hadn't thought of the distinction between signing an agreement before employment, and being forced to sign one after you already work there. Good points, those. I hope you pursue this with an attorney, and I agree with the person who stated that you probably shouldn't be talking more about it here.

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Specializes in OB-Gyn/Primary Care/Ambulatory Leadership.
You make think I am crazy here, but there was one time where he engaged me in a religous conversation I did not feel comfortable having. I am agnostic, I am unbaptized, same for my child. He asked me what religon I was, I told him I believe in a high power, but not organized religion (I know, i should have never answered) he went on to tell me I should baptize my child, i need to find God and said soem very unprofessional discrimintory things. he said I should find God, because there will be challenges and I am going to need HIM. Very uncomfortable. ALmost felt threatening. He is just a strange manipulative man. I will use it if I have to.

Ah. NOW you have a case. Fired for religious descrimination.

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