That's it I'm Writing A Letter!

[Sock Full of Boiled Dimes]

If any of you don't know I'm part of the Marine Corps reserves.

Which means I work one weekend a month and rely on getting a job somewhere else if I want to get a steady paycheck. I'm not ashamed that I am a reservist. Because I am working my way through college while serving my country at the same time. It gives me a great sense of pride of feeling.

I worked there beforehand and then left for bootcamp. They were happy to have me back, but slowly things began to change and eventually I was terminated. Thanks to this wonderful e-mail/letter (I'm making sure it gets to them) I'm letting them know what happens.

I don't have any merit for a lawsuit and have no intention of seeking one.

Here is my letter and it will speak the story:

"Dear Brinker,

My name is (blank) and I was an employee at your well known chain Chili's in Little Rock. I was employed from roughly Feb 08 to April of 08. I left briefly because I felt the call to serve my country and joined the United States Marine Corps Reserves. The managers at the time were kind and supportive of my decision and understood when I had to give my two weeks notice.

After this I headed straight to Boot Camp and endured one of the hardest boot camps in the military service, lasting 13 weeks long. When I came back it took some time to adjust to military life, but I was happy to know that Chili's in Little Rock was willing to let me work there again. I worked there as I was going through college and drilling.

This lasted until Aug 08 to Dec 08. It was one of the most unpleasant times I worked there.

I really didn't feel welcome at the workplace the entire time.

I have told the managerial staff whom I worked with that I had other obligations. However, they were completely unforgiving and ran on a strict workplace schedule.

For example, on my off time I helped with the recruiters in the Little Rock Marine Corps recruiting station. During this time a Sargent asked me to do something for him at the last minute before a host meeting. Complying with it because (at the time) I assumed I had to do it. I forgot to call in during this time, but afterwards stopped by to make sure I knew what happened during it and to let everyone know where I was.

Their response? They wrote me up for missing the meeting and threw in two more minor incidents. Then said that I could possibly be terminated because of this and I was now on watch until I cleaned up my act.

I was confused because I assumed I was doing a good job and the entire time no one let me know that I was doing anything wrong. There was no prior indication.

I explained the situation again and explained that I'm just now getting used to civilian life again after coming back from boot camp. Not only that but I still was running off of the "Yes, Sir", "No, Sir" and "Aye Aye, Sir" that ran my daily life in boot camp. So when I was asked to do something I thought I had to do it rather telling that Sargent that I had prior obligations.

I was told that, "It's not a good enough excuse."

So for the while I was on watch and then for a few months everything seemed fine and I did was I needed to do while at work.

Then hard times hit when I was evicted from my apartment. It was a rough situation where my roommate and myself agreed upon a situation where he would collect our rent and pay it the first of the month. I gave him my share of the rent and he didn't pay it. This caused my eviction just 5 days shy of Christmas.

This were hard as I had no place to go and all my friends away with family. I had no place to stay and had to go home to my parents which was far away from the Chili's location until I could find another place to live in Little Rock.

I explained to one of the managers the situation and he said, "We'll just wing it."

I told another one that I won't be able to come into work one weekend. So I (assume) they had someone cover for me. "Great," I think, "Now I can look for an apartment." I eventually found one and the move in day wasn't until January 3rd. I called on Saturday to tell them I found a place to live. To my surprise, however, they expected me to work that weekend and were very confused as to why I hadn't showed up. I talked to the store manager and explained my situation...again. He told me to come in on Tuesday Jan 6 and we'll talk.

I thought, "Great, there was some misunderstanding and it'll all get cleared up."

That wasn't the case however. When I did show up they explained to me that since I didn't show up those 3 days I was scheduled to work that they couldn't "let me work here anymore."

I was upset and tried to explain to them my situation and the huge misunderstanding. Apparently again, "It's not a good enough excuse" because they said that I should have called in when they scheduled me otherwise they wouldn't be obligated to "let me go".

