What Can I Do About My Job?

I am a twenty year old working as a Nanny turned medical one-on-one for eight months with a 12 year old with Special Needs. I have never called out, I was there a half-hour early EVERY day and stayed late a half hour about 3x/week. My boss started me at $13/hr under the table, then after two months started taking TAXES out of my check, this cut my paycheck in half. Then she went from 48hrs/week to 24/wk at her job causing me to work THREE hours a day.

Needless to say, I looked for a new job and was not going to tell her about it until I actually GOT another one. I gave references to the person who hired me and I was going to tell her Aug. 1st that I was leaving and give her A FULL MONTHS notice. The woman who hired me called for a reference and she found out through her.

I went over the next day to find out I was fired for not telling her about the job first. Now I have four weeks with no pay before I start this new job and she would not even let me say goodbye to the girl who I babysat for 8 months.

The girl I care for is twelve, her mother died last year, her sister is her guardian and she is insane, she does not know her Dad because he left them when they were little, she has fetal alcohol syndrome and is mentally retarded, she is very depressed. She has never trusted ANYONE besides me and now I can't even see her, let alone say goodbye. What can I do about her firing me over this? It's absurd.
Additional Details
Thanks so much everybody.

I meant to add to the fact that there have been several domestic disputes caused by the guardian which resulted in having to get a Social Worker there every week AND that Constant Supervision, which was my job. Right now, this girl is home alone for 4 hours a day which is not allowed. I contacted the woman I work for to get the Social Workers phone number and she will not give it to me. Who do I go to to talk about this? I'm only chasing safety for that child. Not for my job back. Thanks again.

Jeremy M

I say try to press on and give them both closure or try to resolve SOMETHING. Maybe send letters to both of them.

In terms of legal advice, I think that there's not much you can do at this point. You're out of the job. It sounds like an absurd situation, I agree. The most you could do is try to get that job back for the rest of the month. However, it sounds like the little girl's guardian is nuts and isn't listening to reason right now.

Give it a day or two and then present a logical argument for getting your job back.

my16paws

Since you only worked for 8 months there is nothing you can do. Make sure you get your proper severance pay and record of employment. Are you sure she was remitting the deducted taxes to the governement.

She does not have to let you see the child as you are no longer an employee. She feels a lack of trust as you were looking for a job without telling her.

I understand why you did it, but as your employer she is entiled to fire you. If you have worked for a long period of time you could try for a wrongful dismissal suit, but you were on the books only 6 months.

cutebabymil90

i really understand you not telling her UNTIL you got the job. i would have done the same
but the way she is acting, she's not even thinking about the girl. you should bring up the fact that it isn't good to keep one of the only people that the girl trusts. that is cruel and she might not be able to handle it. you can volunteer to spend time with the girl even though it is no longer your job. that will show that you have more interest in the well being of the girl than money and the job you had.
i have been in a similar situation. i was babysitting a little girl who was quite a handful. it got to the point where i felt it was not a good idea for me to watch her anymore because i was miserable doing it and was becoming way too frustrated. it is not good to take care of a child feeling this way. so i told her mom that i couldnt do it anymore. i volunteered to still spend time with the girl because she loved me and i dindt just want to leave her life. me and her mom planned to hang out with her together but since her mom was my mom's boss and my mom one day quit because she had enough of the woman, we no longer talk. i still feel really bad that i just left that girl's life like that
so make sure you dont do the same. itll make you feel even worse

One Sailors Lady

I think you should get the advise of a lawyer... if the child isn't being cared for properly, you may be obligated to call child protective services (the caretaker is "insane"). Besides that, you need to work out how this woman "took taxes out" of your pay check. You can ask her directly... tell her that you did not file any paperwork (an I9), so you know there is no way for her to withhold the taxes from you because you haven't told her what ammount to withhold. You need to know how to fill out your OWN taxes, so you can talk to her, you may scare her into dealing with you properly. I DO suggest learning all you can about the taxes first, you can talk to a CPA for this info, you may be able to get a free 20 minutes of advice from someone, this is not their busy season.

As for you, NEVER agree to work under the table again. You pretty much have no legal rights here... and what you were doing is illegal if you do not pay tax on your income. Being self imployed, you will pay at a MUCH higher rate. I suggest learning more about what you can do to lower that tax... for instance, if you plan to continue to be a care giver, you should incorporate yourself as a shelter from some of the taxes- then you can write a lot off as well... read Own Your Own Corporation by Garett Sutton

http://www.amazon.com/Rich-Dad-Advisors-Corporation-Companies/dp/0446678619/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1217519702&sr=8-1

Eron P

You can sue for wrongful termination but it might be more trouble than its worth...sometimes doing the right thing blows up in your face..you handled this situation very maturely and your old boss didnt...

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