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HOW TO FIGHT BACK AGAINST A BULLY BOSS!
Workplace Justice
Project
Updated December
10, 2010
This page under new
management at pinemeadowmarketing@juno.com
WHY THIS WAS WRITTEN!
This article was inspired after reading still yet another internet blog about the adverse effect Bully Bosses are having on Nurses in health care facilities. Many health care facilities have more than a few stories to tell about Bully Bosses! The problem goes far beyond health care. It gets only worse each year!
The information presented here is a compilation of health care professionals from all over the country.
We love all of your comments and encouragement as well! We recently received one of the highest compliments and best indication this web site is getting results, when a health care executive openly called one of our sources a health care terrorist, inside his executive office, when we overheard him speaking after he thought he had hung up his phone! That is an insult to an honest hard working nurse as well, and tells the true colors of many health care executives today; GREEN. The disrespect towards “vital machines,” the worker is self-evident.
Almost
every business in the USA is running “mean & lean.” The very reason many
companies refuse to hire is because they intend to continue to “get more with
less,” according to Goggle published news. This drives up records profits and
managers bonuses! But this makes the facility very vulnerable to staff who
stand up as there are no reserves built into the current “just in time” method
of conducting business. Staff can easily remove a bad manager and take down a
facility. Companies are over automated and understaffed; try calling a company
and dealing with their voice mail and call switching systems from hell, that
force you to wait for long periods of time. Companies are operating on the
ragged edge in the drive to maximize profits while cutting labor costs. Only
when employees “push back” do they hire enough people, such as in response to
too many customer complaints or lost business. This stresses out both staff and
customers! Business today operates on
the philosophy of mastery and control to ruthlessly exploit everyone they deal
with.
You
might be tempted to confront the Bully Boss directly in a calm and factual
fashion. Do not do this if you can avoid it! Be prepared by bringing a witness
and selecting a private time and place if you have to talk. A real Bully Boss
will most likely go off on you, blaming you for the problem, as blaming the
victim is a common response. The Bully Boss might also promise to look into the
matter or other nonsense type of responses. Don’t turn your back on the Bully
Boss! That is why I always suggest a friendly witness or union representative.
You can try going to your bosses boss with evidence,
if it might do some good, or go to the CEO.
Don’t
expect any help from Human Relations or the Ethics Officer either. Too many
staff learned the hard way when a large health care company’s ethics counselor
sold them out! They used the confidential information to feed managers and set
up staff. The company will always back up a Bully Boss and any management
mistakes until it costs lots of money! These strategies and tactics will hit
the bottom line and gain the attention of upper management, as some of the
fines, legal fees and costs to clean up are high enough to put the facility out
of business! In general, higher management and ethics officers will not help
you; you are far better off without them! If you decide to communicate with
them, start your complaints with government agencies at the same time! Never
give them the time of day, as this would spoil the element of surprise. Why
give management time to try to cover their tracks with the help of highly paid
corporate attorneys!
But
the boss really doesn’t hold all the power. Bosses today are fearful, using
intimidation techniques to hold employees in check. Managers are paid to get
work done through other people; employees and staff. It costs the company money
when that work doesn’t get done! Managers are afraid of employees waking up to
the fact that the working man and woman really can stop a lot of abusive
practices by using intelligence, assertiveness and sticking together. Knowledge
is power, and business managers fear this kind of power.
This
page will draw on experiences from
Nurses, Respiratory Care Practitioners, Social Workers and Managers to give you
some inside tips Many staff have fought just to survive, and will include some
of the stories from their personal experiences.
This
is a work in progress, so feel free to send us EMAIL to suggest topics or other
ideas. You can reach us at pinemeadowmarketing@juno.com
In the days of re-engineering, downsizing and
corporate crime such as the ENRON scandal, it’s obvious that business today has
no interest in social justice or human needs. Corporate executives take six
figure bonuses while people lose their jobs and homes, while customers are
cheated with poor quality health care.
It used to be that businesses put their employees
first, with fair compensation and benefits. The expectation is these employees
would then treat the customer with respect and fairness. The idea was to win
the goodwill of customers who would return over the long term to buy again. A
few businesses still operate on this principle.