I didn't let them know I was upset and stayed calm. I saw no reason to make a fuss and even thanked them for letting me work at chili's. Just as I was about to leave a manager said to me, "Make sure you let your roommate know that it caused you your job as well."

Those were his exact words.

I was always told that when I worked for Chili's, well, Brinker for that matter that I would treated as a family member. Now, I'm not sure what you would constitute as a family, but I didn't feel part of a family at all. I did my part to and did my job. All I was given was the boot and even a little ridicule as I left the "family".

Is this how it's really supposed to be? In the Corps no matter what happened to you you were treated like a brother. At Chili's I was treated...well...not well.

Tell me something Brinker, is this how a uniformed person is supposed to be treated at your jobs. How about a regular civilian just coming down on hard times?

Or is every sob story you hear just never a "good enough excuse"?

I want to know.

-(my name)
Semper Fi"

[Kannon]

Hmm, well. I definitely have some mixed feelings, I guess. Their acts, while not in line with a "family" setting, weren't unjustified, per se. I feel empathetic towards your situation, and truly hope the Corps will find a way to help you through this tough time. Talk to your supervisors; I'm uncertain how the Reserves work exactly, or the Marine Corps for that matter, but I know in the Air (Force) National Guard, if one were truly down with no outs, our Chief would find a way to get you on some orders to hold you over while you look for a job/apt/whatever.

One thing I guess I felt sort of negatively about in your letter is this; one should never fall on his or her military obligations as a way out of civilian obligations. I understand from your letter that there was miscommunications, by the sounds of it; however you ask if, "this is how a uniformed person is supposed to be treated at your jobs." Really all I'm saying is; the situation is FUBAR'ed already, the fact that you are in the military and the reason for the miscommunication based in your military obligations, their reaction is what got you fired, regardless of its cause.

I would agree that you are warranted in writing this letter; however I would most likely remove the majority of the militaristic overtone and be more generalizing about the fact that they were unsympathetic to your situation, even with prior knowledge to your absence.

[MNJetter]

I agree with Kannon, but would also venture to say that if it were me, I wouldn't have bothered to write a letter. I mean, it's Chili's. It's not like you got fired from a 6-figure job at Microsoft or something.

That's not to say it isn't causing you hardship. I understand what it's like to need a job, any job, so that you can make ends meet, and without that job, you don't have the luxury of being picky in your next one.

If you're still in college, though, I'm surprised that you were working at Chili's in the first place. Financial aid and the Reserves on their own should be enough to let you get by. I mean, get student loans now to offset your limited Reservist income, so you don't have to worry about a civilian job at all, and then after you get out, the GI bill will likely set in and pay off your loans.

[Sock Full of Boiled Dimes]

Sure.

I just don't like how I was treated and its shitty that they can get away with it.

The GI bill is great, but I'm not getting much out of it. To be honest I'm actually getting roughly 350 a month (which is more than the average college student is getting) and already *had* loans.

But I also had a crappy semester and lost my Financial Aid which means I wasn't eligible for the Stafford Loan.

Luckily my Granny is offering to pay for this semester. All I have to worry about is money for food and believe it or not that shit is getting expensive.

Actually, I'm just waiting for my GI bill to come in.

No private loans. Screw that. It seems like a bad idea at the moment.

[japanat]

SFBD,

I can understand how the situation would leave a bad taste in your mouth, but I agree with the previous posters to reduce the "I'm in the military" angle of your story. If it were my letter, I'd write it as follows:

Dear Brinker,

My name is (blank) and I was an employee at your well-known chain Chili's in Little Rock. Arkansas. I was employed from roughly Feb ‘08 to April of ’08, then left briefly because I felt the call to serve my country and joined the United States Marine Corps Reserves. The managers at the time were kind and supportive of my decision and understood when I had to give my two weeks notice.

After this I headed straight to Boot Camp and endured one of the hardest boot camps in the military service, lasting 13 weeks long. When I came back it took some time to readjust to civilian life, but I was happy to know that Chili's in Little Rock was willing to let me work there again. I worked there as I was going through college and drilling.
This lasted Aug 08 to Dec 08. It became one of the most unpleasant times I worked there. I really didn't feel welcome at the workplace the entire time.

