On Dec 3, 2010 my mother went into hospice care for terminal cancer. The company's Christmas party was scheduled for Saturday, Dec 18. My assigned days off (which are decided by management, and change nearly monthly) for Dec were Fridays and Saturdays. On Friday, Dec 17, at 3pm, while my wife and I were at my mother's home getting her things in order I received a call from my immediate supervisor Louis Santiago. He told me I had been assigned to work the next day since I wasn't going to the Christmas party. I explained to him that (A) Fridays and Saturdays were my assigned days off, and (B)I wouldn't be attending the party as I felt it was more important to be with my dying mother (she died Jan 6). On Jan 7 Mr Santiago wrote up a notice of disciplinary action for insubordination for refusing to work on Dec 18. I think most people would understand that receiving this disciplinary action, especially immediately after the death of a family member, is extremely upsetting and stressful to myself and my family.Yet this is not suprising. In October I asked the district mgr Ed Inesta for Thanksgiving off since (A) I had worked on Thanksgiving the year before, and (B) my mother was dying and these would be her last holidays. I was forced to work on Thanksgiving regardless.
On Tuesday Dec 21 a staff meeting was held in which Mr Inesta opened the meeting by cursing at his subordinates before going on to tell us how lucky we were to work for a family friendly company such as Sizewise (sic). I found these remarks both offensive and hypocritical.