I have recently found myself in a situation that I never thought I would be in. After all, I'm a dedicated worker and I know the laws in my state regarding my safety at work. Even with being as assertive as I am, however, there are always people out there who think that the law doesn't pertain to them. One of these individuals was my boss...or should I say my ex boss.

She called me at home on July 4, 2005 to fire me. Funny thing is I wasn't able to answer either of her phone calls that day so I had to return a call to her home that evening. Essentially I called my boss so she could fire me.

After the shock resided, I realized that not only was I entitled to that last paycheck, but because I had been with the company for a full year, I was also entitled to my vacation and sick pay as well.

The First Letter of Intent

If you ever find yourself in a similar situation, I suggest your first line of action be that you write a letter indicating whether you'd like to pick up your check or whether you'd like to have it mailed to your home. Make sure you send the letter with reasonable time for your past employer to fulfill your wishes.

Secondly, be assertive and firm, yet not pushy with your wording. Inform the reader that you are aware of what benefits, whether they be monetary or property based, are and that you expect to receive these within a certain time frame. This allows you to come across as educated and informed and it's less likely that the party who has received your letter will try and snowball you with excuses and reasons for not getting what you are entitled to.

I highly recommend that when you mail this letter that you send it as certified mail. This costs a bit more then typical postage - usually about $4-$5 per letter, depending on where it is being sent - but it will guarantee you proof by signature that the letter has been received. The post office also has an option on their website that allows you to enter in the code for your specific letter that will allow you to track the letter, which is helpful in determining when it has been received or if it's waiting to be picked up.

In my particular case, my check was mailed to me and I received payment for the proper amount of hours worked and for the proper amount of vacation time, but my sick pay was 9 hours short. I decided to call the owner of the company since my manager was gone on vacation. Usually it is wise to follow the chain of command when trying to resolve a conflict like this, starting with whoever handles the payroll in your company. This is much easier said then done with larger corporations, but fortunately for me the company only owned two homes (I worked in a group home) so when the manager isn't available, it was necessary to speak directly to the head honcho.

I spoke with him on three occasions, each time being assured that my check for my final 9 hours was in the mail. After waiting a full week for my check, I called him again and was told that my manager was back in town and that I needed to speak with her.

I followed his advice and that ended up being a dead end. My manager was being argumentative instead of informative and I knew that if I lowered myself to her methods of communication that this would be even less then a futile attempt. I informed her during our phone conversation that since we couldn't reach an agreement and that nothing was being solved that I would be taking her to small claims court.