I had told the managerial staff with whom I worked that I had other obligations. For example, on my off time I helped with the recruiters in the Little Rock Marine Corps recruiting station. During this time a Sergeant asked me to do something for him at the last minute before a host meeting. Complying with it caused me to miss the meeting and left me unable to call in, but I did stop by afterwards to make sure I knew what happened during it and to let everyone know where I was. However, they were completely unforgiving, writing me up for missing the meeting and throwing in two more minor incidents. They then said that I could possibly be terminated because of this and I was now on probation. I was confused because I had assumed I was doing a good job and no one had told me they were anything but content with the quality of my work - there was no prior indication.

So for a period I was on watch and then for the next few months everything seemed fine and I performed my work up to and beyond expectations.

Then hard times hit when I was evicted from my apartment. My roommate and I had agreed that he would collect our rent and pay it the first of the month. I gave him my share of the rent and he didn't pay it. This caused my eviction just 5 days shy of Christmas. All my friends away with family for the holidays, I had no place to go other than home to my parents, who lived far away from the Chili's location until I could find another place to live in Little Rock.

I explained the situation to one of the managers and he said, "We'll just wing it." I told another one that I wouldn't be able to come into work one weekend, and not being told otherwise, assumed they had someone cover for me. "Great," I thought, "Now I can look for an apartment." I eventually found one, the move-in day wasn't until January 3rd. I called on Saturday to tell them I had found a place to live. To my surprise, however, they expected me to work that weekend and were very confused as to why I hadn't showed up. I talked to the restaurant manager and explained my situation...again. He told me to come in on Tuesday, Jan 6 and we'd “talk”.

I thought, "Great, there was some misunderstanding and it'll all get cleared up." That wasn't the case however. When I did show up they explained to me that since I didn't show up those 3 days that I was scheduled to work that they couldn't "let me work here anymore."

I was upset and tried to explain to them my situation and the huge misunderstanding. Again, "It's not a good enough excuse", because they said that I should have called in when they scheduled me (which I did) otherwise they wouldn't be obligated to "let me go".

I didn't let them know I was upset and stayed calm. I saw no reason to make a fuss and even thanked them for letting me work at Chili's. Just as I was about to leave a manager said to me, "Make sure you let your roommate know that it cost you your job as well."

Those were his exact words.

I was always told that when I worked for Chili's, well, Brinker for that matter, that I would be treated as a family member. Now, I'm not sure what you would constitute as a family, but I didn't feel part of a family at all. I did my part, too, and did my job. All I was given was the boot and even a little ridicule as I left the "family".

Is this how it's really supposed to be? In the Corps no matter what happened to you you were treated like a brother. At Chili's I was treated...well...not well.

Tell me something Brinker, is this how a member of the family is supposed to be treated? How about someone just coming down on hard times?

Or is every sob story you hear just never a "good enough excuse"?

I want to know.

-(my name)
”Semper Fi"I would consider whether to include Semper Fi, since it comes across as gung ho, unless Brinker is an ex-Marine. BTW, is Brinker a Mr, Ms, or just the corporate name? If it is a person's name, using it without the honorific is rude, especially in a business letter.

And if that Chili's is a franchise, there really would be nothing Brinker could do anyways, they would have no operational control.

[Sock Full of Boiled Dimes]

Brinker is a corperation that owns Chili's.

[Swede]

I pretty much agree with Jetter. It's fucking Chili's. Yeah, it sucks that you got fired, and your current situation sounds rough, but I don't really see what writing them is going to change about that. If your that short on money, you can find another job, though from the sound of things you should probably be focusing on your schooling a bit more too. Best of luck to ya.

