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[Deleted member 80556]

Congrats on the article, Doc! And don't worry about the doctor's appointment, there'll be another one soon enough. You'll make it man.

It seems to me that there was more good happening here than bad.

 

[DocSeuss]

Thanks. I don't think I'll feel truly safe until I've got some kind of employment where I can just completely stop worrying about where my rent's coming from for a while.

 

[DocSeuss]

I have just been terminated from my job.

When asked why, I was told that there had been "complaints" about me.

I told her that after my positive review earlier in the semester, as well as random spot checks with teachers, I believed myself to be doing everything she asked for. She explained that there had been complaints, and I was not informed about them. I said I felt that letting me believe my conduct was appropriate without expressing any concerns was unjust. It allowed me no opportunity to change my actions.

She said "that's life," and "it's not my job to tell you these things," and "I can't tell you the specifics of these incidents." All she explained to me was that someone had complained I'd been "confrontational." I can't think of a single time I haven't been courteous and pleasant to any of the teachers, aside from one day when I was nauseated, and I apologized and said I wasn't feeling well. I mean, maaaaybe someone got upset when I told them they'd have to schedule the classroom first? But usually, I'm very obliging to any of the teachers I've worked for, and all of the ones I've asked about my behavior (I spot check myself asking for feedback) have been positive. FFS, yesterday, a teacher asked me if I would be back next semester, expressing a desire to work together.

I believe she's being dishonest with me. I have received "complaints" exactly once; they were detailed to me after my (positive!) review, and, as far as I am aware, all sprung from a conversation with a coworker who seems to like me. Seriously, I catch her smiling at me at random times, she's always super friendly and stuff... I don't even know. Heck, when I got my article published, and we changed shifts, she asked how I was, I said I'd gotten published, and she actually wanted to read my article. As in, she logged into her computer, pulled up the browser, and said "I want to read it." That doesn't really seem like someone who'd go behind my back to complain about me, much less lie to my face when I asked if there was anything I could do to improve as a coworker.

I feel my boss has been dishonest.

And I'm really

really

really

fucking scared about what I'm going to do about my life right now.

 

[Salmonax]

Seems pretty sketchy to fire you without having gone through any kind of warning or review process. Is there a superior that you can bring this to, and do you live in an at-will state?

 

[maxcriden]

That is really awful. I'm so sorry to hear it. Is there an HR or higher-up person you could talk to?

 

[theaface]

She said "that's life," and "it's not my job to tell you these things," and "I can't tell you the specifics of these incidents."

Jesus H Christ, that's EXACTLY what she's supposed to do. I'm sure LegalGAF will be on hand to talk you through your options if wrongful dismissal seems to have taken place here.

In the mean time, don't despair. It's hard to not sound incredibly cliché, but when you hit rock bottom the only way to go is up. From your original post you sounded like this person had it in for you from the very start, and that was making you unhappy and anxious. Sooner or later, whether immediately or in the near future, you'll see this as a blessing and you'll feel a lot better about not having to smile through your teeth at someone who shows you no respect and commands none in return.

 

[kirblar]

Is there any HR person in place where you were working? This is pretty classic passive-aggressive BS behavior.

 

[DocSeuss]

Unfortunately, HR has just informed me that students are terminated "at will."

HR says there's nothing they can do, and that I should talk to her boss. I've sent him an email explaining that HR told me to write him, detailing the situation, and explaining that I felt I had been doing a great job.

theaface, I would love to see this as a blessing, but how the hell am I supposed to survive?

I dropped out of flight school because I got too sick to fly.

My game design department collapsed, so while I got a degree, I didn't get the skills necessary to get a job in the industry.

I'm going to have to quit film school because I can't fucking afford to live here, but where the fuck am I going to go? I can't move home with my family--they can't afford me.

 

[Deleted member 80556]

Oh man, Doc, I'm so sorry. I hope her boss answers you. Did you detail how you think she terminated you unfairly, even though all the teachers said you were great?

Heck, maybe you should try to get signed letters from as many important people from your job and sent them to him. You didn't deserve to be fired, explain your situation to him too, tell him that you need this job.

