Florida Employment Laws
 

I am trying to understand why Florida allows employers to treat their employees like they are garbage. This law that allows them to fire people for no reason and without notice is ridiculous and cruel.

My niece worked at Carriage House, this new complex off of 466 in Oxford. Owned by Hawthorn Retirement...:grumpy: She was there 3 months prior to the place officially opening, working her tail off everyday, no time off and lousy pay but...still a job when there aren't any around. In flies the corporate jet a week ago full of corporate robots and suits...and everyone is out of a job. They said they were "bringing in their own people to work" meaning everyone who was hired at the beginning was there as a temp. They never told anyone that and now very good people are out of jobs. Some of these people lived in other states, sold their houses there and moved here under the assumption they had permanent full time employment! Now, they're out of jobs and homes...

They did it because they can and Florida law says it's ok. It's hard to work in a state where there is a permanent dark cloud over your head and you never know from one day to the next whether you're employed or not. :swear:

It's called "At will" employment and Montana is the only state that does not follow this doctrine. Unless your covered by a contract you can be fired from any job.

Your description sounds bad. Are you sure you have all the facts?

It looks like some sort of assisted living facility and Nursing home. Preparation for opening and Operating the facility are likely to require different skill sets for many people. Some of those operational jobs might even require state medical licenses.

Did the people that were laid off have the skills for the operational jobs?

Can an they apply for a new operational jobs for which they are qualified?

And if an employee wants to quit they do not have to give a reason or give any notice. That is the other side of "at will". Do you want to legislate that side of the relationship?

I understand your frustration, but the bright side would be that if she has any training or experience in the medical field, she will get other employment immediately!

Unfortunately that is the way big business does it. Zero concern for the middle class worker.

Florida is a "Right To Work" state. I have Horror stories about what has happened here in the Villages when employed by "The Villages". I won't get into it here but anyone that was employed by the Sales office or Daily Sun knows exactly what I am talking about. Called into the office as a Full-time employee and telling you that you have 15 minutes to clean out your desk. These people never had a clue and a lot were in upper- management. Never a black mark against them. Just- "We need to eliminate your job for $$$ reasons. Sorry!!"

She was not in the nursing field. It isn't an assisted living place, just a retirement complex. She was an Executive Chef and never told she was only there to set up the kitchen for what turns out to be a corporate Chef flying in on the company jet this Saturday. The people that were fired (not laid off) were Executives...managers, chefs and a baker, all who were MORE than qualified for their jobs.

Florida is a right to work state, and unemployment is very high. Remember corporations are people, my friend.

Not THIS corporation..you have to have a heart to be a person and they have no heart.

This is correct. This also means as an employee you are free to leave at will. It works both ways.

Yes, it is called the free enterprise system and sometimes a capitalistic system. This thread could go "political", if not careful, real quick. What apparently happen in this case was some folks accepting employment without any assurance of future employment when the facility became operational. You do have to "feel" for the employees and perhaps they were "duped" by this employer. There are certain Federal Labor Laws that sometimes come into play when employees are fired without cause but that is beyond the scope of this thread. You do hear of a lot of unfair labor practices these days----it happens especially in times of high unemployment.

huh??????????
 

Whaaaaatttt? Not in my book...They are created to protect the elite from responsibility...It is NOT people

If employees were all union members, the corporations could not get away with this type of abuse.

Sounds like a change in ownership and/or management.

If the employees were all union members they could also lose their jobs 'cause the union is making unreasonable demands. Goes both ways.

But, on the bright side I have my mom at Mission Oaks on 301 - have her apply there - seems like a good organization. These facilities are going up everywhere you look - don't give up hope.

Why not go straight to the source of the information and ask about their corporate policies. Tell them you WERE considering residency before you heard about this action: Oxford Retirement Community | The Carriage House Gracious Retirement Living in Oxford, FL 34484

That's a good idea..I think I will do that!!

"Start your own business"
 

I wonder how we got to this point where employees are running the show? I was brought up to go to work on time, shut your mouth and do a good job and the bucks will follow. With that upbringing, I never had any issues with keeping my job. I then started my own business and kept employees that were on my way of thinking and had no problems keeping help. Thank God I retired and got out of business when I did because I would have NEVER allowed an employee to run over me. When an employee would question me as to why I would always tell them "Because I said so. If you disagree, Start your own business" and they always went back to work after a "Yes Sir". The "Right to work" laws work.

What rosey little world have YOU been living in? As noted above, virtually ALL US states except Montana are "at-will" employment states. Unless you are SPECIFICALLY covered by a union or other legally binding contract your employment is "at-will". If I as a boss get up in the morning and I don't like you, I can ask you to leave for no reason. But as also noted, if I as a worker get up and decide I don't like my boss, I can leave for no reason. It's just life. Get on with it.

:BigApplause:

AMEN! AMEN!! & AMEN!!!

ROSEY LITTLE WORLD??? Let me tell you something...these people were fired for no reason other than they got in the way of corporate idiots taking their jobs. My niece, in her"rosey little world" is now jobless, broke and trying to raise 2 kids alone. There are 4 other people who sold their houses because they were told to move on sight and then pink slipped 2 weeks after they moved in. Maybe YOU, Mr whoever you are can get on with YOUR precious life. There are now 16 people who can't.