[Takuto]

Your attitude towards the end of the letter was rather hostile, which is not the way to voice a complaint. Also, I believe you were fired based on too many unexcused absenses. This is how I think you should have handled each situation:

During this time a Sergeant asked me to do something for him at the last minute before a host meeting. Complying with it caused me to miss the meeting and left me unable to call in, but I did stop by afterwards to make sure I knew what happened during it and to let everyone know where I was.
No matter how urgent something is, it only takes a minute to call in and leave a message. Even an email or text message would've been acceptable as long as you provided some indication that you were going to take time off. Explaining your situation after you already missed your shift is usually not acceptable, hence the "Not good enough excuse"

I was confused because I had assumed I was doing a good job and no one had told me they were anything but content with the quality of my work - there was no prior indication.
Finding out how well you're doing is an employee's responsibility. Go up to your manager and ask for his opinion or assessment every once in a while. It shows him that you care about the quality of your work.

I explained the situation to one of the managers and he said, "We'll just wing it." I told another one that I wouldn't be able to come into work one weekend, and not being told otherwise, assumed they had someone cover for me. "Great," I thought, "Now I can look for an apartment." I eventually found one, the move-in day wasn't until January 3rd. I called on Saturday to tell them I had found a place to live. To my surprise, however, they expected me to work that weekend and were very confused as to why I hadn't showed up.
This is miscommunication on your part. You only told your manager that you were going to be out "one weekend" but you didn't specify when. Also, when you take time off, it's best to let the person who handles payroll know first. That way, your absense will be recorded in advance and your managers will know about it regardless of whether or not you tell them in person. Alternatively, you could've told 1-2 of your coworkers about this so that you'll have someone to back you up (hopefully) when you're gone.

[StormShadow]

Sorry about your situation Sock, but here are two things:

1) Chili's didn't 'let' you come back and work with them. If you re-applied within 60 days of you getting out of Boot Camp they are obligated by law to accept you back.

2) It's spelled S-E-R-G-E-A-N-T.

What they did is completely legal, and has been done to people in the past and sadly will continue in the future.

[stsparky]

Sock?

Share how shitty Chili's was with your fellow Marines. A base-wide boycott would be a nice lesson for their restaurant. Ask at the JAG office if there might be redress you could seek for . Next, study your fool butt off and get better grades. Apply for Pell grants and the like immediately. Ask at school if you can get an on-campus job as you need financial aid. Next go to the local library or book store and study any of Matthew Lesko (http://www.governmentgrant.com/)'s books. - http://www.governmentgrant.com/free/college-grants.htm

See if there is a grant for students in your field.

[Trump]

OK, Just in case you are going to work for another restaurant, expect the exact same thing. Restaurants deal in cheap and migrant labor. They have no loyalty AT ALL to their employees unless they are perfect employees, and even then it isn't every time. Sure, you can buy what they say about family, but you will always be treated as the jailbird uncle or crazy aunt, no respect. I will say there are a few managers who are an exception to this, and there are also some mom and pop places or upscale restaurants where they care about their employees, but as a general rule waitstaff is treated (and paid) total crap. They will probably read your letter, laugh about it, and post it on a company hate mail board for other managers to laugh at.

[Plekto]

Sorry, no redress other than a boycott or similar tactics. Welcome to employment at will - the bane of all hourly workers.

http://www.state.ar.us/labor//faqs/index.html
first thing on that page. Same here in California as well. Unless you have a contract, you're at their mercy short of government mandated excuses like maternity/paternity leave, reserve duty, and so on.

Then again, it IS Chilis. Just answer phones someplace or whatever.

[Sock Full of Boiled Dimes]

2) It's spelled S-E-R-G-E-A-N-T.

.

I spelled it that way, but my spell checker said I was wrong.

Ah, at the moment I'm thinking about forgetting a job and just interning somewhere so I can actually get experience for more money. Which is always the opportunity since I'm a senior and my grades aren't entire suck (I only had one bad semester).

I'm going to live off of my GI bill and if worse comes to worse I can always get a loan.

