EEOC violations (Phoenix, Scottsdale, Chandler: utilities, income, to live in)

[jessiesma]

Originally Posted by _Charles_

You don't mention what you actually do for a living.

Well, my husband has an Eng. degree and I'm an artist who has been to burdened to produce lately. But we've both worked in teh banking credit industry and are computer literate. So I'd say office work but as I mentioned in a previous post, thats considered "women's" work here in the South and is low paid and he doesn't get it. They're too homophobic to even consider that might be his situation which it's not.

Keep in mind AZ is a "right to work" state - the only labor law here is Federal.

same here which is why they can use anything to keep out "undesirables." see above..

If you do office or technical work - needing Saturdays off should not be problem. If you do service/retail type work - you might face some difficulties.

Yeah, and those are the only ones that will even consider my hubby.


On the postive side the labor market in AZ is very merit based. Your age and religion will not be a big issue here.

This is the BEST news I've read on this forum, well after Ivannabeacowboy's and what I was looking for.

[jessiesma]

Originally Posted by joninaz

The overly broad assertation that nobody will hire folks who can't work certain days is insulting to the many thousands of companies who do make such accomomodations.
Thousands? well that's quite a number for one person to explore! I'm sure if all one does for a year or two is job hunt, than perhaps it can be done. If you are counting very small businesses, they are few and far between in this neck of the woods and often more demanding. But of course, you're right there must be SOME out there who would accommodate us.

And it's similarly insulting to the millions of people who have set scheduling needs, be they religious or for custody/childcare, school, etc., but who manage to go out and advance the country and earn a living.

I am not disparaging those religions that have obligations of various sorts and even those that don't but ours is unique in it's most observant form in that we are to do NO work on our Sabbath. I'm perfectly fine working compensatory hours to pull my weight.
Likewise I'm not disparaging those who have childhood care needs. While we're legislating rights. We should include those. The Family Medical Leave Act is a step in that direction, not saying that's good or bad but either we go for the free market or we go totally "cradle to grave."

You've already painted yourself into a very small corner with your long list
Long list I don't understand. I only asked for what, in theory, the law guarantees. The right to worship as I choose. I didn't ask for the cafeteria to be kosher or for there to be no Christmas decorations. Doing so would be a deal breaker. I don't even care if most of the people in the office are Christians and have a prayer meeting every day as long as it's not a requirement of working there to attend.

of requirements and deal breakers in terms of your religious, social,
Social that really confuses me. Please clarify.

and economic parameters. I only want to be able to afford a small apartment in a safe neighborhood, I don't even expect to afford one near a synagogue, and to eat and feed my one, older car

Painting the business community with broad, negative prejudicial strokes isn't going to help. Or are you simply using this as an excuse?

This last sentence is an attack on my character. I'm waaaay past the age where making excuses is well....excusable. But better to be passionate than lukewarm so I forgive you.

From where I stand, FL, the business community deserves to be excoriated for many of it's practices including low wages across the board. Why do you think we have working homeless in St Pete? And I mean decent jobs, not day work or the most awful menial jobs around. Some of these people actually go to offices and have families but their willingness to work was not enough to counter the high cost of living here. The St. Pete Times recently did an article on how difficult it was for working people to get second jobs for the holiday season. A lot of people here bought houses when they were affordable and now have property taxes thru the roof due to assessments based on market value. The current gov. is trying to get that changed but he's meeting very stiff opposition from municipalities who went on a spending spree with all this extra tax money and would rather see their citizens on the street than tighten their municipal belts. The thing is they really don't want these folks on the street and paint them as "misfits" and are literally running them out of town.

We haven't seen a merit based pay raise anywhere as one poster stated you have in PHX. It's hard to even get a cost of living increase. Most companies are "cost cutting" by "downsizing" and a few weeks later getting a Temp agency to send a full shift of temp-to-perm new hires who get no bennies and can be gone in an hour.
Home Depot just closed a call center of 750 people. they decided "our bad, we overestimated need and this work can be done in-store." Decent hardworking people have no place to go. Some will become homeless. Great, Merry Christmas here's your 60 day notice.
I'm waiting to see if HD was sincere about the need, it happens and I realize business decisions can be hard but if they dare open a call center off shore they will be proven to be bold faced liars.

The Eastern Seaboard is dying. Cities can't regain their manufacturing base so to save themselves they are becoming "destinations" and creating low paying service jobs. For those they want cute, perky, young people and I understand that but if the profile doesn't fit, it doesn't fit.