 

[EdibleKnife]

One article freelanced, hmm...It's not much of a resume but I'd look at a journalism gig. Not just gaming but probably anything and everything just to stay on your feet for now. I say this very topic proves you've got writing in you (as does your indie comic topic) so I know you'd more than likely be able to adapt once you make it in.

 

[DocSeuss]

One article freelanced, hmm...It's not much of a resume but I'd look at a journalism gig. Not just gaming but probably anything and everything just to stay on your feet for now. I say this very topic proves you've got writing in you (as does your indie comic topic) so I know you'd more than likely be able to adapt once you make it in.

That was one this week. I've got three total published. I'm reaching out to two big PC people who asked me to submit to them at a later date. I just applied for a job at my local newspaper as well.

 

[Yasae]

At-will employment is a term used in U.S. labor law for contractual relationships in which an employee can be dismissed by an employer for any reason (that is, without having to establish "just cause" for termination), and without warning.

Basically: you have no rights or recourse.

 

[universalmind]

I just had a few tears roll down reading this.

Man thats horrible, one of the hardest things I had to read, that lady really shouldn't be in the position that she is.

I'm sorry. Thats all I can say.

There are better people on GAF to give you advice on that matter, a matter I'm not qualified to answer to.

All I wanted to express was my heartfelt sorrow at your situation and while their are no guarantees in life, I hope you find yourself in a much better situation.

Goodluck.

wtf?

 

[DocSeuss]

Basically: you have no rights or recourse.

Worse yet, since my funds came from Federal Work Study, I can't get on unemployment, since that doesn't "count" like real wages.

 

[Alcotholic]

I'm sorry to hear that, man.
would it be possible for you to find a low wage job until you can sort things out?

 

[Tapiozona]

Outside of writing are there any other jobs you're capable of doing? It seems like because of your condition you have a very limited set of professions/jobs you're able to do.

Have you thought about call centers? There may be no glory in them but at least you're behind a desk and they're readily available. They will likely pay higher than minimum wage too.

In college I applied at a temp agency. If you have good communication skills, can type fast, and have a good understanding of Microsoft Office you can land a admin job which typically nets you 12-15 an hour.

 

[DocSeuss]

I'm sorry to hear that, man.
would it be possible for you to find a low wage job until you can sort things out?

There's a chance I'll get hired for a low-wage newspaper job next fall. Looking for something else in the meantime.

Beyond this, I dunno. Maybe if a bunch of people tweeted saying how awesome my freelanced article was, it'd increase chances of my getting a writing job.

Outside of writing are there any other jobs you're capable of doing? It seems like because of your condition you have a very limited set of professions/jobs you're able to do.

Have you thought about call centers? There may be no glory in them but at least you're behind a desk and they're readily available. They will likely pay higher than minimum wage too.

In college I applied at a temp agency. If you have good communication skills, can type fast, and have a good understanding of Microsoft Office you can land a admin job which typically nets you 12-15 an hour.

I'm looking into everything right now, but yes, I don't have a lot of options due to the pain and fatigue issues.

 

[FYC]

There's a chance I'll get hired for a low-wage newspaper job next fall. Looking for something else in the meantime.

Beyond this, I dunno. Maybe if a bunch of people tweeted saying how awesome my freelanced article was, it'd increase chances of my getting a writing job.

This is an interesting idea. Throw up a link so we can share it!

 

[belmonkey]

It's not much, but when I wanted to make some extra money when I didn't have a job at college, I used Amazon Mechanical Turk to at least make something. It's one of those micro-job sites, so the pay isn't great and it can be time-consuming, but you can make quite a bit if you know what you're doing, and you follow the forum for it where people post good jobs to work on. I'm not currently using it though because I managed to get a job as a dishwasher instead.

 

[Dynamite Ringo Matsuri]

Missed this thread over the last few weeks it seems. My heart goes out to you my friend. Sent a little help your way. Hope we make the goal, and that you're able to land that freelancing job. In the mean time I'll keep an eye on the thread.

 

[DocSeuss]

It's not much, but when I wanted to make some extra money when I didn't have a job at college, I used Amazon Mechanical Turk to at least make something. It's one of those micro-job sites, so the pay isn't great and it can be time-consuming, but you can make quite a bit if you know what you're doing, and you follow the forum for it where people post good jobs to work on. I'm not currently using it though because I managed to get a job as a dishwasher instead.

