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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

Sacked after ONE day! :(

171 replies

PrankedByLife · 28/12/2020 12:24

This happened a couple of weeks ago but I still can't get over it.

After TEN years of temporary and contract work I finally got a permanent job!
£40k, permanent, 3 month probation period, in my field of expertise, directly employed with the company, no crappy agencies involved - I thought finally, after 10 years of rubbish God had finally rewarded me.

They sacked me after ONE day!!!

First he said I was over qualified and then I was too slow.

The irony of this situation is, I've never worked so hard in my first day in any job. I was hands on, got a lot done.

I emailed the owner of the business who actually hired me to let him know that the MD had sacked me and nearly two weeks on he hasn't bothered to reply.

I can't believe they only gave me one day to prove myself!!

I have to admit the atmosphere was strange the minute I got there - no one was prepared to even say hello!

Has this happened to anyone else and did you ever find out why?

I feel like I'm meant to take the scraps of jobs forever, I'm not good enough for a proper job.

OP posts:
Butchyrestingface · 28/12/2020 13:38

That sounds horrendous, I'm not surprised you're upset. Did you leave another temporary role to take that one?

sixthtimelucky · 28/12/2020 13:41

So sorry OP, this is terrible. Please try not to let it knock your confidence. I'd bet anything it was to do with cost saving ie they can't afford the role now. Good luck with finding something else x

Feedingthebirds1 · 28/12/2020 13:41

@Norah8

It sounds like a lucky escape. No one said hello... Yikes
Possibly they all knew what was going to happen and would have felt awkward and hypocritical being all welcoming.
Original poster
PrankedByLife · 28/12/2020 13:41

13:14Yerroblemom1923
I've earned more in the past
It's not about the money
Go on a recruitment site to see what kind of jobs pay over £40k

OP posts:
Xenia · 28/12/2020 13:43
  1. Tomorrow make a data subject access demand from. You want all the notes from your interview and anything else relevant. (It might have been sex discrimination for example).
  1. Ask them for reasons in writing.
stayathomer · 28/12/2020 13:47

Happened to me once but was a tempting job. I turned up and had obviously taking somebody else's job at everybody was frosty to me from the very beginning. Not told what to do except a quick run through and when I asked a question the lady shrugged and left. At lunch time the place emptied so I wandered around a business park for half an hour. Got back and went on with my job. I got a phone call on my way home at 5 to ask why I'd not come back after lunch. I told them I had and everyone would have seen me at my desk. She said it was fine and they no longer needed a temp and she'd pay me for the week. I was in shock coming home. Sorry to hear that op

Original poster
PrankedByLife · 28/12/2020 13:49

I am Asian, Indian, Sikh, middle class - They were all white, working class types. So I guess I am covered by the protected characteristics. However, I don't feel that race or gender could have been the issue, they could see what I looked like at the interview.

OP posts:
Original poster
PrankedByLife · 28/12/2020 13:50

My very foreign name on my CV - so it can't have been about race, religion, gender etc.

OP posts:
ThumbWitchesAbroad · 28/12/2020 13:50

I've come to the conclusion that if anyone gives you more than one reason for something, then they're generally lying about it.

So in other words - nothing to do with your performance or qualifications, and far more likely to be something wrong in the company itself - either a powerplay between the manager and the boss, or the funding for the job had changed, or something like that. The fact that no one even said hello does suggest very strongly that everyone else knew already that you weren't going to be staying, which is REALLY shit.

As lots of PPs have said though - you're better off out of it, despite the upset because who wants to work for idiots like that?

I wish you the best of luck in finding a FAR better job that will make you welcome and you'll enjoy.

TatianaBis · 28/12/2020 13:51

You walked into a situation that had nothing to do with you personally.

They had obviously decided to ‘fire’ you after the first day rather than be honest that they didn’t have a job for you any more for whatever reason. (Whatever was going on behind the scenes).

Meruem · 28/12/2020 13:53

I got a job once where the funding never materialised. Seemed they had been a bit premature holding interviews!

Another place I worked somewhere for a while, long probation period (1 year), everything was going swimmingly, I was getting good feedback. Then my manager suddenly took against me (could never figure out why) and sabotaged me at every turn! She told me to do certain things (I had the proof in emails from her) then listed them as reasons to let me go. I got the union involved, they said I had a good case. But when it came down to it they can sack you for any reason if it’s within the timeframe, I think it was 1 year at the time and is now 2. It’s utterly frustrating but you have no legal protection.

