Busted!- Page 2

[CJR]

Posted: 11/13/07 at 4:03pm

This is why i don't have co-workers friended on facebook or myspace. Well, that's a lie. My now boss is a friend of mine (but I had him friended before I worked for him)

[Jilani]

Posted: 11/13/07 at 4:10pm

Even if you're a total dud at your job, a company is limited in what they can say about you should, say, a prospective employer call to verify you had worked there.

A company can technically say whatever they want in that instance, but most companies have a policy of only verifying dates of employment, in order to limit their potential liability (for example, exposure to a defamation suit).

Back on point, I think what the boss did in this instance is unconscionable, but I'm not sure he did anything that is legally actionable under privacy laws. He could, I suppose, be liable for intentional infliction of emotional distress.

[Calvin]

Posted: 11/13/07 at 4:15pm

Yay! Our legal expert is back.

Question: Does it make a difference that the bank is based in Ireland, or is that a moot point since it was an American branch? Like I said before, I know privacy laws are quite different there to the point that employers even have to be careful when looking over your corporate card data. (e.g. -- yeah, he charged a movie at the hotel, which is out of policy, but should it make any difference that said film was a porno?)

[JohnBoy2]

Posted: 11/13/07 at 4:22pm

I like the way the other person sent an email stating that the guy said he had a "family emergency", which he never said. So, not only do they have suspect privacy issues, they also are spreading lies about him.

[Unknown User]

Posted: 11/13/07 at 4:25pm

I guess I've been a boss too long Phyllis- when someone calls in sick it puts into effect a chain reaction: Someone has to cover his job, pick up the slack, cover his department- That's why you should plan ahead whenever possible, put in for the time off, set your away message on your email, record a message for your phone. And if anyone is going to say that when "X" calls in sick you really don't need to do any of those things, then, X's job is the first one I eliminate when the crunch is on.

[JohnBoy2]

Posted: 11/13/07 at 4:26pm

He didn't call-in sick.

[Calvin]

Posted: 11/13/07 at 4:28pm

When our interns are missing, that just means I have to get my own coffee in the morning.

[Unknown User]

Posted: 11/13/07 at 4:29pm

Ok then. Let me rephrase:

I guess I've been a boss too long Phyllis- when someone E-Mails that he won't be into work tomorrow at the last minute because something came up it puts into effect a chain reaction: Someone has to cover his job, pick up the slack, cover his department- That's why you should plan ahead whenever possible, put in for the time off, set your away message on your email, record a message for your phone. And if anyone is going to say that when "X" calls in sick you really don't need to do any of those things, then, X's job is the first one I eliminate when the crunch is on.

Better?

[Phyllis Rogers Stone]

Posted: 11/13/07 at 4:34pm

I see what you're saying, Joe, and if had your experience I'd probably see thigs more the way you do. Like I said, who knows what the rules are for interns - and if they're in an at-will state the employer can fire them at will. I just don't agree with the boss blind copying the entire company.

[Unknown User]

Posted: 11/13/07 at 4:42pm

And on that I totally agree- inexcusable and I bet the boss will get reprimanded. No matter what the company policy is currently, he's embarrassed his company and has at the very least made it hard to hire interns for years to come.

The kid apparently had a history of lots of "Sick days" (Who knows if it's true) but the red flag in this case is an E-mail sent at 4 PM. Was his boss gone for the day? Was he? Why couldn't he pick up the phone and tell his boss he'd be out? It seems to me he's avoiding any discussion. A grown up would call the boss and say "Is there any way I could take tomorrow off? I've got a chance to run into the city and see some friends I haven't seen in ages. Can you do without me tomorrow? I'd be happy to use my personal time or a vacation day."

[Phyllis Rogers Stone]

Posted: 11/13/07 at 5:06pm

I can't find anything that says whether or not he was actually fired over this.

[Jilani]

Posted: 11/13/07 at 5:19pm

Does it make a difference that the bank is based in Ireland, or is that a moot point since it was an American branch?

If it's an American branch, and all the relevant players and actions are located in the U.S., then U.S. law is what applies here. And yes, workplace privacy laws in this country are shockingly lacking, in that employees basically are entitled to no specific expectation of privacy in work-related matters (other than with respect to specialized areas like health care information, as Calvin pointed out earlier).

[Chita1933]

Posted: 11/13/07 at 5:32pm

"it's not that you fired me, it's the way you fired me."

Didn't Meryl Streep say something similar to Dennis Quaid?

[Unknown User]

Posted: 11/13/07 at 6:29pm

Wow if he wasn't- imagine working there after THIS...