Were you ever fired from a job? (my story is long)

Hope2Have · February 2012

I worked at a daycare center when I was 16-17 in the after school room, had about 20 kids by myself but I loved it, and the kids loved me. The daycare I worked at was horrible (nicest facility in town, but crazy owners) and I butted heads with them all.the.time. For example, we had to go by a menu for all meals/snacks but when the kids got there after school they were starving (as all school kids are it seems) and if on the menu it said "bananas & Juice", I would go to find 3 bananas. I'd ask permission to give them something else and would be told to "cut up the bananas and make it work". SO.... I would steal cookies (hide them in my coat) and take them outside and take the kids on a "walk" so I could give them cookies. The kids that were there until 7:00 would also be starving and I would heat up something (ravioli or something simple) but I would get in trouble if they found the cans...

The reason I got fired though was two fold, I reported what I thought to be abuse after being told not to (6 week old baby girl that came in filthy and reeked like stale urine and burnt tires, even under her nails were filthy every day, it was so bad they had to put her diaper bag outside because it stunk up the room so bad.

The 2nd part of the firing - I didn't clean well enough. It was me and one other staff that were responsible for cleaning the whole place, she had only the infant room to do, I had to sweep/mop the whole place and clean the bathrooms, straighten the kitchen. Problem was, we couldn't stay alone, the other girl wouldn't' stay after work (closed at 7) and we had EIGHT kids on average until we closed. She would go into the nursery and close the door, leaving me with the kiddos. We had a 8 month old baby that would just scream if he was put down, so... I would hold him. I even rigged up a "mai tai" out of a sheet once and tied him to me so I could mop, probably not the safest thing I've done. I would mop as much as I could but it didn't get done as good as it would have had there not been kids there. The owner came in one day and said "Kellllllllllly, please come back here" points at the floor and said "WHAT IS THIS?!?!?" pointing to a splatter of sauce dried on the floor and I said "mmm, looks like spaghetti sauce" and oh, was she mad.

After 6 months they fired me one afternoon when I got to work at 2:00 telling me to work the rest of my shift... and I was going to b/c I was told to. Then I realized they had just FIRED me... and I left. They had the balls to call me angry that I would leave them without someone to watch the kids... argh.

I didn't mean for that to get so long, but hadn't thought about it in years... have you ever been fired? What happened?

EveryNameIWantIsTaken · February 2012

I did one time right out of cosmetology school. I worked for Beauty Brands for a very short time and got fired because a mom called and complained about her 4 year old, squirmy son's hair cut not being absolutely perfect. They hired me knowing I was right out of school, yet they fired me because "no one was willing to take the time to help train me" and I was still in the trial period where it was easy to fire me. I laugh when I look back on it because the salon I ended up getting my advanced training at did an amazing job and I went on to have a great career for the 6 years I was in a salon.

nonoemily · February 2012

I was kind of fired from my last job. It still really bugs me....

I was offered a job by a friend's girlfriend via facebook one day when I was at home working on my resume and the timing couldn't have been more perfect. It was a part time job making coffee at a little grocery store on the ground floor of a high-rise apartment building. The girl who hired me was the manager and I knew for a fact that she'd be moving to the east coast in a few months for school, so I figured I'd wait it out and take her place when she left.

The owner was so insane... He was known for kind of freaking out and yelling at people, and I made it clear from the start- I will work really hard for you and do a good job, but I DO NOT take *** from anyone for ten bucks an hour. I expect to be treated with respect at work by my coworkers and employers.

It's not that complicated, right? HA.

Things were obviously not going well for the owner financially and at some point he started asking me to run errands for the store using my own vehicle. Come to find out his license had been suspended (DUII), but I didn't mind the extra hours. Checks to our vendors started bouncing and we were unable to order anything for a few weeks, but everyone assured me that things like this happened from time to time and the owner would get things straightened out.

