Final Written Reply

"Constantly complaining about job, life or how hungry you are"
Have I mentioned being hungry or in pain before? Yes, we all have. Do I do it all the time or even a bit more than very rarely? No. It simply comes up in random banter. Like when someone's talking about grabbing lunch or mentions their carpal tunnel. I have to point out here that I have a medical condition that causes severe pain, so I have mentioned being in pain a few times, as I have to work around it at work. The thought that it makes me bad at my job is reprehensible. I can't understand why this was deemed appropriate for punishment of any kind. I obviously feel that this isn't justification for discipline.

"TM's have expressed displeasure in having to work with you"
You must remember that some of these TMs have also been caught flat out lying about me. I've proven that they've lied specifically to get me into trouble. Nothing was done about it. *ASM* attempted to take a situation where we didn't finish all of our work and make it out that we were being lazy to *GM*. She was in fact told by the other ASM that the work would not get finished and still contacted *GM*. In actuality, day shift had done literally nothing that day and we had both shifts' work to do. We did an amazing job and I was berated for it. I have the texts, if you'd like to see. *coworker* and *coworker* have both had issues where they don't like being corrected when they do something wrong. *coworker* lied to *GM* when I corrected him for being rude on the phone. He said he wasn't being rude, but he certainly was and seriously so. I've had numerous issues with *coworker* over the years. He's lied about them nonstop. One lie was about him doing all of the work every night and me doing nothing. I can prove the exact opposite happens on most of our shifts, if necessary. None of this was ever handled, which is why it got so bad in the end. So, yeah, I'd have to say those are probably just more lies. And as such, I don't feel that I should be disciplined for this unless something can be proven otherwise.

"Hold on, my boss is an asshole"
I specifically remember this day. I was called by one of my doctors about an important prescription they hadn't sent to the pharmacy which was closing within the next two hours for the weekend. I could die without this medication. I walked in, clocked in, and asked if *ASM* could handle things for a couple minutes. She said it was no problem and then I walked away to finish up with my doctor. Now, I don't remember exactly the words, but I am 100% certain I did not call her an asshole. I would never say that to a near stranger over the phone while at work. My best guess is that she misheard whatever I did say. We were a good 10 or 15 feet away from each other and I wasn't screaming. She has lied to get me in trouble in the past, so it's possible she's doing it again. I'd also like to point out here, that I can't stand for someone to use their phone at work. It's something that I've always done only when necessary and that day was one such day. Either way, considering this is a "he said/she said" and she's been caught lying to get me in trouble in the past, which I can prove, then I feel that this issue shouldn't be considered for discipline.

"Customer Service is Unsatisfactory"
I completely disagree with this assessment. I've always prided myself in my customer service abilities. We all get some people who want us to do things we simply can't do from time to time and those people may feel unhappy, but other than that, the vast majority of my customers love doing business with me. Take this situation for instance. I know the man who runs the local landfill. He's a wonderfully delightful man. I tried to convince him to switch to *company name*'s for all of his business and he even gave it a try. *coworker* had talked to him as well and I believe he knows what happened, too. Anyway, he went up there one day and was ignored by two women. He's not sure who it was, but it could only be *GM*, *coworker*, or *ASM*. We lost out on a multi-thousand dollar/month account because of that. Yet, my customer service is unacceptable? No, I'm sorry, but that's just not incorrect. And if you'd like, I can easily ask him to write up a statement on this situation attesting to it's validity.

"Taking too long with a customer"
Ok, the first thing about this is that it's simply not true that it was "easy." *GM* is talking about a specific incident that happened over a year ago, which makes me wonder why I'm being punished for it for a second time. Anyway, the guy needed some bearings or something, but they were very messed up. He was adamant about needing them today. I think he was broke down on the side of the road. Anyway, I couldn't find anything that matched the dimensions. I went through looking them up, but couldn't find them as they weren't for a vehicle. I tried measuring them and got nowhere. I attempted to find them in our paper catalogue with no success. Anyway, I went through every possible step to get him what he needed, including calling sales support and one of the bearing companies. I don't remember if I found them or not, but I do know that from that moment on, he's said that he'll only use *company name*'s thanks to my trying my best to help him. Going through every possible step takes time. And I even handled a few customers while helping him, because he said he wouldn't mind. *GM* pulled me aside and "coached" me on this situation. I haven't heard her mention this issue since. So, I'd like to know how I can be given disciplinary action for the same single incident, twice, over a year apart. I, of course, feel that I shouldn't be punished for this.

"If you meet your performance goals, no further disciplinary action will be taken..."
This sentence, coupled with a final written warning, is nothing more than a termination slip that can be denied by saying "Well, we gave him a chance, see?" I've seen this tactic used many times before in some of my management jobs in the past. Vague enough so that nearly anything I don't do perfectly will be a valid reason for my termination. And designed specifically to win wrongful termination disputes. This is precisely why it's so important for me to get this final written warning removed.

I can provide evidence to show that most of the things mentioned in my final written warning are questionable at best and completely dishonest at worst. This shouldn't have been a final. This shouldn't have even been issued. My original issues of discrimination and harassment haven't been handled at all. The only response to me reporting the abuse against me, was punishing me with a "catchall net" that was designed to find anything that the company could get to halfway stick. I request that this situation be reviewed. I request that this final written warning be removed from my record for being dishonest and misrepresenting several things. I also request that my original issues be taken seriously and handled appropriately. I would like for someone to look into this and get with me. I feel that this response falls far short of a fair resolution. Please let me know your response as soon as possible. I want to give you time to decide your course of action before I take the issue any further.