Most operate on the advice by Michael Milken, former Junk Bond King; “Greed is Good!!”
Many companies today have even set up their employee
contracts with mandatory Binding Arbitration Clauses. Under these clauses, the
employee gets to pay 50% of the arbitrator’s fee to appeal an unfavorable
decision by management. This effectively creates private courts that tend to
favor the business in many cases. If you are dealing with this kind of
situation you must get your own attorney to attempt to level the playing field.
Do this early at the first sign of trouble with your boss.
These techniques are intended for the really nasty boss who would step over anyone and do anything to get what they want. These bosses are known for being over controlling, liars and having the morals of a medieval warlord. Simple jerks and the like might not be suited for this treatment. Be above the kind of boss who lack any scruples and save the best ammunition for the biggest jerk.
Good bosses are hard to find! Don’t hurt the good guys.
Often times the first sign of trouble is a request to have a meeting with the boss over some issue. You have to know the reputation of your managers to make a decision on if you need to bring a witness in with you to protect your interests. If you have seen more than one or two people fired in the past year, or the boss is well known as being a butcher, delay the meeting until you can get a friendly witness to sit with you. Some bosses will attempt to state that you have no right to have a witness present, according to the company rules. The National Labor Relations Board later threw that one out at a facility when a nurse challenged this. She hid a tape recorder or camcorder on her person.; the administrator was not happy to hear the tape when the boss tried to claim she never made a particular statement. The National Labor Relations Board will use tapes as evidence in some cases as well. You can get compact video units today to capture both the sound and picture. These units hide really well in your pocket as well.
If you think the charges are serious, get an
attorney! Many Bully Bosses are very insecure and really lack knowledge of the
labor laws. These bosses do what they please to suit their own particular ends.. There is a pompous jackass boss in Chicago who was fried
alive in front of his administrators after lying to his managers, for a number
of serious legal violations. These Bully Bosses will turn into water once you
call their game. One boss allowed systematic violation of the state nurse
practice act, requiring Registered Nurses to surrender significant control of
nursing practice to a manager who is not a nurse, putting out an RN who pointed
out the fact this practice is illegal, refuseing to
submit. The executives lied about this afterwards. The facility closed after
eight of these bosses were fired or ran away by resigning in a hurry.
Say as little as possible while getting the boss to
talk. Get a copy of any action they take in writing, for your attorney. State
your facts calmly and never let the boss get you angry. If you need a little
space, excuse yourself to go to the bathroom! Stay cool, calm and factual. Take
notes of everything they say, and let them see you writing the notes. Mirror
back what you are writing down stating, “Is this what you meant?” You will put the
boss on edge to say the least.
You don’t have to sign anything you don’t agree
with. You can write a statement to the effect a rebuttal will be submitted in
the near future as well.
By all means follow this up and get an attorney or
legal aid friendly to employees. If you are a union member, involve the union
immediately. You may well need an attorney as well as some unions work better
than others. Know your union well to make this decision. If you don’t see the
union standing up decisively and openly for it’s members, get your own help!
Don’t tell anyone what you are up to. If you work with other staff, select only co-workers having as much to lose as you do! The company snitch might sell you out so be careful. Your attack must be secret, sudden and overwhelming as to cripple management once things kick off! If you must tell someone, talk off the job with someone you can trust, in another line of work. Once you say anything you have lost control of the situation and might gain nothing from your efforts.
A
Chicago area boss learned the hard way about the great benefits of keeping a
secret journal on a daily basis. Four over two years one person faithfully
wrote down a detailed summary of events on every shift including staffing
levels, treatment and ventilator counts, incidents and more. This journal was
labeled with the following header; CONFIDENTIAL COMMUNICATION TO LEGAL COUNSEL
IN EXPECTATION OF LITIGATION. By the time the boss found out about it, it was
too late as the header put the log beyond legal subpoena by the facility! It
was a treasure chest of information to hang him out to dry! This person was
careful never to reference the log in any of the communications to the boss as
that would make the log subject to a subpoena. A PC Lap Top Computer was used
for timely recording of pertinent data, along with scrap paper in her pocket. A
log helped put a Pennsylvania based food chain health care operator into the
public spotlight, with half the local campus in North Carolina being closed.
