I work for Pacific Supply Co. I was hired on 5/10/04. On 10/28/04 our District manager shows up at our location and says that he needs to talk to me. He hands me my application and asks me to verify my answers to see if they were correct. I told him yes and he said that there were some questions about it and that I was to be suspended until 11/1/04 WITH pay. As I was about to leave, it just dawned on me what the possible problem was. One of the questions was "have you ever been convicted of a felony." I had taken this to mean within the last 7 years which is the way it has always been stated on every other application I had filled out. I went back in the store and told him that it should have been answered with a yes as I was convicted of a felony 18 years ago. I was then told that I was to be suspended WITHOUT pay, but to return to work in 2 days, which would have been on 10/29/04. On that day, when i returned, I was told that the suspention was to be contniued indefinetly. It has now been 7 days and I have called every day and still no one knows if I'm still going to be employed or terminated. Is it legal for them to just leave me hanging forever just because I checked the wrong box? If not, how much time do they have to make a decision? Can I even be termed for this reason?

Yes, you can be terminated for not answering a questionnaire truthfully. However, the part of about being suspended indefinitely is troubling. My suggestion is that you write them a letter, sending it via certified mail return receipt required (so that you later have proof that they received a letter from you). Explain your side of the story and ask them to permit you to return to work. You don't have a legal basis to demand your job back so you will want to be as accommodating as possible in your letter.

Let me know if you have any other questions.