I used it a few years ago, but only ever made like $14-15 a month. I'm debating with myself whether I should take the risk and try to get as far as I can on a small indie game, then release it Early Access or something.

Missed this thread over the last few weeks it seems. My heart goes out to you my friend. Sent a little help your way. Hope we make the goal, and that you're able to land that freelancing job. In the mean time I'll keep an eye on the thread.

I appreciate it.

 

[belmonkey]

I used it a few years ago, but only ever made like $14-15 a month. I'm debating with myself whether I should take the risk and try to get as far as I can on a small indie game, then release it Early Access or something.

I was kind of like that at first with it because I was lost, but I found a forum dedicated to people helping each other called mturkforum, which was quite a boon to what I made. I guess school did make it harder to do as much as I could have (plus an addiction to games), but it worked very nicely to do all the good jobs that people posted there, go do something else for a while, then come back and look at all the new things posted. I don't know how some of the people there make as much as they do though :/

 

[Kensuke]

Damn Doc. I'm so sorry you're going through this. You seem like a really cool guy. I hope my donation helps you a little.

Can you link me to your article? I'd love to read it.

 

[DocSeuss]

Damn Doc. I'm so sorry you're going through this. You seem like a really cool guy. I hope my donation helps you a little.

Can you link me to your article? I'd love to read it.

Here you go. I appreciate the help, and hope you enjoy the read.

 

[Facism]

Sorry to hear about your troubles, mate. I hope you can figure something out.

It makes my blood boil when you get people not fit for positions of authority in actual positions of authority.

 

[kirblar]

Can you apply for any form of disability?

 

[Direlect]

Perhaps you're right about needing very specific and experimental doctoring. But you may be able to relieve some pain and anxiety with medication. Painkillers and Benzos can be helpful for relieving symptoms so you can help yourself. I know these medications are paid for by Obamacare and you'd surely find HMO through medicaid that would link you to a psychiatrist or a pain management doctor. Your medical records should be helpful in that regard.

I know you mention that your family cannot afford you, but you are not healthy enough to manage this all by yourself. You need help.

 

[IZZO]

your condition seems awfully similar to my wife's condition. She had fibromyalgia. she was prescribed Lyrica or Neurotin. both help her tremendously with the pain. I suggest trying it and hope it helps. You can get it from any pharmacy.

I hope the best for you dude I've been in a bad situation in my life and feel for you. Eventually you will go past it. Good luck.

 

[DocSeuss]

Can you apply for any form of disability?

Working on it.

Perhaps you're right about needing very specific and experimental doctoring. But you may be able to relieve some pain and anxiety with medication. Painkillers and Benzos can be helpful for relieving symptoms so you can help yourself. I know these medications are paid for by Obamacare and you'd surely find HMO through medicaid that would link you to a psychiatrist or a pain management doctor. Your medical records should be helpful in that regard.

I know you mention that your family cannot afford you, but you are not healthy enough to manage this all by yourself. You need help.

I'm limited on what medications I can do, because part of the problem is my body's response to chemical stuff. Like, I'm supposed to avoid stuff like vicodin, even though, in large doses (double or triple recommended) it helps mitigate pain, 'cause of how my liver would handle it. What I need, apparently, is an awful lot of magnesium.

 

[-hal-]

Doc, I know I don't know you, but I sure know what you're going through. Your story (at least the boss part) sounds eerily similar to my own. I mean to say, it sounds like the exact same woman and I experienced almost all of the same things that you did. Freaky.

Here's what I want to say:

Hang in there, man. Don't beat yourself up over a situation like that because there was likely not a single thing you could have done to change her direction. It's something that's really hard to get your head around because the tendency is to keep questioning the situation. Don't do it.

What you want to do is take a quick look at what you learned from the situation -- whether it's about people, or life, or shitty business practices -- and move forward.

It's a tough thing to go through, and it sounds like you have a bunch of other stuff to worry about as well. But you can see right here at NeoGAF... right here in this very thread, that there are decent people too and things WILL GET BETTER. Keep moving forward and doing the right things.

 

[Liberty4all]

Check out elance.com too. Lots of easy writing jobs there.