Don’t
ever tell another soul on the job what you are doing either. You never know who
the company snitch is! Any Bully Boss will fire you on some pre-text to stop
you. Bully Bosses fear the light of day revealing their dishonest deeds; a
cockroach will do their best work in the dark.
In health care we utilize “Incident Reports” in response to some untoward event outcome involving a patient. Always keep a copy for yourself and don’t tell the boss you have one! There was a situation at a facility where the paperwork from a patient assault was “lost” by the Director of Nursing Services [DNS]. She directed another report be written, attempting to blame the staff RN for the failure to document. Another report was written, noting on the top, “DUPLICATE REPORT: ORIGINAL LOST IN OFFICE.” This DNS threw a temper fit and ordered the notation removed The RN didn’t remove the notation and informed her this order was illegal as if the original report were to surface later, questions of false documentation would arise. She accused the RN of “gross insubordination,” to which the RN reminded her that insubordination doesn’t apply to an illegal order. Later the state received copies of the duplicate report along with a full account of what happened. The director was fired and no longer has a nursing license.
You can use a digital camera to record large numbers of photographs as evidence for future use. Use a standardized logging system to give a unique file name to each picture that includes the date. Make sure you don’t use a camera in patient care areas due to HIPPA concerns. But a friendly family member can take pictures with the patient’s permission, and more people are doing this. A new industry providing “Granny Cams” is growing as families place cameras in nursing homes to protect loved ones against bad nursing homes. There is a great book on the subject of nursing homes: DANGER ZONE by Steele & Watters. Everyone dealing with a nursing home needs this book.
Use
a typed formal report for other issues not suited to an incident report,
including any formal complaint to any regulatory agency. Start with a
chronological point in time describing what activity was going on when the
issue arose. Then document factually in terms of who did or said what, how,
when, why, and where in exhaustive detail. Include exact quotes with the name
of the person speaking, as well as action taken, outcomes and who was notified
when. Also include police case report numbers too. As always keep a copy or
more for yourself. Since the Bully Boss will try to state they never received
the report, always send it by U S Mail, Certified Receipt. One boss tried to
state he never received a report until a week later, claiming it had been
delayed in the mailroom. The signed date on the return receipt is the date of
receipt by federal law! The Certified mail hung him out to dry!
Any
time you write anything for the boss, other than a patient chart, keep a copy
for yourself. Store it in a safe place! You can use a back up storage site
outside the USA as the contents are beyond the legal power of all U.S. and
state courts. Japan is a nice place to look for server space, as the law will
protect you against legal action.
If
you send it by FAX, keep a copy of your phone bill and send it by toll call.
This serves as proof of receipt as well. Keep the printed receipt the FAX
machine provides with the RECEIVED OK printed on it.
Make
sure you always have witnesses when going up against the boss. If you don’t
have proof, they will attempt to eat you alive. Patients and family members can
be good witnesses but do this in secret! Never tell another coworker what you
are doing unless that coworker is involved with you and has as much to lose as
you do.
The
pen is mightier than the sword, and documentation works both ways! Take a good
course in Technical Report Writing. It works!
SAFE HARBOR/WHISTLE BLOWER PROTECTION
Some states have enacted Whistle Blower Protection Laws, protecting any health care professional against any form of retaliation for speaking up on any patient care or safety issue. Due to previous corruption within the Massachusetts Board of Nursing, the Massachusetts Attorney General provides enforcement. Violators face two years in prison and a fine. This law was enacted after the wrongful firing of a nurse by The Youville Health Care Center in Cambridge, which resulted in hearings at The Statehouse in Boston, following patient deaths. There were front page headlines in The Boston Globe too.
Protection
against changes of job assignments, unfair discipline and more are included.
Some states such as Texas, Connecticut and Massachusetts have laws. Consult a labor
attorney in your area..
