It Appears I'm Being Fired - Please help...

[Livin the Dream?]

Some here I'm sure will be happy to hear of this. No need to comment.

I was called into the office Thursday by my center manager, LP, another manager & a Union rep. I was asked if there was anything I wanted to tell them.

As I have never stolen, cheated, or broken the rules at UPS that I know of, I said no. They asked me how my drivers license is, and I replied it is perfect, no moving violations in 10 years.

They then advised me that, while doing an audit, my license was found to be suspended since February. They also advised that they had information that I had a warrant out for my arrest over it. I advised them truthfully that this was news to me.

They showed me two citations (non-moving violations, failure to inspect vehicle) that were tied to this suspension/warrant for arrest. Interestingly, both citations were marked "paid".

I was asked to sign a full release for them to investigate my license (I complied) and told them I would investigate & advise as well.

On Friday I called the office that issued the citations. They confirmed that they were paid, there is no warrant, and they provided receipts & a letter to UPS stating same. They advised me UPS had already called them. They advised that the tickets were paid on January 21st, 2009, and that PennDot was sent a letter stating all was clear on February 4th. They suggested I call PennDot.

On calling PennDot, I was advised that due to the time elapsed between payment & notification to PennDot, a $25 license restoration fee was due. PennDot advised that a letter was sent to me, but was returned to PennDot (As stated in a previous post, my home burned down - I was being put up in a hotel by the Red Cross at the time and I DID NOT receive this request for $25 restoration fee, nor did I get any other mail)

I went to PennDot, paid $25, and all is fixed. I have a hearing this coming week, and I believe I'm going to lose - the bottom line is, I was driving for UPS while suspended. But there was no intent, No malace, no gross negligence on my part. I HAD NO IDEA MY LICENSE WAS SUSPENDED!

I don't like my job, but I would much prefer to keep it. Do I have any chance? Any suggestions?

 

[JonFrum]

Seems like this was just a mixup and should go away now that you cleared it up.

Why do you think you are going to loose at your hearing? You have a very sympathitic situation with your house burning down, and, you were never informed of the $25 fee because of our arch-enemy The Post Office!!!

Why was your Union Rep waiting in the office with three heavy-weight management people without meeting with you first privately and informing you of the charges and preparing you for the surprise inquisition?

 

[Brown287]

Well looks like you will be applying for FedEx, maybe now you will appreciate what you get at UPS a little more. From what your posts have shown me is that it couldnt of happened to a nicer guy!

 

[TheDick]

Well looks like you will be applying for FedEx, maybe now you will appreciate what you get at UPS a little more. From what your posts have shown me is that it couldnt of happened to a nicer guy!

A pat on the back and a kick in the ass are standard operating procedure yeah?
What can brown do to you?

 

[Livin the Dream?]

...Why do you think you are going to lose at your hearing? You have a very sympathitic situation with your house burning down, and, you were never informed of the $25 fee because of our arch-enemy The Post Office!!!

I feel I will lose because, factually, I WAS driving while suspended. I have seen very little common sense practiced thus far in my employ.

Why was your Union Rep waiting in the office with three heavy-weight management people without meeting with you first privately and informing you of the charges and preparing you for the surprise inquisition?

No clue - I don't know how it works - we were both blindsided.

 

[FedEX 4 Life]

Well looks like you will be applying for FedEx, maybe now you will appreciate what you get at UPS a little more. From what your posts have shown me is that it couldnt of happened to a nicer guy!

Fedex aint hiring.

 

[Babagounj]

challenge them.....make them prove that there was a warrant issued against you or were they just blowing smoke......tell them you have discussed this whole affair with your lawyer and civil actions will be filed

 

[UnconTROLLed]

I feel I will lose because, factually, I WAS driving while suspended. I have seen very little common sense practiced thus far in my employ.



No clue - I don't know how it works - we were both blindsided.

I have been in the office 2 times in 8 years and both times the union representative took me aside before any meeting with management about the situation and what to NOT say.

I find it hard to believe your rep was blindsided by this to the point he could not have pointed you in the right direction to be tactful in this meeting prior to it.

Anyway, I agree with JonFrum on this one. I think if you can prove that the letter was returned to addressee and your license was only suspended due to a non-payment in that instance, (i.e. house burning down), you will keep your job.

You are not on their "radar" are you? That might be a fly in the ointment, perhaps UPS is looking anywhere to get people an unpaid (or paid) vacation and this is the avenue...

 

[anonymous6]

It's OK to come here for some general advice and comments but on friday morning I would of been calling lawyers that specialize in labor law for free consultations to get some professional comments and advice.

that's what I would do if i thought my job was in jeopardy.

 

[cino321]

At what point were you terminated? Unless they put you on some kind of notice of discharge, then you have nothing to worry about. Fix the paper work nonsense and get back to work.

 

[Livin the Dream?]

I have been in the office 2 times in 8 years and both times the union representative took me aside before any meeting with management about the situation and what to NOT say.

I find it hard to believe your rep was blindsided by this to the point he could not have pointed you in the right direction to be tactful in this meeting prior to it.

I truly do not know what to say - that is how it happened.