Sometimes wisdom comes thru others and only after we've spoken our frustrations. I can't say why we didn't look West long ago but the light has finally dawned. We were stupid and refused to accept our forward thinking spirits as a good thing. I've read hard things on this forum but they have been part of the growth process. I hope I never become too old for that.
Someone posted that this wasn't the forum for me but I disagree. I am seriously interested in moving forward with my life and that means getting out of my East Coast "comfort zone." In the process I've found that it really hasn't been so comfortable. I never belonged here.

joninaz, I think you were a bit too harsh but the things you said hit a nerve and I realize those very qualities I have been projecting are the very things I hate most about the East. Narrowness, judgementalness, just plain negative, negative, negative. Time to clean house.
That doesn't mean abandoning values however, just have to figure out how to do both.

[jessiesma]

Originally Posted by twiggy

You better pray, if you even believe in a god, that nothing happens to you or yours because you just sowed some really bad karma.

Jewish and Karma! Nice blend.[/quote]

actually a very Jewish concept even if the terminology is different.
I think of Judaism as an "Eastern" religion, not Greek, unless you''re Reform

Just kidding, all you Reformers out there but you do like your Humanism and Rationalism. LOL

[Greatday]

Right to work state simply means, that you cannot be required to join a union to be able to work for a company

Unions are not strong here in Arizona - and, that is a good thing.

[ivanabacowboy]

jessiesma, first believe it or not--->home base for my employer is not the west. Home base is Cleveland to be exact. We have operations in numerous states, including Arizona and Florida and others (even Canada). I got a fully paid relocation out here to Phoenix at my request (I have family here)---->essentially and literally brought my job with me. I already knew the people in the Phoenix office, it is the same work I have been doing for years. That made the transition hugely easy!

As far as shift bidding, I dont think that will be an issue. My employer looks to people to be reasonable. Ie If you know that John is asking to not work a certain shift for religious reasons vs you dont want to work it simply because it would interfere with your car washing schedule--->they expect you to do the right thing and give John first choice. It is the corporate "culture" if you will. And it is supposed to be company wide-not limited to just the IT'ish folks.

I will pm you later this evening.

[jessiesma]

Originally Posted by ivanabacowboy

jessiesma, first believe it or not--->home base for my employer is not the west. Home base is Cleveland to be exact. We have operations in numerous states, including Arizona and Florida and others (even Canada). I got a fully paid relocation out here to Phoenix at my request (I have family here)---->essentially and literally brought my job with me. I already knew the people in the Phoenix office, it is the same work I have been doing for years. That made the transition hugely easy!
We're probably not that high on the corporate ladder to rate that but that's fine we just need a leg up to the first rung. BTW if this company is in any of the Jewish areas we've contacted in FL. no one has mentioned it to us. They all shake their heads and say "so sorry."

As far as shift bidding, I dont think that will be an issue. My employer looks to people to be reasonable. Ie If you know that John is asking to not work a certain shift for religious reasons vs you dont want to work it simply because it would interfere with your car washing schedule--->they expect you to do the right thing and give John first choice.

I've become cynical but sometimes it just happens that similar populations come together with similar needs and the best intentions don't always work.

It is the corporate "culture" if you will. And it is supposed to be company wide-not limited to just the IT'ish folks. I was thinking of firms like Microsoft not the computer jobs within other industries.

I will pm you later this evening.

I look forward to your pm. AS you know we're 2 hours ahead of you and we turn in by 10ish. the way you wrote I thought you were PHX based and the bank was just there

[jessiesma]

not sure who Greatday is replying to but I agree about unions. I just hate when unscrupulous people use "right to work" unethically, like no notice firing and not giving a work related reason. It usually works out to "right to fire." Unless the offense is so egregious the person presents a danger, that is just cruel. Used to be if someone was fired with no notice, you'd get severance pay. No more. It's meant to be a 2 way street, allowing an employee to quit with no strings attached although I'm not sure how that applies to the employee.

[Greatday]

Originally Posted by jessiesma

not sure who Greatday is replying to

I just wanted to make sure my position, regarding Unions, is clear - I oppose Unions. I don't believe in Unions. I believe that it is, in large measure, because of Unions that the United States has seen the amount of "outsourcing" the the reduction in competitivness in certain industries, that we have.

I trust the above clarifies my position

[jessiesma]

Greatday,

That is an interesting idea. On what do you base it? I'm not contradicting you I just have seen a lot of outsourcing in unskilled jobs so how do unions (code for socialism) affect that? I mean is is an indirect outcome in areas like customer service and retail or is there some direct connection like demands for high wages etc. etc.? What can we do about it if anything?

So you are saying that "right to work" is supposed to be limited to not having to join a union which is somewhat irrelevant in a lot of jobs and it doesn't mean or shouldn't mean that an employer can fire you at will say, for staring out into space for a few seconds even tho doing so doesn't affect your work? Because that is the common understanding or excuse in these parts and no one will refute that.
I've heard that it was meant to protect the worker in lieu of union protection but it has been totally turned against the worker and it may be because of a genuine but not malicious misunderstanding of the purpose of the, um, is it a law?

[MotleyCrew]

What type of engineering degree does your husband have?