Often your complaints about patient care issues will fall upon deaf ears when you are dealing with a health care facility such as a nursing home or hospital. You will have no choice but to involve outside resources and reduce labor costs. Administrators often insure profit by freezing labor costs. This often translates into long waits for call bells and non-existent bedside care as staffing and supplies are cut.
You will usually need to use multiple government agencies at the same time to bring pressure on the facility administrators to clean things up! Be aware that some government inspectors are often enough paid off to overlook violations, operating as “sweethearts” to health care businesses.
Individual sections follow with agencies that can assist you.
COMPLAINTS TO PROFESSIONAL BOARDS AND DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC HEALTH
One of the most feared weapons used by health care administrators is the threat to report an individual nurse to “The Board” for alleged misconduct. This concept works both ways as health care administrators are responsible for the condition of their facilities and the provision of safe and adequate care in a timely fashion. Administrators have a license to protect as well. The bottom line is that states are starting to hold managers responsible for the lack of care instead of allowing managers to scapegoat staff! Remember that log? Use it to fill in specific details about patients not being fed or medicated. Document missed or late treatments. Document specific individuals spoken too about specific issues such as short staffing, etc. File a complaint for patient neglect against the nursing managers; all of them. Send it Certified U S Mail with return receipt! Keep copies and send them to your state and federal representatives as well as your local media.
The defendant (your boss) must also hire an attorney at their own expense to defend the charges against the professional board. This is pure hell in itself when they must appear before the board and risk the loss of their livelihood. Nurses need to carry their own professional malpractice insurance to cover legal fees in case the boss tries to intimidate staff. It is cheap and well worth it. Most often these bosses wake up and realize they have been used by the company, and get dumped when it is all over. They might not have a license left either! Your boss might have to pay you off.
Some nursing administrators will attempt to allege “Patient Abandonment” if you refuse an assignment. Until you accept an assignment by such acts as receiving report or counting the controlled substances, you are not responsible for the assignment. If the assignment is unsafe due your lack of experience, lack of orientation or short staffing, you just say no! The nursing administrator can’t report you for this and in fact can be reported by the staff nurse as managers are responsible for allowing these conditions to exist. Report management and watch the fur fly! Go home if it’s not safe. Many nurses have refused unsafe assignments a few times and it never came back on them!
If your boss attempts to impose Mandatory Overtime on you, you should assess if you are able to continue the shift safely. If you are not able to continue on duty due to feeling ill or too tired, the boss must make other arrangements while you stay a reasonable time. You should be relieved within the hour. If you are ill, demand immediate relief. In an extreme situation call 911 if you are seriously ill. Some states are now enacting laws to protect nurses in this way. Management is legally obligated to back you up so demand they do their part! If they refuse, report them to the Board of Nursing for patient neglect. Do this without delay! Don’t let bad managers make you responsible for their negligence!
Is the facility kitchen a mess? Are cockroaches and rats counted as part of your census? Call your local and state board of health for a food inspection. Many kitchens fail inspections!
State Departments of Public Health are often poorly staffed and able to responds only to the very worst cases of neglect, so don’t forget to send a copy of your complaints about a facility to Central Medicare & Medicaid Services [CMS]]. CMS pays the bills for Medicare patients and is always interested in weeding out fraud. CMS considers poor patient care in hospitals and nursing homes to be fraud. CMS just loves to collect money back in these cases so you can count on a response! So draft a detailed report about the lack of care in a nursing home with attention to such issues as getting residents out of bed on time, bed sores, adequate staff, getting medications and food on time, staffing available to help feed and times required to answer call bells. Send a copy of the state complaint to CMS and watch the fur fly! Look CMS up on the web for the nearest office. The federal authorities will insure that the state inspectors do their job, getting a complaint inspection! This has been done to several facilities and they paid dearly for their Bully Bosses as this cuts off their federal funding! Remember the facility in North Carolina we mentioned?
If you report fraud to Medicare, get a case number and ask for a form to secure your rights as a whistle blower as up to 10% of what HCFA recovers is yours!
CALL THE POLICE!
