#WorkTroubles #Suspension #LegalAdviceNeeded
Hey everyone, I could really use some advice on a frustrating situation I’m dealing with at work. So here’s the deal:
– I work at a gas station in a small northern Maine City.
– On Friday June 14th, I closed the store as usual, with everything secure.
– When I came back to work on Monday, I was immediately suspended because of a robbery that happened over the weekend.
– I had no involvement in the robbery, but because I closed that night, they think I could be connected.
– I haven’t been contacted by the police or any management about this issue.
I’m losing money over something I had no part in, and I’m wondering if they can legally suspend me like this? 🤔
Do you have any advice on how to handle this situation? I would really appreciate any input or insight you might have! Thank you in advance!
Yes, it’s legal. And it makes sense even if you are innocent, that they’d need to investigate it to be sure.
>I’m losing money for what in my opinion is ridiculous.
You may be able to file for unemployment for the hours you’ve missed.
Have you had contact with your employer in the week and a half since the robbery? If not, I think you should look for another job.
That doesnt sound like robbery but rather burglary or breaking and entering. Robbery is a crime against a person (someone would be present in order for them to have been robbed) whereas burglary and its other equivalents are crimes against property.
They are nearly definitely well within their rights to suspend you. Given where you are employed, you are almost certainly employed at- will. Unless there was a contract of employment in which they limited their right to suspend you. They could suspend you for months, then they could fire you for good reason, bad reason or no reason at all.
Id look for a new job if I were you.
File for unemployment for the time you aren’t working and getting paid, if you haven’t already.
Did the police contact you as part of their investigation? If not, that’s weird. Are you sure there was a break in or are they using it as an excuse?
You do not have to be let go to receive unemployment. Ask for your suspension to be documented in writing, then take your 8 most recent pay stubs and go file for unemployment for the lost wages.
Once you’re back to work, be sure to let the unemployment office know immediately because they will recapture any excess and possibly add a fine if you are getting both income streams at the same time.
I’m sorry. This really sucks.
Fellow Central Mainer here, go find a new job asap, I understand work is limited up north, but waiting on unemployment is gonna put you in the poor house unless you can’t find anything else. Maine is ‘at will’ so unless there’s a guarantee that you are going back to work, I’d start looking for something new. FYI, there’s a 2 or 3 week waiting period for unemployment, and you can’t collect on the first week that you start working again even if you haven’t been paid yet. I made this mistake many years ago.
If the alarm code was set then the alarm would have either gone off or it was disarmed by someone. If it was disarmed I would be asking for the alarm company to provide logs to see what happened and what code was used.