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I'm from CA and I was fired for failure to get approval for overtime. I've been at this company for almost 18 years and on 12/11/12, I was told that I'm now an exempt employee and by law exempt employee doesn't get overtime. I have a letter from the person that handles our HR and it stated that as discussed you are now an exempt employee, overtime needs to be approved in advance as well as reported promptly. I filed for UI on 12/02/13 (the day I was fired) and I have a phone interview on 01/07/14. On letter states that I will be ask these questions, Why are you no longer working at your very last job? Were you warned that your actions could result in being fired? When were you warned? I had to sign a letter dated 02/13/13 after going over the overtime issue with the owner and at the end of the letter there's a line that says "If you fail to get advance approval for overtime and/or fail to report your overtime promptly again, further disciplinary action will result up to and including termination." On 11/22/13 I left the office a few minutes early along with the receptionist since we had a verbal agreement with the owner that no employees in our office should be there alone (it's a all female office and usually only two of us there). On 12/02/13, when owner and HR came to talk to me about leaving early on 11/22/13, I said to the owner that I confirmed with you twice that you were ok with me leaving early on Fridays with the receptionist and he look down and said I don't recall that conversation. I was told I'm fired after that. What are my changes of getting unemployment?
They fired me for working overtime. My office hour was 8am to 5pm. A few times I got to the office a few minutes early due to light traffic and I would start checking my work emails before 8am. I also sometimes have to stay after 5pm if we have a walk in client and we have to help them. We never know when someone will show up at the end of the day so there is no way for me to get prior approval for working pass 5pm. They consider that I was working overtime but I never asked for overtime pay since I'm an exempt employee. We don't have time card in the office. Time are tracked by the office receptionist and she calls the time in to the HR person when payroll is due.
Here's the thing, because you were fired, you don't have to tell that story. Just say you were, "fired," and say no more.
Here's why:
The employer might not tell that same story.
The employer might not tell one at all
The employer might not send in the paper work
However, if you tell that story, there's enough there to get an initial denial on a "rules violation," but if handled right on appeal, it could be over come. One of the requirements is that the rule has to be material. It's beyond me how a salaried employee working "overtime," and not being paid for it is "material." The deputies though don't care much about the finer points of UI decisions, so YOU don't want to be the one to put it out there, but if your employer does, then you can't stop them, but if the employer doesn't bring it, and you don't bring it up, life will be so much easier for you.
When I filed I said I was fired and reason was due to failure to get approval for overtime. So if asked why I was fired during the phone interview I can't said I don't know why. What's the best way to answer that?
You backpedal. You can say, "you need to get clairification from my exemployer on that. I was salaried, and the reason for my termination made no sense to me."
How's this - "I was told I was fired due to failure to get approval for overtime. You need to get clarification from my employer on that since I was a salaried exempt employee and the reason for my termination makes no sense to me."
I think I just wrote fired for failure to get approval for overtime on the application.
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