If you experience chronic poor patient care such as neglect in a nursing home or hospital, call the police to document abuse and/or neglect of the elderly. The police must respond and write a report if you demand it. Get the officers name and report case number. Then go to the police agency and get a copy of the report. This report helps document dirty environments and poor hygienic care of a nursing home resident for HCFA and state health boards. It will wake up the facility management too!
If you are a nurse, document any serious incident in the patients chart and don’t let the nursing administration tell you otherwise. Keep a copy of your charting just in case it “gets lost.”You could be charged in the cover up! Don’t assume the DNS has done it; they often don’t in an effort to protect the rating of the facility. Call your state Elder Abuse Hotline to make a report and protect your license.
Have you been threatened by your boss? Have the boss arrested for assault. Get witnesses first, and then report them to the licensing board after being arrested.
Nurses have been wrongfully disciplined by two employers for properly reporting patient assaults. They are now paying the price, but they have black ball nurses for obeying the law. Be aware this does happen so get another job fast if you must make a report!
CALL THE FIRE DEPARTMENT AND FIRE MARSHAL
Many store rooms and patient care areas have violations of the local Fire Safety Code. Do you have boxes piled high to the ceiling? Are boxes blocking sprinkler heads? Are there any fire extinguishers missing inspection tags or pins? Are any exits or fire extinguishers blocked? Any fire extinguishers missing? Are any resident’s smoking in areas not designated for smoking? Are there any hazardous chemicals stored in unlabeled containers? Are all your hazardous substances properly labeled? Is the MSDS readily available? The Fire Department is often an overlooked but effective way to get needed action; remember your friends in the fire department.
OSHA
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration have regulations that are often ignored by healthcare facilities for financial reasons. For example, one facility was cited after several CNA’s were injured by resident assaults due to short staffing and known assaults by residents, as well as unsafe conditions for lifting, a number of CNA’s called in OSHA. Failure to adhere to the fire safety plan will bring in OSHA too. Do you have enough gloves of all sizes in all areas and patient rooms? Are the sharps containers more than 2/3 full or overflowing? Are sharps disposed of in regular trash? Are there any recapped needles in the sharps container as the fines start at $10K! Once OSHA comes in, they will look at the entire workplace and for other violations as well. No one wants a visit from OSHA so why not give bad management one? You can find OSHA under your U S Government listings in many telephone directories and on the web.
Have evidence ready for them including pictures. Make sure the daily banner of that day’s newspaper is in each picture. This was done to a boss when he allowed ABG needles to overflow from a sharps container in the Blood Gas Laboratory. Photograph things like broken Hoyer lifts. Do you have any staff that never received a physical examination upon hire? Were all staff offered free Hepatitis B and checked for Tuberculosis upon hire? If not they are in deep trouble; many facility staff health files are illegal! They will have to sign a consent agreement on the spot.
You are protected against employer retaliation as well. Penalties are serious.
U S DEPARTMENT OF LABOR
Many health care facilities routinely violate federal labor laws every day and know it. The state labor boards do not have jurisdiction in health care facilities as federal money is paid to every health care facility in the country. In many states every staff member must be given a thirty minute, uninterrupted lunch break that must begin within four hours of starting the shift. Sitting at the desk charting while eatting violates this standard. The staff member must not be subject to call back by pager or other means for any reason! If your lunch is interrupted for any reason, this violates the standard! You must be allowed to go to the bathroom as well, which many staff can’t do because of deliberate chronic short staffing,
If you are required to work during your lunch or stay to chart, you must be paid for the extra time. You are entitled to eat in a separate lunch area away from the floor without being disturbed! Management can’t impose a requirement the time be approved to be paid; failure to pay violates this standard. There are no exceptions for non-management staff! Higher state standards are enforced by federal law as well. In some states overtime pay is mandatory for over eight hours. Also, you can’t pay one standard for full time and another for per diem. The facility must pay for all labor time! Of course you never want to agree to work on salary either to give up these rights.
Some facilities have elected to cheat staff by paying by salary on weeks where staff work over forty hours, and by the hour on weeks where they work less than forty hours. This is illegal as well.