Anyway, I agree with JonFrum on this one. I think if you can prove that the letter was returned to addressee and your license was only suspended due to a non-payment in that instance, (i.e. house burning down), you will keep your job.

I have letters from all involved proving / showing this

You are not on their "radar" are you? That might be a fly in the ointment, perhaps UPS is looking anywhere to get people an unpaid (or paid) vacation and this is the avenue...

Not at all (that I am aware of, anyway). I do my job, keep my mouth shut.

I appreciate your input

 

[Livin the Dream?]

At what point were you terminated? Unless they put you on some kind of notice of discharge, then you have nothing to worry about. Fix the paper work nonsense and get back to work.

No notice of discharge. Advised there will be meeting this coming week after what I presented as proof is confirmed. I was told, in these exact words "If you drove while suspended, you will be terminated"

 

[bubsdad]

I would think, under the circumstances that you explained, you will keep your job. That is, if what you said is true and your manager doesn't have it out for you. Your BA should be able to make short work of this.

 

[cino321]

Yeah give me a break. They would of put you on a 72 hour notice if they were planning on firing you pending the investigation.

 

[UnconTROLLed]

Not at all (that I am aware of, anyway). I do my job, keep my mouth shut.

I appreciate your input

No problem. You have nothing to worry about - just IMO. Of course famous last words

If anything management probably views you as an asset, running lunches and etc. Those people are just following the protocal (CYOA) and likely all sides are on your side.

 

[pickup]

living the dream: I am sorry to hear about this situation. I am not sure about how PennDot does stuff as each state is a little different. What strikes me odd about this situation is that two citations were issued and failure to respond (because you weren't aware of the situation) resulted in license being suspended. However, eventually somebody responded to these citations and paid them. I know Penn Dot didn't pay them. So who found out about these citations(after the initial deadline) and then decided to pay them?

I also assume your vehicle has been inspected, or has it? I also ask how did you let it get to the point that a ticket would get issued for this?

I don't mean to be rubbing salt in the wound. Your initial post was written in great detail but there is a big mystery in who paid your fines. I would be scratching my head if someone paid my fines. I would like to know who this person is and let him know I have other bills that he may want to look at as well.

 

[pickup]

and this is a lesson for all drivers to periodically get their abstracts from their state dmvs. If you do , you can become aware of a problem before ups does and at least not get blindsided in a meeting.

 

[dilligaf]

P/U, the impression I got was the fine was paid. Shortly there after the house burned down forcing them to motel. The state sent a notice for being late but it was not rcvd. It sounded to me it was more a case of bad timing.

Why the payment was late could have been any number of reasons, including the PO dependable service.

 

[pickup]

P/U, the impression I got was the fine was paid. Shortly there after the house burned down forcing them to motel. The state sent a notice for being late but it was not rcvd. It sounded to me it was more a case of bad timing.

Why the payment was late could have been any number of reasons, including the PO dependable service.

after reading your post dilli, and rereading his post, I NOW get that impression as well, so thanks. Bad timing yes. This is not monday morning quarterbacking but there are two things that he could have done to increase his chances of this not happening: had his vehicle inspected so that he never received the citations in the first place and paid the fine in person (not rely on the post office). Of course if this agency was 200 miles away, then maybe that isn't a good option. But even then, pay early ,way before the deadline to compensate for the snailmail delay. I am not picking on living the dream, but now in retrospect, it might have been easier to have pushed these actions harder than what he is facing now. I am a big believer when it comes to tax deadlines, and ticket deadlines, it is better to get the harvest in three days early than one day late.

Living the dream, I am not picking on you, but am using this situation to let others (including me) to learn from it. This is the equivalent of the accident on the side of the road. By the grace of god there go I, but since my eyes are on this accident, I might as well learn from it. I sympathize with you about the house fire because I was once in an apartment building fire (not on my floor and little smoke) but I remember how that disrupted me for a week as I couldn't get back in for a few days. My stuff was still there when I got back . I assume yours wasn't. Good luck buddy.

 

[UpstateNYUPSer(Ret)]

LTD, from what you have presented here I would have to agree with most of the members in that you have nothing to worry about. Simply present what you have told us here, along with your supporting documentation, and you should be just fine.

I agree with Dilli that it appears that LTD paid the fines but due to the house fire and relocation his mail service was disrupted and he did not receive the letter(s) from PennDOT.

I am sure we can all understand the liability UPS would face if one of us was operating a pkg car with either a suspended or revoked license and we were involved in an accident.

Pickup had a great idea--pull your abstract annually. We all must complete the certification form in January so pulling your abstract a few months before will ensure that there are no surprises. When filling out the certification, make sure to list any violations. Remember that this form is a legal document and your signature on the form certifies its accuracy and could come back to bite you if you are less than truthful and UPS pulls your abstract. I received a speeding ticket but went to a AAA Defensive Driving School which took those points off of my license. I listed the date of the violation and the date of the school and submitted the form.

LTD, I admire your courage in presenting in great detail what you are going through, knowing full well that certain members will see this as a chance to take a shot at you. I do hope things work out for you. Dave.