Sparta, IL asked in Employment Law for Illinois

Q: Hello. Yesterday I reported to my employer a situation in which a shift manager mistreated and bullied me.

I sent an email to my manager to complain about this and, the first thing i hear from another shift manager is, now I am not allowed to take my 30 min break It will be only 15 minutes, at a time when the person working with me feels comfortable with, in front of the store, in my car, and be ready to get in whenever I am called. Is this legal for them to do? Everything should be recorded in camera, I work at a gas station. The only change in my break is that it was reduced to 15 minutes. It was also brought up to my attention i have had a poor performance restocking the coolers during the last two times I have done it. They claim i put things in the wrong place, but I believe that isn't true. It just feels like they're trying to find reasons to make me feel bad about my performance at all at work. I don't know, I just want some reassurance that i did no wrong by complaining against an unfair action.

Related Topics:
1 Lawyer Answer

A: Unfortunately, there is no legal protection from retaliation if you complained that your shift manager mistreated or bulled you, unless your complaint was that you were being mistreated/bullied because of your status in a protected class (i.e., age, race, ethnicity, disability, gender, etc.). If that were the case, the company is prohibited from retaliating against you for making a protected complaint. However, making you feel bad about your performance at work does not rise to the level of actionable retaliation. If this situation continues, you should reach out to an employment law attorney in your area to discuss your options.

Justia Ask a Lawyer is a forum for consumers to get answers to basic legal questions. Any information sent through Justia Ask a Lawyer is not secure and is done so on a non-confidential basis only.

The use of this website to ask questions or receive answers does not create an attorney–client relationship between you and Justia, or between you and any attorney who receives your information or responds to your questions, nor is it intended to create such a relationship. Additionally, no responses on this forum constitute legal advice, which must be tailored to the specific circumstances of each case. You should not act upon information provided in Justia Ask a Lawyer without seeking professional counsel from an attorney admitted or authorized to practice in your jurisdiction. Justia assumes no responsibility to any person who relies on information contained on or received through this site and disclaims all liability in respect to such information.

Justia cannot guarantee that the information on this website (including any legal information provided by an attorney through this service) is accurate, complete, or up-to-date. While we intend to make every attempt to keep the information on this site current, the owners of and contributors to this site make no claims, promises or guarantees about the accuracy, completeness or adequacy of the information contained in or linked to from this site.