only person laid off during downsizing

[smith7483]

supposedly i was laid off due to downsizing on 6/6/05 my boss never cared for me and she made this known i was supposed to be fired (she didnt know that i knew) during my probationary period but one of my co workers quit so she needed me then she hired 5 more people and everything settled down she still made it known she didnt like me she said i draw to much attention i was a dispatcher for direct t.v so alot of males came in the office and i befriended many of them which she didnt agree with however she would never negotiate with me on my sched since i was her only employee who was unmarried and without children she stated that my schedule is flexible which is untrue i do and did still have a life even if i dont have children and i believe that is a personal issue which has nothing to due with job performance i was told i was being laid off due to downsizing however nobody else was let go i was given no paperwork to sign and as far as i knew my job operated on seniority there were 5 people hired well after me a few still on probation but they all have children i contacted my regional manager who said it was at my bosses discretion who to let go but she still has to inform me why she chose me i have yet to recieve that phone call with my explantation i want to know if this would be worth taking to court if this is even legal to lay me off due to her believing that i would be less affected due to not having any responsiblities as far as children or a husband etc

[LConnell]

Your employer doesn't have to explain why you were selected. However, laying off a person because they are less flexible in being able to work additional hours or to accommodate changes in schedules than others is a legitimate business reason.

Of course, I don't have the details of your situation so it would be impossible for me to say whether there is discrimination or not. You may wish to look at the definition of discrimination at www.eeoc.gov.

[smith7483]

thats my point i accepted every sched change given to me no matter how unfair my boss wanted me to quit because she knew that i didnt have a car so she put me on last shift which made me pay a total of 80.00 per day in a cab 40 to get there 40 to get home and she knew this but thats how much i enjoyed my job i was pass probation so she couldnt just fire me there had to be sufficient reason i called my regional manager and verified that we were downsizing but he stated that being that we operate by seniority she needs to supply me with a reason for choosing to lay me off instead of the last hire and i feel that she hasnt contacted me due to not having a sufficient reason for choosing me besides she doesnt care for me i dont want her to get away with this i can find another job but i want her to suffer some consequences for being immature and unprofessional i have had many people supervisors included come and tell me that she was waiting for the first chance she had to get rid of me, if she can call me and justify her reasons then i will walk quietly but until then i will make there lives hell

[LConnell]

While I understand your frustration, I do strongly recommend that you file a claim with the Maryland Commission on Human Relations. http://www.mchr.state.md.us/

The MCHR will be able to walk you through a decision as to whether you are a victom of discrimination. If they agree that you are, they will work with you in pursuing resolution with your former employer. If they don't agree with you, they will issue you a "right to sue" letter with a ruling that they could not find evidence of discrimination. With that letter, you can file a lawsuit against your former employer. However, keep in mind that without a "cause" determination (where the agency says that there is cause to believe that discrimination exists), you will be hard-pressed to find an attorney who is willing to work with you without you putting out a considerable amount of money. Even with that money, most attorneys will not work with you without that determination.

If you find yourself in that situation, you may wish to consider the mental cost of continuing to think about the employer. Most people find it better to move on at that point.