
Ask HN: I may be facing retaliation, unfair treatment at work, any suggestions? - noreply
NOTE: I will not reply to this thread but I will actively monitor this thread.<p>My employer is in CA and I work in CA.<p>I believe I am facing retaliation and unfair treatment at work. I am not looking for help in deciding if this specific instance is retaliation or not.<p>What resources do I have, legally, to raise this and request an investigation without risking my employment immediately.
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LinuxBender
I am not a lawyer and this is not legal advice.

Document all the facts with no emotion whatsoever, along with time stamps of
when each fact occurred.

If there are others that you know for a fact are not two-faced that will also
provide statements, then get quotes from them. There are power in numbers,
assuming those numbers are not snitches trying to earn points with the bad
bosses.

Do everything in email, ticketing systems and other things that leave trails
that may be backed up.

Form a rough draft of a document on your own system that pulls together all
the facts, time stamps, etc, then have a section below that goes into detail
for each item. Remember to update your document as things unfold.

If the document is on your work computer, they may be able to see it and they
can take it away from you.

Be ready to provide this document to HR, Legal and potentially your own legal
counsel if you believe the company has malicious intent. They have to know
that you have all your ducks in a row and that you are ready to contact
outside counsel and your state.

Or, just move on to a better company and make sure people know that company is
toxic, again, stating only the facts that can be validated.

Glassdoor is such a place. Perhaps you can save others from the toxicity.

I am not a lawyer and this is not legal advice.

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epc
Caveat: I am not a lawyer and this is not legal advice.

I'd start by finding and consulting an employment law attorney, they can best
walk you through your options under California and US Federal law.

Beyond that: document everything dispassionately in multiple places, including
paper. Ideally have a copy you can bring to and leave with the attorney if you
engage the attorney. Assume your employment can be terminated at any time and
that you'll be escorted from the office with no access to your desk or
computer.

Assume that anything you've said or written, regardless of context, will be
used against you.

If your employer is large enough it may have an HR organization which _may_ be
able to help, but HR primarily exists to mitigate risk to and to protect the
company.

In my personal experience, if the conflict is with one or two specific
individuals, it may be resolvable without leaving the company but resolution
to your satisfaction will depend on the roles of the individuals involved. If
the conflict is with some inherent characteristic of the company then you
should prepare to leave, ideally on your terms by working with an attorney.

