Discrimination suit?
Hi folks. I am a career sales professional. I've seen the posts by others, and thought I would seek advice. I am a competitive bodybuilder, so by nature, it is difficult to get some clothing to fit properly. I have myet suits , dress shirts and sport coats custom made, but Polo type shirts I buy off the rack. My HR called me into the office one day to tell me that my attire is "offensive and inappropriate" I was told my shirt sleeves are too tight. Mind you, our summer wardrobe calls for "Polo shirts, golf type shirts and slacks" so I was wearing exactly what everyone else was. Many overweight men wear the same shirts, but they are tight in the belly, and they have not be repremanded The C.E.O. then called me into his office, and said I was just "trying to show off (my) your muscles" . This turned into more and more harassment , including disapproval my tailored shirts (" I hate black. Don't wear that again , it looks terrible ") Finally I was again summoned to the CEO, and was told I'm being paid too much, and my contract was torn up, and I was presented with a new offer $36,400 lower. I need the income, so I had to accept. Michigan is an at will state , but does anyone think I may have a case here?
Most people have to get clothes altered. Just get a big and tall, have it Taylor's and look like a million!
Certainly regret such mayhem you're encountering. I am not certain about you having a case, but I would consider cutting them'lose unless you can persevere and jump through the hoops. Take your expertise to a business where you are needed, appreciated, respected and valued. Make certain the CEO has a good understanding of your style which keeps you comfortable and confident. I once worked where the wishy washy manager insisted on all members of department wear JC PENNY's men's polos w/company logo. The polo shirts were long like tunics on the ladies, thick, hot most of the time. The shirts were ideal for those who had large girth, but too oversized, hot and long for me, so I went to thrift store & purchased nice ones that were of cool cotton & better fit my physic......talk about haters......(glad of the thrift store) didn't stick around to have logo embellished. GOOD. My situation simular to yours. I feel you. You have my Best Regards
Hey just had this question come to mind and I am not trying to make this a stupid question but have your tried to find clothing in the 3XL and 4XL sizes? I usually wear most of my cloths in 2XL not because of body fat but from working out for 38 years. I am not really big but larger than the average man. If you are under 6 foot tall any amount of muscle mass will make you look a lot bigger than say some 6'3' or 6"4. It might cost your more to buy the special made cloths say from a big man's store but it would keep management off your back. It really sucks what they are,doing to you and seeking advice from a lawyer who specializes in employment law might not be a bad idea. Good Luck
Hercules, Hercules, "PLEASE". Just in case it has slipped your mind, dicrimination comes in a size called "HEALTH" and while you running around there, there is that one thing left, least you should forget, intimidating all those wishful tinkers, "oh yeah" tinkers. You drew this upon yourself, guess what? there's nobody left, so leave that body building body at home and put it upon the shelf, or you can just live by yourself. Cause everybody would love to do what you are doing for yourself.
Sorry Kevin, but I have to agree with Linda...your muscles aren't part of a protected class, and especially in an at will state, you're S.O.L. I don't know what company you work for, but a salesperson can always demonstrate their value to a company...or lack of, so I'd say the only possible suit you have is if there is something in the contract the gives you recourse. If there isn't, then you had a contract that wasn't of any value to you anyway since they could just...at will...void it. And even if there seems you may have recourse, be careful. Wat industry are you in and who do you work for...and have you been pretty much singled out. For example, I'm the the St Louis metro area and there are certain absolute sacred cows here that you cannot win a suit against. think about taking on BIG local companies here like AB or Enterprise. I seen people get screwed, sue...including Federal EEOC for protected class that was VIOLATED, and they couldn't win. You're a salesperson. If you're any good you should be able to get out and go somewhere else. Just take the documentation of your sales ability and value with you...and don't burn bridges. It's not a winning strategy.
I am guessing this was just to butter you up to take the smaller contract. My advice is not to worry about harassment but to start looking for another job. The next time you are called in it will probably be to fire you.
Unfortunately if the harassment wasn't discriminatory (eeoc protected classes sex, race religion etc...) then you don't have a case. Unfortunately hostile work environment cases have to go hand in hand with discrimination cases. I feel for you its a tough situation to be in when employers are clearly in the wrong but they still haven crossed the line into actionable behavior. I would recommend discussing your contract issue with an employment attorney because you could argue that your employer coerced you into signing the new contract by threatening your position so there still may be an avenue open there because anyone with their income being threatened may sign a document under duress. In future i would fight any hostile contract negotiations never sign a new contract especially when one is still in effect.
The first thing you did wrong was to accept a new contract. You didn't say anything about the dress policy. I think you should have build the facts on the dress code and certainty refused to sign a new contract, then if they would terminate you, I thing yiu would've had a wrongful termination lawsuit. Sorry to say I dont think it's discrimination.
I think so. This is clearly harassment by someone who accuses you of "showing off" because he doesn't happen to like you or something about you.
I would typically just advise someone in your situation to just move on. The legal route is opening the door to more problems for you and your future employment (its not supposed to but certainly can and does happen). But if they are aggressively trying to get you fired from your new position then you might not have an option - you have to be able to earn a living. That being said many times a company will just send a letter to your new employer (and usually directly to you too) informing them that you are violating a noncompete and “threatening” further action but it usually stops there, they are opening themselves up to liabilities too if they pursue further action. It’s hard to give advise because ALL the details matter, for example if you were under contract did they buy you out of that contract, if they did then they are not making it difficult for you to earn a living (because you have been paid for the contract) but if they didn’t then in most states they would find it difficult to have the noncompete enforced. Generally speaking most states lean on the side of employee rather than the employer in these situations assuming you haven’t stolen proprietary information or aren’t using knowledge you gained while working for the company to take clients with you to your new role. Lots of details that would come into play.