4 Things Not to Do if You Just Got Fired

Getting terminated from a job is an emotional time. However, not every termination is handled well or legally. When this happens, it’s tempting to do some of the following, but it’s certainly not advisable:

Act Unprofessionally

Screaming, hurling objects around the office, making faces at executives, telling your boss exactly what you think of him, and where you’d like him to spend eternity is not only unprofessional, it’s inadvisable regardless of the grounds of your termination.

If you have a case for wrongful termination, the last thing you want to be admitted into court is a video of you fit for YouTube. While it might be funny there, and earn you an appreciating audience, a judge will not find the matter as comical.

Tell your Co-workers Everything

This may be difficult to avoid if your co-workers are also your friends. However, keep in mind that unless they are walking out the door with you, that employer still pays them. That means that even if they are loyal to you, they are in a very difficult place if they are asked about conversations you had with them.

If you’ve been given a severance package, many packages stipulate that you will not release details about the amount or the agreement. Doing so makes the severance on some agreements returnable to the employer.

Get Even

Florida is an at-will state and your employer can dismiss you for any reason he or she deems appropriate. There are a handful of protected scenarios. An employment attorney can help you sort out whether you were a victim of wrongful termination or not.

Getting even is never advised. It will not end well for you and is, most likely, illegal. However, getting the justice you deserve through a wrongful termination suit might be possible.

Burn a Bridge

While it may be difficult to understand why you would ever need the contacts you made at a business that terminated you, you just don’t know what the future will bring. You may have been a victim of a political situation at the office or downsizing that had nothing to do with your skill set. An employee of your former company may someday be in a hiring position and you don’t want them to remember you as a social media disaster.

Even when someone agrees with your grievances, when they are in the hiring seat, they are less likely to find someone who went down in a blaze of glory an appealing candidate for a job.

If you’ve been terminated, don’t allow your emotions to overtake your professionalism. Instead, channel your energies into something worthwhile by collecting all the information you can about your termination. This includes emails, recorded conversation, texts, written descriptions of conversations and everything else that may support your wrongful termination claims.

If you feel you’ve been wrongfully terminated by your employer, contact Wenzel Fenton Cabassa, P.A. today to schedule a free consultation and speak with one of our skilled wrongful termination attorneys.