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Overly Nervous Employee Scares the Employee Under Him
Q: I work for a brokerage house that seems to be doing well. I am not yet a broker. I work under someone who is a broker but not in management. He is afraid of everything we do when the compliance officer comes into the room. We are supposed to scan …Read more.
Noncompete Agreement Cannot Take Away Person's Ability To Make a Living
Q: I worked as a medical biller for six years. Without warning, I was let go and told my accounts would be taken over by a team leader. When I started the job, I signed an agreement stating that I would not go to work for any of the company's …Read more.
Lost Job by Using Recruiter in a Tight Economy
Q: I am employed and happy in my job. I was contacted, however, by a recruiter for a job that was closer to my academic background, a more senior position than I am currently in, and located in another part of the country. The job interested me, but …Read more.
Company Fires New Employee
Q: I was hired away from my former employer and required to move to a new city for the new job. After I had just joined the new company, the senior staff resigned, one after the other. Then the company announced it was restructuring the entire …Read more.
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Smoke-Free Environment Campaign Takes Power, Proof and SupportQ: I'm a dealer in a Las Vegas casino. Just because we work in a casino doesn't mean we should be forced to breathe in the secondhand smoke from gamblers. They need to know how miserable they make life for us while we're working. We can't walk away from our tables. We are held captive, breathing in their cigarette smoke. Gamblers could be on a game for an hour or more, so we have no choice but to breathe in their smoke. If we said anything, we would be fired and other dealers easily would take our place. I know dealers who smoke themselves, and they don't even like working a game that has smokers. The tobacco industry furthers the myth that if casinos turned into no-smoking environments, they would go broke. It's a myth because the poker rooms have turned into no-smoking rooms, and their business is going like gangbusters. Only 13 to 17 percent of gamblers smoke. The airlines and restaurants in certain locations have gone "no smoking." How do we get the casinos to consider it? A: The decision is a bottom-line determination by the casinos, regardless of the proof that secondhand smoke can cause lung cancer, as well as other heart and lung health problems. First, discreetly develop a network of dealers and other casino workers who would prefer a smoke-free work environment. Then make contact with the various charitable organizations — the American Lung Association, American Heart Association, American Cancer Society and local charities — that can work together to organize a smoke-free environment campaign. You can't fight the battle alone, but with the help plus survey statistics on your side, you may be successful in creating a work environment from which even the gamblers benefit. Legal Recourse Isn't Always in Employee's Best Interest Q: I worked at an advertising agency for several years. A: The advertising agency must be small and unsophisticated, because no knowledgeable human resources representative would issue a letter stating why an employee was laid off. A company has the right to fire you or reduce your salary if it wishes, but putting a lie in writing is not wise. Because the company stated that your position no longer was needed and it replaced you soon after your departure, you may have cause for an action, depending on your state's laws. Check with your state's labor department, and meet with an investigator, if possible. Be aware, though, that if the owners and directors of the ad agency are well-known in the industry and in your area, your actions may put you on a blacklist for employment with other agencies. Legal recourse may be possible, but it isn't always the best choice to make. Put your energy in a more positive direction and strive for a more lucrative job. Please send your questions to: Lindsey Novak, c/o Creators Syndicate, 5777 W. Century Blvd., Suite 700, Los Angeles, CA 90045. E-mail her at LindseyNovak@yahoo.com, or visit her Web site at www.LindseyNovak.com. She answers all e-mails. To find out more about Lindsey Novak and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate Web page at www.creators.com. COPYRIGHT 2009 CREATORS SYNDICATE INC.
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