I need advice!!

[kristoph]

I am new to this site, but much appreciate the opportunity to be able to have my questions anwered.

I moved here to Phoenix, Arizona, about 5 years ago, and have previosly worked in management for restaurants. I have always been a top employee, and am confident that I have continued to grow in my profession, and am proud of doing my job, and doing it well. So what has happened to me has baffled me. It seems that no matter who I talk to about my situatiion, the seem to all agree that I have described some very questionable situations and it would be in my best interest to seek advice .

I will try not to go into great detail, but will describe certain situations, and hopefully can gain some direction as the best way to handle this.

My first year, I got along great with my immediate manager. She seemed to be very upbeat, and started treating me more like her best friend, talking about things most supervisors don't share with employees. It was never really something I wanted, but I really didn't have a choice. The first year, she gave me a high score on my yearly evaluation, and honestly, since I still didn't feel completely comfortable in my position because I recieved hardly any kind of training, I felt it was very innacurate.

Within the next year, I started feeling confident within my position, and really strived to make my work area efficient and organized. I was apparently doing such a good job that the department director assigned the task of installing a new declining balance system enabling the hospital employees the use of their work badges to be used in the cafeteria. It was very successful, and I was made to feel that I was definitely doing a great job. I was also promoted to a supervisor postion. Then over the next year, it seem to go downhill. On my next evaluation, I was given a lower score than previous, even though my job performane had drastically increased. I firnly believe that she developed something against me, and began to treat me very poorly. Here is just but some of the things I had to deal with while working there.

1. From early on, me and the morning supervisor always seem to at battle. Later, It was discovered by both the morning super and myself that most of problems stemmed directly from our manager. For example, she on several occasions turned me against the morning super by calling her "lazy fatass" and that she was going to get rid of her2
2. She constantly made me feel that I was on the verge of losing my job. She would often use the director as a tool to achieve this.
3. She Told me on several occasions that she was having a sexual relationship with married man who installed a can vending machine on her back patio. She explained in explicit detail the first time and how it happened, using very profane words. Though I tried not to act like it bothered me, I was very uncomfortable.
4. She also told me on different occasions that she had left work to go meet him for a sexual encounter.
5. She had had a breast enlargement procedure and was out of work shortly. After she had returned to working regularly, she took me to her office, took off her top and bra and showed me her bare breasts. She also told me to feel them to see how real they felt. This was extremely uncomfortable.
6.She constantly made me feel as if I were doing poorly and on the verge of losing my job. Made me a constant nervous wreck.
7. She had me get 800 cash out of the cash vault and run it out to her because "She forgot her bank card and needed to put a deposit down on her apartment." She gave me a check to put in the vault.
8.When I was doing everything humanly possible to do the best job, she would still tell me that out of all her supervisors, the employees complained about me the most, and she had no problem if she felt the need to demote me.
9. My mother came into to town on very short notice. I switched shifts to spend time with her. I was on the phone 3 hours, in front of my mother, carrying on a conversation about being in trouble for switching shifts when it was ok. I felt I was deliberately picked on and picked apart no matter what I did.

I believe because she knew I was a gay man, she though it ok to do some of these things.

I was so stressed out, that the first night my mother was here, I had some sort of nervous breakdown and called My boss early in the morning to tell her I could not come in. I didn not have an issue at all with attendance, and she was very cruel and treated me as if I were lying. I was so stressed that i was not sleeping well and had started losing weight. I was fidgety and even started biting my nails.

Following all of these situations, i began to believe that no matter what I did, I would eventually be terminated. I told many close friends that it was a matter of time until it happened. And sure enough, One day I came in, and I was terminated for tardies. I was paid well over 20 dollars an hour, and had quite an amount of responsibility. It was a shock when I was terminated for tardies with the position I had. But also like a weight had been lifted.

I apologize that this is so long, but this isn't even half of what i endured while working there. Now I am on the verge of losing my house, car, everything I have worked hard for. I don't know what to do, or if is in violation of what laws. I am not that well versed with law and the help would be much appreciated.

I appreciate any and all suggestions.

Kris

[cbg]

While not all , or even most, of your list, is illegal, you have a couple of things that would probably give you a good case for sexual harassment. But a couple of questions:

1.) Did you EVER report #3, 4, or 5 to upper management or HR?

2.) You said you were fired for tardies. Did you, in fact, have a number of tardies?

[kristoph]

No I didn't have a lot of tardies. The one that supposedly got me termed was we had just had a huge meeting throughout the hospital talking about the hurricane issue, and saving gas. They were advising us to do our part by car-pooling whevever possible. I had figured out a way to where myself and 3 other employees could carpool. I asked the morning senior supervisor of my plan, and she had no problem with it. I asked her if on that sunday, being a slow day, if I could arrive 30 minutes later than what I normally come in so I could pick all my employees up. I did not see the problem, and I was truly if anything trying to show that I was going out of my way to do my part. There was no other reason for me to be late, since I did not have a problem with tardies. When I came in on that sunday, my good friend, who is a liason between HR and our department, pulled me to the side, and kept apologizing about what was about to happen. I could tell then what was going on. The morning senior super did not let anyone know, which I knew better, and acted as if I had never told anyone about carpooling.

I promise you this. I being as unbiased and unsided as I can be. I have always done well at all my jobs. I have never worked in a situation where I was treated this way. I had talked to HR on 2 different occasions, and then backed out because I have seen how HR and the departments "share" info, and it scared me. I also attempted to talk to my director and it went as follows.

I asked my director if I could speak with him. He told me to catch up with him the following day. On the following day, I recieved my eval from my manager who was quite pleasant,which was a change. At the end of my eval, she said this to me. "Oh by the way, **** told me that you wanted to meet with him today. I was just wondering, do I need to be part of that meeting?" I couldn't believe it. He told her I wanted to meet with him, and they both assumed it was about her! If that isn't a hostile work environment, I don't know what is. But I don't understand what put me in this situation.

[kristoph]

Does anyone have copies of the laws pertaining to hostile work environment or sexual harrassment for AZ?