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Admirable Effort to Support Neighborhood Business
Q: I am a small business owner who depends on and am grateful for every customer I have. A small cupcake shop opened down the street, and I like to support local businesses, so on my way to get coffee, I thought I would stop in and buy a couple of …Read more.
Defending Oneself Is Always Worth the Effort
Q: A former supervisor falsely accused me of things in order to fire me, so I resigned before she had the chance. She had no proof of any of the accusations, and she did not report anything to the authorities. That was five years ago, and I have had …Read more.
Dressing Appropriately Shows More Than Style
Q: I started a new job after being unemployed for some time. While I was unemployed, I gained weight and can no longer fit in my work clothes. I can't afford to buy new things right now. I need to catch up on my bills. I did buy new jeans and a pair …Read more.
Partner Moves Funds Into Own Account, Leaving Other Partner With Bills
Q: I am going through the biggest fight in my life right now. My husband moved our personal and business money into offshore accounts in his own name before I realized he was having an affair and I filed for divorce. He is colluding with a banker …Read more.
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Could the Guilty Party Have a Filing System Based on First Names?Q: I work for a small company that laid off a few employees last month. One of those employees has the same first name as I do. I just received a letter from our health care provider, along with a COBRA package from the company lawyers stating that I was "involuntarily terminated" and that my insurance coverage has ended. I spoke to our human resources/accounting department and was copied on several e-mails that were sent between HR and the lawyers, all listing my name in the space for the terminated employee. No one in HR or the lawyer's office corrected the name, even though I was told they would a week earlier. In fact, when the people in HR saw me working, they thought I was working on a prearranged basis. They still haven't reinstated my health insurance, even though I am paying for it. Wouldn't you think someone would have looked beyond the first name? A: Clearly, no one will accuse your HR director of being intelligent. He or she may even have a filing system based on employees' first names. That sounds unbelievable, but plenty of people have the market on stupidity. Go to your HR director with your immediate boss, and re-explain the situation. Do not leave until this sorry excuse for an HR director corrects the situation. This means calling the lawyer in front of you and your boss and delivering the true name of the terminated employee, as well as making sure your name is removed from the list. In-house and outside counsel simply are carrying out the legalities of a layoff, so if your HR department handed over a list, the lawyers would have drawn up the documents assuming everything was correct.
A Pay Classification System No One Can Use Q: I work for a municipality that adopted a three-level classification system to determine compensation.
When I reached my five years' experience, I applied and was denied the third level. I was told the plan was not created for employees to move up. The human resources director agreed with me, so he called the person who created the plan and was told he could not move me up. What can I do? A: A classification system in which no one can advance is crazy. You can't do anything unless you get the HR director riled up enough to take action. The person who created the payment system levels obviously was not thinking when he or she created it. There is nothing to motivate employees to educate and improve themselves if they know they are going nowhere. Possibly that is what the system's creator wanted. Take your additional work experience and add it to your résumé, and start looking in the private sector. Please send your questions to: Lindsey Novak, c/o Creators Syndicate, 5777 W. Century Blvd., Suite 700, Los Angeles, CA 90045. E-mail her at LindseyNovak@yahoo.com, or visit her Web site at www.LindseyNovak.com. She answers all e-mails. To find out more about Lindsey Novak and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate Web page at www.creators.com. COPYRIGHT 2010 CREATORS.COM
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