You should keep an exact log of hours worked for several months, and then write your nearest office of The U S Department of Labor, listed in most telephone directories under U S Government. Keep copies of everything and allow some time as they are not fast to respond. But once The U S Department of Labor comes in to inspect, they will examine the past two years of payroll records as well as speaking to staff away from management. Some nurses received a nice Christmas check from a former Philadelphia employer who stood against staff in this way.
One report stated that the fair application of labor laws in health care facilities would bankrupt many of these facilities. Stop the theft of your time and labor by corporate health care thieves! Send copies of your complaint to your federal representatives requesting assistance! The fur will fly! You are protected by federal law against employer retaliation.
OTHER STATE BOARDS
Many states have mandatory reporting statues for elder abuse and child abuse. You can call in your own reports for abuse in nursing homes if the bosses doesn’t do their job. In some states you can even call in The State Labor Board for any reprisals for reporting elder abuse! Check your state laws and state agencies for ideas.
BUILDING INSPECTORS
Do you have electrical outlets without covers or having frayed wires? Is the place in a state of general disrepair? Do circuit breakers often fail? Call the town, city or county building inspectors. Send them pictures and have witnesses. Is the elevator a bit shaky? Call the inspectors and force them to fix up the place.
EQUAL EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY COMMISSION
Many health care managers fail to abide by EEOC laws by singling out a whistle blower for discipline or firing. Many times that individual is a male, over age 40, a racial minority or religious minority. The law doesn’t care about the employer’s intent. The effect of discrimination is enough! Getting sued by this agency will in many cases end the management career of the bad boss, as the stigma is serious. The cost of defending even a frivolous EEOC complaint averages a minimum of $30K and can top $100K! Stupid managers can make it very expensive for an employer. Please only do this for real discrimination as you need to be fair and honest; don’t sink to the level of some bosses. By the way, count on spending some time and effort to go this route. It will instantly get the attention of the CEO and stop everyone in their tracks.
Make sure you get your own attorney before you contact the EEOC, and have witnesses! Make sure you can prove discrimination based on age, race, sex, religion and even disability. While these are hard cases to win, you are protected by federal law from employer retaliation for filing a complaint! Penalties are very serious!
NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
This government agency protects any employees banding together to improve the welfare of employees in general. The NLRB was created to protect union organizing, so if you can lay claim to taking part in any kind of union activity, you can cause your bass some serious grief! Even a probationary employee can claim protection under this law if they are organizing to improve working conditions, etc. Have proof such as witnesses and written documents! The NLRB is listed under U S Government in many telephone directories and on the web. Many employers game the system to get rid of anyone who stands up for decent treatment. The NLRB can order back wages, interest, back benefits and public notices placed on corporate bulletin boards. No one likes to see the NLRB show up!
If you intend to organize a union, look for a decent one. Many just collect your dues while being sweethearts to management.
THE COMPANY PENSION PLAN AND
EMBEZELEMENT
There has been a serious problem with nursing home and other health care administrators using federally protected pension monies to finance budget short falls and their own lifestyle. The problem is these monies belong to the employees! Have you noticed any serious delays in crediting deposits deducted from paychecks? Do pension plan contributions just seem to disappear? One nursing home administrator appointed himself as the Trustee, after which money never seemed to get to the pension plan books. There is a federal agency that is charged with protecting pension money, known as the Securities Exchange Commission. It’s your money!
DEALING WITH BEING BLACK BALLED
The fact is the good ole boy network doesn’t obey the law or play by the rules. There are things you can do to deal with being black balled. The “word” is spread by secret phone calls and conversations.
If you can get someone to infiltrate management and win the trust of the Bully Bosses, good for you. That will take down a bad manager. A more practical approach is to go have a talk directly with the Bully Boss, having a compact hidden camcorder. Get the Bully Boss to incriminate herself! Follow this up by applying for jobs with a hidden camcorder. If you have a good job history and are qualified, an attorney can the take it from there!
Some managers are stupid enough to make negative remarks in front of other staff. Get written accounts from these witnesses to support your claim. One former Nursing Director bragged in front of staff about how sure she was a certain nurse had diverted drugs. Further investigation revealed the duplicate keys had been used by the supervisor to steal the stash. This former DON was sued for slander and defamation of character; she lost her job and license.
