What do you do if you were fired at your last job?

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Have you ever been fired?
Yes and it was my fault 21%  21%  [ 8 ]
Yes but it wasn't my fault 29%  29%  [ 11 ]
No 50%  50%  [ 19 ]
Total votes : 38

iamnotaparakeet
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14 Dec 2007, 9:04 am

The other companies view my application as trash if I list it and if I don't I can lose the job I may get for making an omission of data that they would use to disqualify me with. What do I do?



czechguardsman
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14 Dec 2007, 9:51 am

I set the place on fire.



pandabear
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14 Dec 2007, 9:53 am

Do you have to say that you were fired?



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14 Dec 2007, 10:00 am

How likely is it that the omission would be discovered? Outright falsehoods have a way of coming back to haunt you, but simply not mentioning a job that didn't work out so well, that you maybe didn't work at for a long time anyway? Unless there's some way you can put a positive spin on it, I would avoid mentioning it altogether.



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14 Dec 2007, 10:58 am

I'm glad someone made this thread, because I'm sort of in the same situation myself. I can't decide whether I should just not mention my last job, or whether I should go ahead and put it on there, and hedge my bets that they don't call up my previous employers to investigate the reason I don't work there anymore. I think I might leave it off, but I have so little else in the way of previous work experience that it might cause my application to look suspiciously blank.



pandabear
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14 Dec 2007, 12:38 pm

Maybe what you could do is ask a friend to pretend that they are considering you for a job, and that they are calling your old company for a reference. Then, you will have a good idea of what they might be saying about you.

There may be some legal restrictions about what a former employer can and cannot say about you, to avoid slander, but I'm sure that any potential future employer would keep confidential what your past employers said about you.

Generally, the safest thing for your old employer to say would be "He worked here from X to Y." And, if the only other thing he said was "that is all that I am going to tell you", then that would be a shorthand way of saying "Don't hire this guy."



sinsboldly
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14 Dec 2007, 12:40 pm

>It will be important that your resume is unified, so if you decide not to include the "reasons for leaving" portion of the resume for one job, do the same for all of the jobs you have worked.

You may also choose to include the "reason for leaving" section of the resume. Be careful to avoid the use of words such as "terminated" or "fired" "let go" etc... Instead approach this section by listing information that is truthful, as your "reason for leaving." Examples of how to approach this would to use such phrases as "lack of work" "health issues" or "family difficulties".

Consider the reasons you were fired.
Were you in a personal crisis, and having trouble keeping up with your work load, getting to work on time, or focusing on job duties?
If this is the case you may choose to write either "Health issues." or "Family difficulties."

Were you fired because you had trouble getting back and forth to work, due to transportation issues?
This can be listed on your application or resume as "Lack of transportation."
or "Too far to travel." or "Pay not reflective of travel costs."

Usually being fired is a symptom of other problems we are facing in life.
What was keeping you from doing, or being, your best when the firing occurred?
It is illegal to lie on a job application.
If you get the job, and later the boss discovers you lied on your application, this would be grounds for immediate termination.
Writing such statements as mentioned above will generally cause the prospective employer to ask you about the issues mentioned.
This is the appropriate time to admit that you were having difficulties, and to clearly let the employer know that you have since corrected the problems, or come up with a better way to handle them.

Most employers will be looking at how you have handled difficulties, and will want to see that you have since addressed any problems that you had at previous places of employment. They will respect your honesty, and appreciate the efforts you have made to rectify previous employment issues.



pandabear
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14 Dec 2007, 3:25 pm

How long were you at your last job? If it was a short time, then I wouldn't list it. How would they ever find out, anyway?

When you are applying for jobs, it is not the time to be honest.

Plus, if they like you after they have hired you, then they won't fire you based upon having lied on your application. The only time they would do this would be when they didn't like you and were looking for an excuse.

Lying, or at least embellishing things on applications and at interviews is expected.



iamnotaparakeet
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14 Dec 2007, 3:39 pm

If you were fired for grumbling too loudly and talking too much in front of the customers and with coworkers when stressed out, what do you do then?

I had a bad situation after my stepdad threw me out in January. I was working for McDonald's since April last year and just started working for Wal-Mart in December. When I was thrown out various coworkers gave me a place to stay, but I eventually had to live on my own. When I tried doing that I found my income from both jobs and the excess from the time I spent with friends was dwindling away and I would not have enough to keep going forever. I was stressed out and worried about what to do and that influenced how well I worked and got along with coworkers. Additionally, when I was walking 16 miles per weekend day to work, I was getting fatigued and angry that the bus didn't run on weekends. That having an impact on my work and some customers and coworkers not liking my grumbling and thinking aloud, I was fired. After being fired from Wal-mart, McDonald's also let me go because Wal-Mart did. I was out of both jobs in the same week in April this year and haven't worked since. Application after application, 1 interview, but no job. This sucks.