However, better jobs came along and I always think of it as having dodged a bullet when things like that happen.

ThumbWitchesAbroad · 28/12/2020 13:53

I also doubt very much it was sex discrimination, since the job you were taking was also done by a woman. But I wouldn't be too quick to dismiss the other options (race and religion) - as you've already pointed out, you were hired by someone other than the person who sacked you, so they might have thought it was a good plan but the people working with you might have had other ideas about it.

Again, best off out of it, honestly.

Purplethrow · 28/12/2020 13:54

It wasn’t a car dealership by any chance?

Original poster
PrankedByLife · 28/12/2020 13:55

But note the MD is the boss. The owner is the shareholder. The legal roles of the respective people is broadly the same in a small Ltd company as it is in a PLC. The shareholders (owners) get to vote on the board and possibly the MD/ CEO (or at least their package). The rest of the hiring decisions are the responsibly of the MD/ CEO and whomever they appoint to manage, not the shareholders (owners). I just thought I would mention this as you have said you contacted the owner but they hadn’t responded and I can understand why they would not wish to try to undermine the MD.

No, the MD is not the owner/ boss.
The actual guy that owns the business hired me.
The MD is MD by name only and due to leave soon himself. I do know the structure of the business whereas, you're are just guessing.

OP posts:
Lalalatte · 28/12/2020 13:56

The fact that no one said hello suggests something was up, they decided they didn't want to employ someone after all.. ? Either way a very unprofessional company.

bluebell34567 · 28/12/2020 13:57

have you got any info-review about the company before applying, starting?

Awwlookatmybabyspider · 28/12/2020 13:58

What a cunty twatty thing do to someone. Sadly though Employment laws allow them to do that. As far as I'm concerned workers rights should start from day 1 never mind after 2 years. Under the current system your boss could be having a bad day and decide you're the target.

Not only is it a severe knock to your self esteem but What if you'd be signing on and then you had to go through the rigmarole of claiming again and them wanting to know the ins and outs of a ducks arse. Mind you I assume you've already gave up your temporary work. Hopefully you can just go back to it, though.

Original poster
PrankedByLife · 28/12/2020 13:58

Today 13:36IMNOTSHOUTING

It goes without saying but it's a really shitty thing for them to do. For all they knew you turned down another job for this.

When I left he shouted out behind me, I'm so glad you were unemployed and that you didn't leave another job for this!!
Like it's OK to treat me like that because I was unemployed!!

OP posts:
hammeringinmyhead · 28/12/2020 13:59

How long between job offer and start date? I am another who reckons they didn't have the budget they thought they did.

Heartlantern2 · 28/12/2020 14:01

Office politics. Something else was going on that you don’t know nothing about.

It’s absolutely nothing to do with you and definitely not any reflection on you what do ever. These things just sometimes happen.

Penguin81 · 28/12/2020 14:02

I have a feeling they might have lined somebody else up for the job, which perhaps wasnt confirmed til after your interview, hence the atmosphere and treatment of you (although totally out of order!)

Original poster
PrankedByLife · 28/12/2020 14:02

Stayathomer - sounds like your colleagues lied about your whereabouts - some nasty types out there.

OP posts:
TatianaBis · 28/12/2020 14:03

The fact that no-one said hello means they all knew that you weren't staying imo.

You've been hired and then a decision has been taken that they don't have the money to pay you, or a couple of existing workers can cover your role, and/or they'll just buy in accountancy services when they need it etc. Or - one person hired you, another person didn't think you were needed, wanted someone else etc.

Whatever - shenanigans have been afoot since you were hired.

Rather than explain to you in an adult way that the job was no longer available your immediate boss let you show up and fired you as it was easier. That way the implication is that you're at fault not them and you're on the back foot.

They sound thoroughly incompetent and unprofessional from start to finish.

EscapeTheCastle · 28/12/2020 14:03

Are they going to pay you?

What a disgraceful place to treat you like this. I'm angry for you!

Sparklfairy · 28/12/2020 14:04

I don't mean to put this as bluntly as it's going to sound, but do you think you were hired to 'tick a box' re equality hires? That happened to me (and a few friends!) - all men in the workplace, had a recruitment drive where only women were hired, then we were all let go within a few months. But their statistics showed that women were 'hired'. You could look into whether you have an argument for race and religion, especially as they clearly didn't give you feedback/review and reasonable chance to rectify it before letting you go.