WATCH OUT FOR BAD REFERENCES FROM YOUR BOSS!
Once you leave don’t count on getting a good reference from your boss. Even though most companies have strong rules about what you can say, about 85% of bosses will gossip; true or not, often because too many bosses are vindictive, mean, self-righteous and run on egos the size of a jumbo jet. Too many bosses think they are above the law in their own little world they seem to control.
The single most important factor in getting a good reference! There is such a widespread national problem that several companies have set up shop to check your references like you have applied for another job, documenting just in case you want to sue, The stakes are high when a lawsuit is filed and you can count on the CEO tossing out the trash (big mouth managers) once this happens. A huge note in red ink will go on the file of the affected ex-employee as well. Zippers will appear like magic on the mouths of managers and administrators.
Here is a list of places to call for help if you have this problem! It will cost you as few dollars, but money well spent!
Document
Reference Check References
Etc Allison & Taylor
23441
Golden Springs Drive # 465 27
Pilgrim Drive 800-651-2470
Diamand Bar, CA 91765 Hiram,
ME 04041
800-742-3316
207-625-3870 good work done here!
references-etc.com
These
companies provide paperwork you can use to sue if need be.
GET AN ATTORNEY AND SUE THE BASTARDS!
Private lawsuits against individuals are very effective for wrongful discharge, defamation of character, slander and libel, just to name a few possible charges. Once the facility fires a bad manager, that individual is on their own for legal expenses. A good lawyer will cost about $200/hour. The grief of being sued is beyond words to describe. The stigma will remove the bad manager from the industry as no one wants them. Such an individual, once sued, will serve as a lightening rod to attract future legal action against a facility. No facility will allow the liability of this exposure! This will cause the individual to be both unemployed, and unemployable! So sue the bastards! The court just might take away their pension, house and other assets to pay you off!
THE LAST RESORT: CREATE A MEDIA CIRCUS!
Tired of the corporate types circling the limos and hiding behind their unethical lawyers? A Physical Therapist did this with the help of The Boston Globe when things got ugly.
When you have taken the steps listed above, call in your friendly local media. Identify in advance who does pro-consumer stories and call them. Have copies of pictures and relevant documents ready to give them. Have people ready to interview! Stage a demonstration to get the media there if you need to. Get nursing home residents to march with you, in wheel chairs if you can. Wear your nursing uniforms as the public loves nurses and it will look great on the six o’clock news! Several nursing homes have experienced the ignominy of a demonstration outside their front door. Complete with patients in wheel chairs being pushed by family members and nurses. Sometimes the court of public opinion is the only thing the “suits” will be stopped by, as that will destroy their profits.
We watched a friend do this to a nursing home as she is a part time news reporter. It was quite a joy to witness as the management team was removed by the owners.
YOU CAN FIGHT THE BULLY BOSS!
This is what experience and education have to say. If you have the real courage to fight and win then go for it! If you are a real health care professional then you are up to the challenge of stopping the health care terrorists. You can’t wait for someone else to fix your situation as there isn’t really a Santa Claus. Be your own Santa Claus and make it happen. Watch your Bully Boss turn into water and disappear down the drain! The short term suffering caused by your Bully Boss is worth it. The choice is yours; fight back or remain a health care slave. Experienced nurses have learned that the more grief and resistance you get from management indicates how close you are to winning. Don’t let them intimidate you! Keep me posted on your experiences! Good luck and happy hunting!
OTHER SITES OF
INTEREST
http://hubpages.com/hub/Hostile-Work-Environment-How-Bully-Bosses-Cause-Lawsuits-Part2
www.kickbully.com This is a great site!
http://www.hospicepatients.org
http://www.cio.com/article/131400/How_to_Deal_With_Bully_Bosses
http://www.psychologytoday.com/articles/199509/when-the-boss-is-bully
http://www.ehow.com/how_5063903_document-deal-bosss-bullying-behavior.html
http://www.bankrate.com/brm/news/advice/bully-boss1.asp
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