[Fred]

When I read your letter, my experience was that it came across as whining. I know that term is a pejorative one and I do not mean to discount your experience. Rather, my intention is to give you honest feedback. The good news is that there is an easy fix to your letter.

First, I recommend you directly state your intention in writing your letter. For example, you could start your letter with something like, “I am writing this letter to express my discontent with how any why I was terminated from the Chili’s restaurant in Little Rock, AR.”

Second, if there is something specific that you want, then I recommend you ask for it. For example, “I would like my job back” or “I would like an apology” or “I would like you to make sure this letter reaches the person who monitors the managerial training at the Chili’s in Little Rock.”

Third, send the letter to someone who has the authority to fulfill your request or, at least, respond meaningfully to your letter. Address it to that person by name. A 0.26 second search on google provided the following web site (which contains the names of specific people to contact): http://www.brinker.com/corp_gov/resolution_procedure.asp

Forth, tighten up your letter. For example,

Date
Brinker Address

Dear Mr/Ms. Name

My name is (blank). I am writing this letter to express my discontent with how any why I was terminated from the Chili’s restaurant in Little Rock, AR. Initially, I was employed from Feb 08 to April of 08. I left briefly to join the United States Marine Corps Reserves. At the time, my managers were very supportive when I gave my two week’s notice.

After Boot Camp, I returned to college, started meeting my obligations with the Reserves, and returned to work at Chili’s. My employment at Chili’s lasted from Aug 08 to Dec 08 and my experience was completely different from when I worked there prior to Boot Camp. I never felt welcome at the workplace and the managerial staff was adamantly unwilling to work with me to accommodate my military obligations.

For example, once a Sergeant asked me to do something at the last minute during my off time. This occurred just before a host meeting. I forgot to call in, but afterwards stopped by to make sure I knew what happened during the meeting and to let everyone know where I was.

Unfortunately, the managers wrote me up for missing the meeting and threw in two more minor incidents. Then, they told me I could possibly be terminated because of this and I was now on watch until I cleaned up my act. I was confused and surprised at this declaration because they had never communicated any dissatisfaction with my work prior to this incident. I explained what happened, but they simply said that, “It's not a good enough excuse.”

Things went smoothly for a couple of months until the end of December. My roommate took off with our rent money causing us to be evicted 5 days prior to Christmas. I had to live with my parents far away from Chili’s until I could find housing near my workplace.

I knew there was one weekend I would not be able to work, so I separately notified two managers in person. One of the managers said, "We'll just wing it" so I assumed they had someone to cover for me and that I was free to secure housing during that time.

After finding an apartment, I checked in with Chili’s on the weekend of January 3rd. To my surprise, they told me they had been expecting me to work that weekend. I explained the situation again to the manager and he told me to come in on Tuesday Jan 6th to talk about it.

When I arrived on the 6th, the manager explained to me that since I didn't show up those 3 days I was scheduled to work they couldn't let me work there anymore. When I explained my situation again, they simply said it “wasn’t a good enough excuse”. They said I should have notified them when they first scheduled me. As a final parting shot, one of the managers told me sarcastically, “Make sure you let your roommate know that it caused you your job as well.”

Those were his exact words.

I understand I may not have communicated my needs in proper manner. Still, I can not help but feel that the managers changed in their treatment of me once I joined the military. Rather than making an effort to work with my situation, they simply treated me as a problem employee and terminated me at their earliest convenience.

I ask that you please make sure this letter reaches someone who can impact the managerial training at the Chili’s in Little Rock.

Yours Truly,
(Your Name)

[ruaidhri]

I suggest you take Fred's advise. He's correct; when you write a letter of complaint it's important that it clearly state your problem and not appear to be whining. It's also important that the letter be addressed to the proper person and that it identify exactly what you seek in writing the letter.

Fred's letter would be read and acted on. Yours would most likely be ignored.

[Fred]

Thanks Ruaidhri

[japanat]

Just remember: your roommate cost you your job, he didn't cause it.

And Fred's version of your letter is much better than mine. Listen to him.