Getting fired from my job?

I got a job recently as an assistant to a financial representative for an insurance company. I got fired yesterday because my boss saw an updated resume on my desk and accused me of looking for another job. I explained that I have always kept an updated resume and that I created it for my files on my lunch break and explained that I had no intentions of quitting. He thought it was out of the ordinary for anyone to update a resume unless they were looking for a job. Because of that and only that I told I was no longer working at the company and was asked to leave. I was performing my job well, and had no other problems but my boss was paranoid about not having an employee that he could trust to stay. Isn't that kind of narrow minded? I would have thought the appropriate response would be to talk to me first to find out if I was looking and then ask why to see if there could be a better result than just firing me. Please advise.

cyoung85054

Bad idea to have a resume at work. Whether it was on your lunch hour or not. But hey since its updated go use it. Tell your next employer the truth about why your not working there anymore. I bet they get a laugh out of it. Dont worry, Like i always say " I was looking for a job when I found this one. Ya got fired, Big Deal

evilattorney

The job market is tight and he probably figured it was better to fill the job on his terms rather than on yours. Was he precipitious, yes but you kind of waved a red flag in front of him. While keeping your resume updated is a great idea, doing it on the job, using their equipment is simply asking for trouble.

ModelFlyerChick

Keeping an updated resume is fine but don't do it at work because your employer will always think you are job hunting if they see it. As for firing you over it, every employer I've worked for in the past had an immediate termination policy for any employee they think is job hunting. If your employer has such a policy, having an updated resume at work is grounds for termination, even if you aren't actually looking for another job.

Your boss does sound a little paranoid but if you just started you probably have very little legal protection. Were you still in your probationary period as an employee? If so, your boss could probably fire you for any reason. If not, check your employer's termination policy to see if he had good reason to fire you immediately or if some other form of discipline (warning, etc.) would be required first.

I agree that this is a good lesson learned about updating resumes at work, especially using company equipment. Definitely something to avoid in the future.

bluesky9

You just recently started this job and decided to update your resume during your lunch break? There's a time and place for everything and that wasn't the time or the place. It's unprofessional no matter how you look at it. Take it as a lesson learned and the next time you want to update your resume, do it at home and not on your company's computer.

Judy

Where are you? If you are in the US and not in Montana, you are an employee at will and he can fire you for no reason at all, so there's nothing illegal about what he did. Leaving a resume laying out on your desk wasn't the smartest move ever - it IS out of the ordinary. He jumped to a wrong conclusion,, but a logical one that most people would have jumped to, and he would have assumed that you would have said you were not looking whether you really were or not. Maybe he could have handled it better too, but there's no legal requirement for him to react differently.

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