Family and Medical Leave Act

One of the common calls I get goes like this: “I was just fired on my day off. They didn’t give me a reason. They won’t meet with me. This can’t be legal.”

It sucks. It feels like you couldn’t have possibly done something wrong if you weren’t even at work. I get it. People often feel that they are entitled to a face to face meeting before being fired or an explanation, and I understand that too. Unfortunately, if you don’t have a union contract, protections as a governmental employee, or some other specific rights that guarantee such a meeting, there’s no legal requirement for that.

And, there isn’t anything automatically illegal about firing someone on their day off, unless something else is going on.

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The clock is always ticking if you’re an hourly employee

One of the most frequent stumbling blocks for clients is tardiness. Whether it’s coming to work on time or coming back from breaks in a timely fashion, we cannot stress this enough: you must be on time for work. Even if your boss says he doesn’t care. Even if you stay late to make up the time. Even if you work through lunch to make up the difference. You have got to be at work on time. If the schedule says 9 am, you need to clock in at 9 am.

Obviously, some of this varies from job to job. A lot of professional positions do not have a set schedule. Many accountants, lawyers, and executives are not expected to be at work at any given time. The same is true for many people who telecommute. For those individuals who have a traditional, scheduled time of arrival, however, being on time to work is critical.

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Articles Posted in Family and Medical Leave Act

Fired On My Day Off

An Employment Trap: Tardiness