# I'm so mad I could sue! Illegaly Fired? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [March 12, 2004, 3:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-so-mad-i-could-sue-illegaly-fired/233898 "2004-03-12T15:06:30Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 6\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Gfactor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/9de053/32.png) [@Gfactor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gfactor)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2004, 1:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-so-mad-i-could-sue-illegaly-fired/233898/41 "2004-03-17T13:06:23Z")
> [@mhendo](#): > > you should consult a lawyer. I think I hear an echo . . . . ---
**Author:** ![Shayna](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shayna/32/17976_2.png) [@Shayna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shayna)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2004, 4:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-so-mad-i-could-sue-illegaly-fired/233898/42 "2004-03-17T16:45:45Z")
> [@Skytiger227](#): > > Well I tried to talk to the HR person but they said they would call me back and never did. Then my boss called me back and told me my check is in the mail, dont set foot on the premises, and that he has witnesses that i was making a resume on their computer. He said he made it on paperwork that I never worked there, and thats why he paid me by personal check. I have no idea what the resume thing is all about. No lawyer will help me. I guess I am out of luck. ☹ Disclaimers: I am not a lawyer and I am not familiar with New York unemployment benefits and laws. Check [here](http://www.labor.state.ny.us/business_ny/unemployment_insurance/uionline.html) to be sure you get accurate information in your state. That said, I’d like to recommend something no one else has mentioned… file a claim for unemployment benefits _immediately_. Again, I am not a lawyer and didn’t live in your State when this happened to me, but I had a similar situation where I was fired (though I wasn’t even given a reason – just dismissed) from a job where my boss was a major creep who’d say things like, “I don’t like that dress you’re wearing. It’s too long, I like to see more leg.” When I filed a claim for unemployment benefits and they asked me why I was fired, I answered honestly, that I was given no reason, but that I suspected it was because I didn’t capitulate to his harrassment and described the things he’d say to me. Of course they had to contact my former employer to verify that I was, in fact, terminated, and get their side of the story as to why. The bastard lied and told them I was fired for insubordination and because of that I was denied benefits. This actually turned out to be a Very Good Thing, because once I was denied benefits, I had the legal right to a hearing in front of a judge with the unemployment department and any findings in that proceeding could be used if I wished to pursue a civil claim. I had an attorney send a letter demanding a reply as to the specific charges that led to my dismisssal and they were stupid enough to provide one with a bunch of made up crap on it (for instance, alleging that I was “consistently late to work,” however, I had copies of every single solitary time sheet with my start and end times _and my boss’s signature on them_, which proved otherwise). I got current employees to act as witnesses to verbal statements and overall atmosphere in the work place, etc. The judge found in my favor, reinstated my benefits, and we were able to use that as leverage to cause the company to settle with me before we had to pursue it further in court. Given that your former employer has told you that he’s erased any evidence that you were even actually employed there, I suspect he’ll make the same outrageous claim if he’s contacted by the State. If he does this, and you’re denied benefits, you may be entitled to all kinds of legal recourse at no cost to you whatsoever. Take advantage of the resources that are available to you! And good luck! ---
**Author:** ![LemonThrower](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/d2c977/32.png) [@LemonThrower](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LemonThrower)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2004, 8:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-so-mad-i-could-sue-illegaly-fired/233898/43 "2004-03-17T20:29:15Z")
I am a lawyer but I will not work for free, and I am only posting to point out the irony that you would ask for free advice about getting fired for not working for free. ---
**Author:** ![SlyFrog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a3d4f5/32.png) [@SlyFrog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SlyFrog)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2004, 4:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-so-mad-i-could-sue-illegaly-fired/233898/44 "2004-03-20T04:10:46Z")
> [@mhendo](#): > > So **Bill H.** and **SlyFrog** wander in and, on the basis of nothing but their own self-importance, declare the OP to be lying. > > I was under the impression that this forum required questions with factual answers, and that it required those questions to be answered factually. To me, this means that questions in this forum need to be taken at face value. So, in attempting to answer the OP’s question, one should ask: Assuming we have been given the whole story, what options are open to **Skytiger**? So you wander in, and rather than post something constructive, insult a couple of people out of your own self-righteous arrogance, and then babble something valuable like “consult a lawyer.” Did it ever occur to you that a factual response may hinge upon getting a feeling for the credibility of the case? I imagine a lawyer might want to do that in laying out options. Just a guess. ---
**Author:** ![astro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9dc877/32.png) [@astro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astro)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2004, 5:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-so-mad-i-could-sue-illegaly-fired/233898/45 "2004-03-20T05:15:59Z")
> [@SlyFrog](#): > > So you wander in, and rather than post something constructive, insult a couple of people out of your own self-righteous arrogance, and then babble something valuable like “consult a lawyer.” > > Did it ever occur to you that a factual response may hinge upon getting a feeling for the credibility of the case? I imagine a lawyer might want to do that in laying out options. Just a guess. I am a commerical real estate agent, and I work with, and socialize with, mortgage brokers quite often. Most work under a base salary + commission arrangement, but I have _never_ heard of any competent mortgage broker that was out of training and allowed to actually make loans working for an essentially minimum wage level $ 6.50 hr base salary. Maybe it happens, but I have to admit my BSOmeter was clanging even before Slyfrog’s post. ---
**Author:** ![Gfactor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/9de053/32.png) [@Gfactor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gfactor)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2004, 1:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-so-mad-i-could-sue-illegaly-fired/233898/46 "2004-03-22T13:24:51Z")
> [@astro](#): > > I am a commerical real estate agent, and I work with, and socialize with, mortgage brokers quite often. Most work under a base salary + commission arrangement, but I have _never_ heard of any competent mortgage broker that was out of training and allowed to actually make loans working for an essentially minimum wage level $ 6.50 hr base salary. Maybe it happens, but I have to admit my BSOmeter was clanging even before Slyfrog’s post. Here in Michigan, and in Ohio, to the best of my knowledge, lots of loan officers and brokers are on straight commission. The average commission on a loan is $1500-$3000 depending on a number of factors. I am not familiar with any companies that pay their loan officers or brokers a base salary. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-so-mad-i-could-sue-illegaly-fired/233898.md?page=2)