upset....fired from job

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Hi everyone. So I worked as a direct caregiver for adults with disabilities. I am not certified...the job requirement was you either had to be CNA certified or had to have a year of experience...I had the year of experience.

I was fired today. I was fired because I had accumulated too many speeding tickets throughout the year. I got two speeding tickets and was also pulled over for having my bright lights on. This resulted in three of the "type 1" violations, which made me get fired.

Part of the job description was that we took clients on community outings, to doctors appointments, home visits etc. Meanign we transported them.

Since my driving record was found to be bad, I couldn't be on company insurance anymore so they had to fire me.

My boss was nice about it. She said, right before leaving "i'm sorry [my name here]. I didn't want it to end this way. You are a good employee.]

i'm bummed. I've never been fired before and I really liked my job and the clients.

this is what scares me. as company policy they can't tell future potential employers why they fired me...they can't give the reason. Because my thing was when I look for a job, if the job doesn't require driving they shouldn't care right? but the job i was fired from they can't tell them the reason i was terminated!

what do i do? i'm really bummed. I want to be a nurse so bad and was doing this job while taking prereqs. I dont know what i'm going to do now.

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Ask your former employer what they'll say when asked about your tenure with the company. My former employers would never release details, only confirm the dates of employment. They would not say under what circumstances someone left. You might not have anything to worry about.

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Specializes in ICU.

Ask your boss to write you a reference. That is a wonderful way to get through the "Fired" thing...

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Since your former employer otherwise had no problem with you as an employee, they should be happy to write you a reference letter. A copy of that letter will counteract the reason for you leaving your job. Good luck.

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im sorry it didn't work out, i would ask for a reference.

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Specializes in Med Surg/Ortho.

As far as I know, they can't ask why you were fired. Only confirm dates of employment. I would also ask for a reference, sound like you would get one. There are lots of layoffs right now because of cutbacks, companies losing money, etc. I wouldn't worry too much about it. Just be careful about speeding in the future. :smokin:

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Specializes in LTC, Med/Surg, Peds, ICU, Tele.

I had a problem with speeding. One trick that helps is to put your seat back a bit. It helps avoid the lead foot problem. When your seat is further forward, you just tend to push the pedal down further very easily.

Good luck!

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Specializes in NICU, Post-partum.
H

this is what scares me. as company policy they can't tell future potential employers why they fired me...they can't give the reason. Because my thing was when I look for a job, if the job doesn't require driving they shouldn't care right? but the job i was fired from they can't tell them the reason i was terminated!

what do i do? i'm really bummed. I want to be a nurse so bad and was doing this job while taking prereqs. I dont know what i'm going to do now.

It is 100% legal for a company to give a potential employer any information regarding you as an employee as long as they can prove it. In your case, they can.

Most choose not to because of liability...but that doesn't mean they can't.

They can disclose you were involuntarily terminated and they can tell them that it was due to your driving record.

So her telling you that they can disclose one and not the other is a cop out!

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Specializes in psych. rehab nursing, float pool.

I believe your boss might be willing to give a reference. It was not your performance as a caregiver which was in question it was your driving record. I am assuming the tickets occurred while you were alone and not with a client.

If it were me I would tell my next employer if asked why I was fired. I would tell them so that they would fully understand the situation. I am a believer that honesty goes a long way with employers. They are human and they appreciate when we learn from our mistakes and take responsibility for them.

Good luck in your career

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Specializes in ICU.

I was fired once and was very concerned about it haunting me on my resume forever, it didn't. I did a lot of research and chose to bring it up myself. When you are interviewing for a job and they ask about that position, tell them about your time working there, and that you got too many speeding tickets and couldn't work there anymore. That has no affect on your skills, and if you bring up the topic and deal with it before they have a chance to question it, then it becomes a non-issue. As everyone else has said get a letter of recomendation. That will show that you were not fired for drugs, being late, etc... You will have no problems. If you don't disclose why you were terminated, then you leave it up to the interviewer to guess the reason, and they might come up with anything. Keep your chin up!

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OK...here is the OLD WOMAN/MOM advice.... learn from it!

Speeding is a choice. You know you can get pulled over. You did and got a ticket. You didn't learn and continued to speed. You got pulled over again.....still didn't learn....

Understand what CAN happen when you don't think that speeding is "that big of a deal"......

My 20 yo son got a speeding ticket. I refused to pay for it. I told him to get his lazy orifice off the couch and get a job and PAY for it. He didn't. He then was notified by the DMV that he needed to insure his car or turn in the plate and had 30 days to comply. (He had sold the car...didn't take the plate off....and cancelled the insurance.) Well he did get the plate back from the guy, drove to the DMV on the 31st day. (out of laziness, he COULD have done it sooner) They had already suspended his license and he would have to pay $150 to get it reinstated. He didn't have a job yet or the money. Eventually, I asked my son to move out. (Forcing the job issue.) In the meantime, I found out he had 2 speeding tickets that he got before the one I mentioned above....

Does he change his ways. No. He thought it was BS he should have to pay that kind of money. Did he stop speeding? NO. So he gets pulled over. 1 ticket for speeding another for a broken headlight, add on the seatbelt violation and WOW that Driving on a suspended (unknowingly)! Does he change? NOPE. Gets pulled over for speeding and a broken tail light and this time Driving on a suspended - knowingly. Does he stop? Of course not! Now the local PD guy is watching for my son's car. He gets in it and starts to drive out of the apartment complex. This time, Driving on a suspended - knowingly, third Driving on a suspended earns a trip to the downtown jail (misdemeanor).

I forced him to get a lawyer. (Over 12 pts gets a 6 mo suspension....3 driving on a suspended gets a 5 YEAR suspension!)

Bail - $150

Lawyer - $3000

Tickets that went to collections (where they add a 40% collection charge) $980

2 not in collections speeding tickets lawyer plead nolo and withheld adj.... $208

3 driving on suspendeds plead bargained to "invalid license" - $312

$235 reinstatement fee for DL.

Increased insurance ($3K/yr for liability policy!!!) for 3 years due to poor driving history.

He is in his last semester of HVAC training and now finds out all the employers want clean driving history only (because you will be driving a company truck) so he gets to stay a waiter for 3 more years until he can get hired!

Talk about an expensive lesson.

Speeding is against the law. Go to any ER and see the consequences. :crying2:

Take your foot off the pedal. Realize that there is a heavy price to pay for non-compliance and vow never to get yourself in this position again. (BTW, I believe you were informed of the requirement of keeping a clean driving record when you got hired?)

We all make mistakes. The failures are only when we don't learn from them. Buck up and you will get through this! :D

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