What do I do? I've learned to keep my mouth shut about my problems and not discuss controversial topics if I differ with those I'd be talking with- even if they ask me anything, it is a trap. So, what do I do?



iamnotaparakeet
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14 Dec 2007, 7:06 pm

How would I apply the above advice to my situation? I still don't feel that I did wrong and I'm glad this situation resolved into fixing some family problems, but how would I get a job next?

iamnotaparakeet wrote:
If you were fired for grumbling too loudly and talking too much in front of the customers and with coworkers when stressed out, what do you do then?

I had a bad situation after my stepdad threw me out in January. I was working for McDonald's since April last year and just started working for Wal-Mart in December. When I was thrown out various coworkers gave me a place to stay, but I eventually had to live on my own. When I tried doing that I found my income from both jobs and the excess from the time I spent with friends was dwindling away and I would not have enough to keep going forever. I was stressed out and worried about what to do and that influenced how well I worked and got along with coworkers. Additionally, when I was walking 16 miles per weekend day to work, I was getting fatigued and angry that the bus didn't run on weekends. That having an impact on my work and some customers and coworkers not liking my grumbling and thinking aloud, I was fired. After being fired from Wal-mart, McDonald's also let me go because Wal-Mart did. I was out of both jobs in the same week in April this year and haven't worked since. Application after application, 1 interview, but no job. This sucks.

What do I do? I've learned to keep my mouth shut about my problems and not discuss controversial topics if I differ with those I'd be talking with- even if they ask me anything, it is a trap. So, what do I do?



sinsboldly
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14 Dec 2007, 8:36 pm

I have lived many places in my life. I have moved every 6 to 18 months. It is because I will 'wear out my welcome' with the employers in the area and I have to move on. I then get new jobs, sometimes in the same chain stores as others' sometimes in their counterparts ( instead of McDonalds, I go to Burger King, not Walmart, but Target, is an example)

I have done that for over 40 years to overcome the same problem you are talking about, iamnotaparakeet. I wish you the best.


Merle



iamnotaparakeet
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14 Dec 2007, 10:54 pm

I'm sorry that your circumstances are such that we can each sympathize. Thanks.


Ben



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15 Dec 2007, 9:24 am

pandabear wrote:
How long were you at your last job? If it was a short time, then I wouldn't list it. How would they ever find out, anyway?

When you are applying for jobs, it is not the time to be honest.

Plus, if they like you after they have hired you, then they won't fire you based upon having lied on your application. The only time they would do this would be when they didn't like you and were looking for an excuse.

Lying, or at least embellishing things on applications and at interviews is expected.
It isn't ethical to lie on your job application but it isn't lying to say you lost previous jobs because of transportation issues, illness, family concerns etc.

I think there is some systemic discrimination against Aspies and people with mental illnesses where getting jobs is concerned (NB: I am NOT suggesting AS is a mental illness but it is very common for it to be seen as such and for employers to then be reluctant to hire AS people)

IamNotAParakeet, I'm sorry to read you've had so much trouble and wonder if there is any chance you could go to an employment agency which has has experience in placing AS people in jobs?


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iamnotaparakeet
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15 Dec 2007, 3:01 pm

Pandora wrote:
IamNotAParakeet, I'm sorry to read you've had so much trouble and wonder if there is any chance you could go to an employment agency which has has experience in placing AS people in jobs?


There are quite a few employment agencies around, so I could ask. I still think I'll get the blame and not AS, so probably low likelihood but I need to try.



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15 Dec 2007, 11:17 pm

If you live in the US, go to a state employment agency, and be honest with your caseworker. They work with the potential employers. They'll help you write an up-to-date style resume, which leaves out a lot of stuff old formats required. They'll help you make lists of info needed for filling out applications, and you just take that with you to use whether for on-line or in person applications.

DVR (Dept Vocational Rehab) can be helpful, sometimes, too.

There is a database maintained by state taxation and employment that any employer can see, if you've paid taxes, so I wouldn't lie about having a job. On the application, just say "left for personal reasons," or "to get another job."



pandabear
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17 Dec 2007, 2:03 pm

There you go: just say that you left because of the transportation issues. A future employer would probably sympathize with not wanting to walk 16 miles.

That is all that you need to say.

Walmart and McDonald's have a lot of turnover anyway.