One day, I sent an email to the owners and the accountant explaining that we were out of a lot of products at this point and not to expect much in the way of sales this week. A few hours later the owner came down to talk to me. Apparently he didn't like the depressing tone of my email and accused me of looking for another job, which was totally untrue. I was, however, pregnant and I hadn't told him yet. He was hungover, and reeked of alcohol and cigarettes. He kept getting closer and closer to me while he was talking and the smell was making me sick. Finally I told him to get out of my face and go sleep it off. He was furious, but a bunch of customers came in, so he stopped yelling at me and left.

Later that day the girl who hired me came in and I explained what happened. I told her I needed to think about what I wanted to do with this job because I was obvs pregnant and not going to be working there much longer and the owner was such an asss. She acted like she understood, we had a short conversation and I left for the day.

She called me a short while later and told me that she had worked everything out and I didn't need to come in anymore. I was so annoyed...

The following week everyone's paycheck bounced and no one got paid. The owner was eventually arrested on drug charges and the store is closed now. I know I got out of there at just the right time, but it still bugs me that I asked for some time to think about what I wanted to do and instead was told not to come back.

Oh well...

pinacolodas · February 2012

Yes, twice! I worked for a realtor and his wife as their assistant. They changed my hours to in the office 7 days a week from 9 - 6, and also on call with a pager and answering all phone calls from 6 - 10 pm. So I never had a day (or hour really) off. When I complained they called me a clock watcher and fired me.

Recently I worked part time for a Remax brokerage. I worked one evening a week from 5-9 pm. I walked in on a realtor giving her new assistant a bj in the conference room (she is married). I walked out and didn't say a word but they saw me.

The next shift I came in the office manager stayed and told me this realtor had alot of complaints about me. I guess I quit versus getting fired. I already had a new pt job lined up so I didn't care. Obviously she did not want me around lol!

Hope, this is why I couldn't work for a daycare. I could see these issues coming up a lot. Business vs. kids, etc.

countrygrl5533 · February 2012

I worked for 6 months in one daycare that was never a good fit. More concerned about meeting certain things to get approved by a certain organization than they were about the kids themselves. My position was eliminated 1 month into the job. Had to drop to a part-time position or have no job. Could not find a job anywhere else.

Was fired for 2 minor wording issues with a parent that anyone that had worked there longer or anywhere else I have ever worked would just be a meeting with the boss. I truly had no idea what had happened. One was just a parent misunderstood what I said and rather than say, "pardon?" they went home, told their wife, wife called my boss and reported me. Wife wasn't even the one that was there.

What really stinks is that they used wording to their advantage and made me look terrible so they didn't have to pay unemployment. And made it very difficult to find a job. Ironically, since then and before then, no one I have worked for can understand what I was fired. I'm a great worker and great at what I do.

Anyway, come to find out, they were having money issues. They fired a couple more people then shut down without warning 6 weeks later. Not the most ethical place to work. Wish I had never worked there but we moved and the place I loved working was over an hour away.

LynsiBHM · February 2012

I worked at a daycare facility that sounds so similar to yours, Hope. I started as an Aide in the PreSchool program but was moved to "lead" the after school and summer programs for school-aged kids. The owners were basically just money hungry and didn't even like children. We had so many arguments over things like snacks, lesson plans, etc. I don't think they cared enough to fire me because I was liked by the kids and parents- they were just rude to me. If they fired me, they would have had to replace me or do more themselves, so I was there for years LOL. I finally quit to get a "real" full time job at an office... which leads me to being fired...

I was the "scheduling receptionist" at a restoration company. There was also a "billing receptionist" in the office with me, as well as the office manager (owner's wife) and sales reps (owners GF and her friend) Ok- that sounds bad that the owner has a wife and GF, so I should clarify- the owners were a father and son LOL

So I worked there for awhile and they even asked me to stay PT when I was taking classes (I had originally told them I would leave for college) because they needed me. I got 2 raises and great reviews from my boss. Once I was back to FT, they asked me to take over all office responsibilities becuase the other receptionist was going on mat. leave. I got engaged while I worked there and was in the process of buying our 1st house. I had a monday off for our closing and on Tuesday morning my boss (the son- who was maybe 3 yrs older than me) calle dme into his office as soon as I got in. I sat down and we chatted about the weekend and he asked how the closing went. He congratulated me on the house and then told me he had been waiting to make sure my closing went through to let me know they were letting me go!!! He didn't want it to interfere with me getting the financing for the house Indifferent