Tell that to the 4 people who are now not only jobless but homeless as well after being told to move on to the property and then pink slipped for no reason.

And that's what "At-Will" is. That's life. I've been fired before and I've had to go looking for another job and make do until I could find another one. And yes..I CAN get on with my precious life. Would you care to have my disabilities as well? No. I thought not.

They have a Help Wanted ad in the paper today for a Server/Housekeeper.

th-www2.thevillagesdailysun.com: Classifieds

Absolutely correct Mulligan! No unions so no protection for the middle class!

Up North to Chicago?
 

Sounds to me like Chicago is a better place to live than TV. If I fealt the way you feel about how things are done down here, I would move back to The Great City of Chicago where life is a Utopia for all citizens.:beer3:

we were just bought out by a new company....100 people walked out last week some low paying jobs... some midddle managment and some high end...it is what it is..no one says see you next week we wait, and say i have a job today

You will also find that there is a 90 day probationary period, during which no money has to be paid into the unemployment pool. Some employers take advantage of that in an area of high unemployment.

I just don't get why the "fairness" of this concept is hard to understand. Let's say a company invests a lot of money into training and relocating an employee who decides to quit one day to work for a competitor (or just stop working, for that matter). Would you like to legislate against this side of "employment at will"?

Just a quick legal note...right to work laws have nothing to do with the termination rights of employees or employers. Right to work laws simply ban mandatory union membership obligations in the presence of a collective bargaining agreement. References to florida being a right to work state in this fact situation is irrelevant.

Except that without the right to work legislation, union protection exists for everyone, and more often than not raises the local standard of living.

Even belonging to a union is no sure thing
 

My husband is the council rep (like a union steward) for the engineers in his area. All of a sudden after the long contract negotiations are over they start picking at his work. Sited for coming into work too early. Sited for taking off two hours early to go to the doctor. They doubled his acceptable work load level and then started writing him up if he didn't meet it or worked overtime. The union says they can get him involuntary layoff and 1 week of pay for each year employed but that's about it. Good thing he was planning to retire soon. The contract negotiations went on for almost a year as Boeing is trying to break the union. It is how things are going. Look at the age of those on layoff lists sometimes most are over 55. Government says people should work to 67 now and thinking of increasing it to 70. But companies don't want anyone over 45 does anyone see a problem besides me.

Actually union protection only exist for union shops, not everyone. In non-right to work states every shop is not union and if they are not union they have no protection from the union.

Many people have no clue about what it actually costs an employer to operate a business, hire and pay people and actually have some income left to take home for their own family. It's much easier to just demonize the employer as "greedy" and "filthy rich". I know various people who could not care less about this....they feel they are entitled to whatever the small business owner has. They refuse to look at the years of indebtedness, sleepless nights, working 16-hour days/nights, taking huge risks, and investing everything they had to form it:

"NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- You probably cost your boss a lot more than you think you do.

For Jim Garland, who owns a corporate aircraft cleaning and support services company, a $14 per hour worker has a true cost of $19.63 per hour, or about 40% more than base pay. This so-called "loaded rate" includes fixed expenses -- federal and state taxes, health insurance, workman's compensation, uniforms, and paid time off -- along with soft costs like the time spent training a new hire.......

"Our entire existence revolves around two numbers: revenue and payroll," Garland said of Sharp Details, in Dulles, Va., which he launched out of his car trunk in 1991. Payroll for 60 workers accounts for around 70% of his firm's operating costs......."

Why a $14/hour employee costs $20 - Mar. 26, 2010

demonize
 

Poor, Poor corporations...No need for me to demonize them, they do a great job all by themselves...Corporate theft and greed at the expense of the dissolving middle class..

gocubsgo
 

Sorry to hear about your friend (relative?). That is too bad.

Unfortunately, this is the way of corporate America these days. It doesn't make it right - but its just the way it has become.

I worked in TV area for two years -as a nurse- and was so disgusted, I moved to California. I'm adventurous, but I also planned things out carefully, so that I wasn't really locked in if I decided I'd like to come back to FL. It's not easy for everyone to do that, I know. Especially when you are a single Mom with two children. I feel bad for her.

Long story short, my employer cut our pay $2 per hr. and doubled our work load. And corporate America isn't any different here; they just do it with more finese, better explanations, and a nice pat on your back if you voice your "concerns".

What has America become, I ask ????? It all so sad, but that's how it is. No wonder many people are losing faith. We all have to toughen up, I guess. The good days are over.

Carriage House (Hawthorn Retirement) is having their huge open house over there today. Corporate people dressed up in matching fancy coats, passing out dipped strawberries, big smiles and brochures. Sad thing is, 3/4ths of the people going have no clue what an ugly mess it is over there behind all those fake smiles. Very sad...

Although things have definitely changed, I simply can't agree with you there. Keep the faith :^)

A person has to do some personal research to show where good jobs are located. This part of Florida is not noted for being a good job market with good salaries. That should be part of a person's research. A chef at a retirement community does not make good money in this part of Florida.

Also, insist on a contract BEFORE beginning work that spells out benefits, working conditions, rules, termination clauses, etc.

I am afraid too many young workers are not knowlegable about finding good jobs - and they are out there - but want to stay close to Mom and Dad in case they have to move back home.