Workplace Harassment forced me to resign

[Drgnfy13]

Hello,

I just don't know what to do, I'm hoping someone out there has been in a similar situation and can lend me advice.

I have just resigned from my job. I lost a pension, matched 401K, my health benefits, top pay hands down and a job I love, well used to love anyway.

I was experiencing blatant harassment and witness to favoritism in 2016. All began when there was a overhaul in Management and our director of the Home Health Agency "resigned' and there was a shift with the new Clinical Director who came in from another field office.

Everything went down from there. It got so bad that I went out on Stress Leave to avoid a complete mental breakdown. Yes we were unionized and yes I worked with my union rep.

But in the end, the intimidation by Management and a couple coworkers got the better of me and I took the easy way out.

Now my old coworker is experiencing the very same treatment I did and I feel that I need to do something.

I'm no longer an employee, just resigned on Monday of this week. I have written proof of some of the harassment as well as detailed descriptions of what occurred and when. Most of which was never formally revealed to Management or upper management

Does anyone know if I have a leg to stand on at this juncture if for nothing else but to support my coworker and keep her from having the same fate?

FYI- I worked for a very large Corp, with a lot of money and known to not support their nurses.

thank you in advance,

Rnpeds13

[Kooky Korky, BSN, RN]

It's the oldest one in the book, to claim that "several people complained about you". The most proactive way to deal with any criticism is to ask for more information. If there's any basis to it, you can learn from it. If it's BS, they'll have nothing to tell you. And hopefully leave you alone for five minutes.

On the other hand, many people will never say a word, even if they are very unhappy and uncomfortable with you. Patients are typically very afraid to complain about a worker, for fear of retaliation. So lack of patients saying anything is not proof that there is no problem.

[keto]

im sorry, really unsure of where to go from here. i would make a pros/cons list and then carefully read the comments on here. make sure ur motivation is intrinsic, you want what's best for you, not what other people think is best for you and you know yourself the best. So try not to let outside factors affect your decision while going through this. ...sorry i didnt have an opinion to provide, im not educated enough on the matter to really give u solid advice

[LetLoveNReasonUnite]

On the other hand, many people will never say a word, even if they are very unhappy and uncomfortable with you. Patients are typically very afraid to complain about a worker, for fear of retaliation. So lack of patients saying anything is not proof that there is no problem.

This is very true. I also like TriciaJ's advice. Ask for specifics about the complaints (from the person alleging that there has been some complaints brought forth). If there is any validity, they should be able to provide you with something specific to learn from. Even if the patient is afraid to speak to you directly about it, as Kooky Korky points out, they should have given specific examples to whoever it is that is informing you of the complaint.

[NefforamaRN, BSN]

Workplace incivility is unacceptable and no one should suffer it. Every employee has the right to work in an environment where they are respected as an individual and not subjected to behavior that goes against the ANA and the nurse practice acts of many states. Research has shown that workplace incivility has contributed to poor patient outcomes, staff turnover and registered nurses leaving the field all together.

Nurses "eating their young" (or just eating each other for that matter) is an antiquated and ignorant paradigm.

I would take great care to reflect on your own experiences before acting on behalf of your friend. But, as you have expressed, you want to be someone who uplifts and supports. I see that as you wanting to help your friend... Just make sure you are taking care of yourself too.

Take care of yourself and seek solace in wise, experienced nurses who you respect and look up to.

Were you offered an exit interview? If not, you can contact your former employer's HR department and ask that you be given one so that your experiences can be documented.

You resigned. You were not fired. So there shouldn't be a disciplinary record related to your exit that would affect prospective employment. Even that said, most states prohibit employers from saying much other than confirming start and leave dates of your employment.

Ask hard interview questions of your next employer like "Is there a workplace incivility policy", "how are nurses protected from incivility", "What education is available to promote civility among nurses and squelch unprofessional behavior", etc. Be careful not to sound bitter, but these are questions you have the right to ask. And any employer worth your time will have good policies in place.

Carry these experiences with you into the rest of your nursing career. Once you have done a bit of grieving, examine how this can empower you and not keep you from being the great nurse that I'm sure you are.

I've experienced some workplace bullying in the past and, while it was so painful at that moment, the eventually helped form me into a more compassionate, stronger, woman and nurse.

The root of nasty behavior usually comes from some place deep inside an individual that you can not control or predict. Normal well adjusted people do not tear others down. So, if you experience more of that in the future, try and take heart that they are probably unhealthy and their issues with interaction do not define YOU or change who you are.

Good luck, and know you are not alone.

Workplace Violence

[yourshoesareuntied]

I have had a few jobs where the primary collective of employees and management acted like we were on the set of Survivor (making alliances, diving into drama, stirring the pot, breaking alliances, and backstabbing) what I learned... go to work and do your job, don't get envolved in the drama, don't think everything is so freaking personal (there is a lot going on, and there is a lot managment is dealing with that you are unaware of), be a good teammate even to a-holes & be the better person, and lastly if you take one right on the chin..take it and smile ear to ear.. Never give people the keys to your castle...if you let them in and they cause havoc just remeber, you let them in.

[Orca, ADN, ASN, RN]

I don't understand why everyone keeps telling the OP to contact a lawyer. We have absolutely no idea what exactly happened. We don't know the details of the situation. The OP didn't give us even a hint of the behaviors she endure other than "favoritism" and that, in itself, is pretty nebulous. It could be a case of sour grapes after all. This could be a case of someone blowing things out of proportion or it could be a systematic, egregious mental beat-down. We don't know and she clearly isn't going to come back and expand on her experience.

I and several other people have made this very point. Some have told her that she has "a really good case", without any details that would say whether it is truly harassment or just a matter of her own perceptions. It takes more than one person's statement that something is harassment to make it so. I haven't seen enough to determine one way or the other.

[NLLL16]

I appreciate poetry and how it can more accurately communicate our feelings and emotions when our own words seem inadequate. I don't feel like you should apologize for using a poem written about the Holocaust. You did not imply your situation was anything like the Holocaust or you've endured what they did. I gathered from your post that you want to help someone else so they don't go through what you did. No harm there. Good for you for being concerned about another's wellbeing. ☺️

[K9lover, ASN, RN]

She/he was just using the 'no one stands against anything' part as an allegory. Pretty much true in nursing. I was not always this way but I developed a think skin and steely emotional control Mr. Spock would envy a few years into acute care nursing.

[allstressedout1]

Most do not harve for initial consultation.

[Cclm, LPN]

Pretty sure she wasn't "compairing it to the holocaust". She was describing the ideology of not speaking out about things you don't agree with because they don't concern you directly but can still cause consequences to yourself later!!Drama