Employer Harassment?
Q: On Nov. 20, 2000, I accepted a permanent job at a bank and have been
working for there for about two months. During this time, there have been
three major incidents where my direct supervisor has dropped hints that I
might be fired.
The first time was when about two weeks after I was hired, the supervisor
made a point of talking about this temp hire within my hearing and made a
comment that if "she's gangbusters, ... " with the implication that I would
be replaced. I thought it was a bad joke since there had been NO negative
comments about my work from anyone
At least twice, I have been subjected to critical comments that are, IMHO,
bordering on harassment. I am pretty sure that this is very unprofessional
behavior; can you tell me if this is also illegal? And can you advise me
on any legal means to protect myself againt this kind of treatment?
A: Harassment is only illegal if it is done on the basis of sex, age, race, place of national origin, or disability. There is no law in the U.S. that says that in general everyone has to be treated fairly and kindly. Only hope is.... If you have a union contract, you may have a grievance procedure available there. Or the company may give you one, in your employee handbook. Take a close look at it. Almost always I include something like the above in my responses; I've even been attacked for "not answering the question." If there is a general question, that can be discussed, without being "answered." In this instance, do you disagree that it's not illegal for an employer to criticize an employee's work performance? "Legal advice" is advice given from someone wearing an attorney