I was floored. Not only was I left without a job now that I had a MORTGAGE but I was so hurt that I was getting "let go" with no warning. He told me I was "too nice" to really handle the billing collections portion of the job and that they needed to downsize and find 1 person to do both office jobs. Yep- I got fired for being "too nice" on the first day of a $300,000 mortgage. Nice huh?

eek that got long. Sorry!

countrygrl5533 · February 2012

I notice a theme. What is with it with horrible daycares?

LynsiBHM · February 2012

countrygrl5533:
I notice a theme. What is with it with horrible daycares?

I have to say- the one I worked at had HORRIBLE owners. It was not a great place to work. But it wasn't a bad place- they hired great teachers. I don't mean just me (LOL) but the actual certified teachers that ran the preschool portion of it were fantastic and loved the kids. They were great. The after school program (K- age 12) and summer camp were just a bit chaotic. I think it's the typical "too many kids, not enough staff, not enough money" that so many schools and school programs deal with. That coupled with money-hungry owners who were burnt out and annoyed by anything related to children. Ugh.

But the children were very well cared for!

countrygrl5533 · February 2012

LynsiBHM:
countrygrl5533:
I notice a theme. What is with it with horrible daycares?

I have to say- the one I worked at had HORRIBLE owners. It was not a great place to work. But it wasn't a bad place- they hired great teachers. I don't mean just me (LOL) but the actual certified teachers that ran the preschool portion of it were fantastic and loved the kids. They were great. The after school program (K- age 12) and summer camp were just a bit chaotic. I think it's the typical "too many kids, not enough staff, not enough money" that so many schools and school programs deal with. That coupled with money-hungry owners who were burnt out and annoyed by anything related to children. Ugh.

But the children were very well cared for!

I guess it is more then, "what is it with horrible daycare management?" The higher ups where I was were terrible. Way more worried about the bottom line and trying to be so professional, they forgot that kids need to play not just meet criteria. The immediate boss played favorites like crazy. The teachers were great but most of them just kept their mouth shut and didn't mention anything to the bosses. My bad. That is so not my style.

But the place I worked before that was awesome!

Sharon21 · February 2012

I was fired for being pregnant. I worked as an administrative assistant for a small company (about 100 people) when I got pregnant with Julia. I shared responsibilities with another administrative assistant that had been there for almost 10 years. She got pregnant 6 weeks after me. When they realized that our maternity leave may overlap they fired me. My boss actually said to me "I need to know how long you plan to take off because if it is more than 6 weeks we are going to have to find someone else". Of course I answered with "I will only take 6 weeks" (even though I wanted to take 12 and was FMLA eligible) but when they realized that even if I only took 6 our leaves my still overlap if the other girl went early at all.

I am still a little annoyed by it but it was one of the best things that ever happened to me because now I am a stay at home home. We hadn't really considered it before but when I was unemployed when Julia was born (they waited till I was 6 months to fire me and of course no one is going to hire someone that is already showing) we realized how nice it was to have me home.

backinpgh · February 2012

I did, sort of! I worked at a cafe type restaurant where we made a specialty food item. The owner was nutso. I helped her open the place, taught her how to make espresso, told her what she needed to buy to run an espresso bar, made the coffee menu, trained everyone, made the schedule...goes on and on.

But she started getting mad because she thought I was too slow. But the reason I was "slow" was that I took time to put the ingredients away and keep the workstations clean (all the food prep is on display to customers as they wait) and she preferred to keep all the food and ingredients all over the counters and garbage all over the place, disgusting. And of course she did not have the balls to tell ME that she thought I was slow, she just told all the other workers in the store...So one day she said she "didn't need me to work in the store any more" and would have me help with signs and ads. This amounted to only like 3 hours of work a week, so I just stopped working with her. I continue to hear stories about her being totally insane and everyone who works there quits after a short time.

My poor husband worked at the store too and had to continue working with her for about two months after this. Awkward!

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