Can I get employment if i have been fired due to poor performance and absenteism...

by Paul
(Florida)

I worked as a customer service rep for an insurance company. I was fired because of unsatifactory performance. I received a written warning to bring my statistics up. I was not able to achieve the "92%" that was required. I was not habitually late for work but a couple weeks after my written warning I was 2 hrs late for work. I called in 2 hrs before the start of my shift to advise my supervisor that I was coming in from out of town and knew that I would not arrive by the start of my shift. I was also a no call\no show on the day after New Years 2009 because I misread the company's holiday calendar. I thought that we had the day after Christmas and New Years off. When I came in the next day I advised my supervisor why I was out. My supervisor never responded. Two weeks later they fire me and gave me a severance payment.


Hi Paul,

I can rarely say yes or no to anyone, but rather tell you what I think may be a problem with your side and the employer's.

A no call/no show is an attendance problem which is a separate policy form performance issues. If I were talking to the employer I'd tell them to never mix policy violations, but rather to follow a separate and disticnt course of progressive discipline for each policy.

Poor performance is tough to prove misconduct unless the employer can show neglect of some kind on your part.

An employer may be able to substantiate misconduct for attendance as long as they have followed their own policy and procedure, but because you say that two weeks had elapsed between the no call/no show and your termination...If I were speaking to the employer I'd want a good reason for the lapse in time...between the violation and the action. States are concerned with the "final incident" and when too much time passes they start to wonder just how severe the misconduct was viewed by the employer. They want to know why it wasn't dealt with swiftly.

I realize this doesn't actually answer your question, but I do think ,it, among other things only you can be aware of (such as what the employee handbook prescribes for dealing with your policy violations) are the weaknesses your employer faces in proving willful misconduct.

Chris