First let me say thank you for all the advice that I got concerning my tax return. I got the refund check last week. Now I may need your help again, Kossacks. If you remember reading my last post back in June, you probably saw that I was unemployed at the time and that I would explain why at a later time. Well, I'm about to explain. Before I continue, let me say that I will try to be as courteous as I can, even though the circumstances do not necessarily merit such respect.
In late July 2007, I started a job with a convenience store not far from where I live. It was hardly the ideal job, but hey, it paid the bills and put food on the table. The one other good thing was that I got to work with some very cool people. I earned the respect of my co-workers and supervisors and within 6 months even got a commendation for my hard work. All of my supervisors (even the Yankee fans; as I am a proud Met fan) have commended my work, and were willing to bail me out of whatever problems I may have had. Heck, even when I had days off, I would come in of my own volition, maintain a coffee pot and stock a shelf, if the staff was spread too thin. Let's fast forward to February 2009, when my then incumbent manager took a job managing another store closer to his home, leaving the Assistant Manager (who, in addition to being incredibly competent, was being trained to be a manager in his own right) to run the store, until a permanent manager (who everyone in the store assumed would be the acting manager) could be found.
Well, in mid-March, we got our new manager, who was new to the district that our store was a member of. Everyone tried to make him feel welcome and acclimated, while he tried to run a tight ship (a little discipline never hurt anyone). But on 1 April, the new manager called my house in the middle of the day (and on my day off, no less), saying he needed to talk to me about something. I asked him what the problem was, but he remained mum. I was very tempted to dodge the meeting, because I had a feeling that he was not being honest with me. I arrived at the store a little early, and saw a member of the corporate office's security team, who had just started a conference with my manager and one of my co-workers. I waited about 20 minutes when I was called in, and accused of theft (about 50 dollars. my words, not theirs, so there is no way of knowing if what I said was accurate or not.) In any event, they said that a customer had come forward and seen me eating a sandwich that I hadn't paid for and that hey have on tape stealing food. They would not show me the tape even though state law mandates that they do so (no I didn't get to ask that they show me the tape.) Even after I called the human resources department, they still would not show me the tape.
Company rules state that anything after the expiration date get tossed (duh!) but that employees do not have to pay for whatever spoils that they eat. I had been doing that almost from the moment that I worked there, and so did the vast majority of my co-workers (I worked the overnight shift), and the two previous managers were cool with that. In addition, I keep very good records (thanks to my debit card) of what I buy. Furthermore, how would a customer know if an employee paid for something or not?
Kossacks (especially those who specialize in labor law), this may not be the most appropriate place to vent a concern like this, but I have no idea what I can do. I considered an attorney and lodging a complaint with my state's labor board, but what other course of action can I take? ANything that you have to offer will be greatly appreciated.