So who's been fired before? And why? Did they give you advance notice, or did they wait until you showed up for work one morning for a normal shift and then completely blindside you?

If it was for something you didn't do, did you try and fight it or do something about it, or did you just give in and give up?

How long did it take you to find a new job?

-(ahem)-

fired once. layed-off once.

fired: i was selling pianos. i made a sale based on company policy. i would ship and electric piano from a warehouse across the country to its destination. the boss decided to box up the floor model and ship that instead (and he shipped it in the wrong model's box). the piano was a gift. anyway, the lady came back into the store. not realizing that my boss had done this shitty thing, i commenced being honest with this customer. she was upset. she talked to my boss. i was immediately called into the office and fired (because my school schedule was conflicting with my 'availablility')


layed off: normal general down-sizing

I've had 9 jobs in the last 11 years.

I've only really kept one of them for any length of time when I left at the end of my contract.

I've had 2 spectacular "clear your desk and leave now your fired" type firings. The rest have been a mixture of being 'let go' or me walking out.

I've even combinded the above. Once I walked out of a job, went back after 6 weeks of brooding and then got fired after only a month being back!

I've also had 2 jobs that I never turned up to having secured employment there.

I'm the sort that never gets fired, and I was fired by the company known for never firing anyone, no matter how terrible an employee they may be.

I've never been fired, but I did witness the firing of someone who accidentally emailed the following message to ALL EMPLOYEES:

"Jill* looks like a monkey. What a stupid bitch!"

*an assistant director for the company

Maybe it was a cry for help.

I have firing hypochondria--I'm always convinced I'm about to be fired at every job I've ever had, even the one that lasted 12 years.

(Actually, it's all part of that fear of being unmasked as a total sham--like someone's going to sneak up behind me, rip off my "adult" mask and yell "A-ha!", revealing the callow know-nothing youth that hides beneath.)

I have been fired twice, both times when I was young and dumb/arrogant. Now I save my arrogance for when I'm right, e.g. this week's encounter with the office douchebag, who a.) decided to blame me for a mistake that occurred before I got hired, and b.) emailed me (and my boss) a snide list of things he thinks I should have done in a certain situation. Happily, I was able to a.) prove that the mistake was caused by my predecessor and that I had specifically been told to copy what she had done, and b.) show point-by-point that I had already done exactly what he was claiming I hadn't.

the only person who ever fired me was my dad. it was more due to my predaliction for sleeping in than my ability as a construction worker.

I've never been "fired" per se...I lost a job as a DJ 20 years ago when the station I worked at was sold, but staff turnover is expected in that scenario.

And then I was "downsized" 4 months ago, which came as a complete surprise. Not the downsizing, just the fact that I was one of the people let go. It's still completely inexplicable to me...there's people still there that I did TWICE the work of. And I was given NO reason as to why I was one of those laid off...even a "we just don't like you" would've sufficed. At least it woulda been something. All I got was a bunch of "it's nothing you did or didn't do" & "you're so talented". All I could say was "then WHY?"

Yeah...that was a really fucking fun day.

Yeah, so I was blindsided this morning when I showed up for my normal shift with an accusation of theft. Even though I denied knowing anything about it and they had no proof whatsoever, they still chose to fire me on the spot.

I haven't been without a job for two and a half years so now I'm all paranoid that I won't have any money for the next bit to cover expenses and that I won't be able to find another job.

were you stealing space plans?

Damn, that's harsh. If you really think money's gonna be a problem you need to start looking for something else NOW. And if you can afford it, talking to a lawyer might not be a bad idea.

I don't know squat about Canadian workplace law, but if it's like most states here (mine included), ten your employer has the right to fire you "at will," just as you have the right to quit whenever you want for no particular reason. Your only legal recourse is if you've been somehow discriminated against and can prove it. I was not discriminated against, I was simply fired because of a complete lack of spine on the part of my employers, who had me at a steal of an hourly rate and did not deserve the excellent work I churned out with a smile. In your case, any reason is good enough, I'll bet, for them to can you. It's usually easier for them to do so... why go through all the work and hassle of "investigating," or even "having faith"... it's sooo much easier to just can you, wreck your life, and then move on without a moment's thought, possibly even advertising your position for a lower rate and saving money! See how that works? Yeah. It blows.

Get the ultimate revenge. Get on track to get a job ten times better than what you were doing, and pride yourself every day you get closer to it that it's their loss, and that your next gig will blow the previous one away. It's possible, trust me. I decided to get an MBA if possible, and I aimed for the best school I could find in town, kind of on a lark, and lo and behold I got in with a full ride. Eat my shit, former employer! Sorry, but it really still hurts.

Hey, congrats on that. I'm considering the transition myself though a full ride might be out of the equation.

I'm really not sure how I got it, except that I mentioned wanting to help with their newsletter during my third interview. Next thing I know, no tuition, monthly stipend, full state employee benefits. It is truly bizarre and wonderful.

Nice, buddy.
The Cap'n once told me, years ago (when I decided to go back to college): "Being a student is the best possible excuse for being the biggest piece of shit imaginable."

Good times ahead!

Yeah, since it was a mostly independent business to begin with, I'm pretty sure they could do whatever they wanted in terms of hiring and firing.

And I handed out resumes this afternoon since I've got a grand total of negative $15 in the bank. I'm hoping something comes through but I got my last two jobs through knowing people so I don't have much faith in the anonymous data sheet application process.

I was fired once at a place I'd already given notice to when I was a kid. Usually I'm the one to jump ship.

<---punched someone at work once and did not get fired.

I've been fired once and laid off once.

I got fired from a lameass temporary bookstore. They set up shop in half empty strip malls and sell overstock books until business starts to slow down and then they move on. The store opened at 10:30, I didn't open the store and we never had any customers that early so I normally came in at 10:33 or so, hardly late but not really on time either. One day I slept late after a long night out. I called in at noon and they told me to come in only to fire me right when I got there. Lame! If they would have done it over the phone I could have gone back to sleep.

I was laid off from Andersen when they got destroyed due to their involvment in the whole Enron debacle. I actually stayed around longer than most though and I got a decent severance plus unemployment so I wasn't too broken up about it.

The Squirrgle is right. At least in the states, generally, all employment is "at-will" UNLESS you have an employment contract that says different. That's rare, though, since it opens the employer up to litigation. You usually have to negotiate for it.

...or be one of the ever falling share of the workforce with a union contract, which generally offers some protection.