They need a lawyer so if Macy's presses charges, they have legal representation. Innocent or not, which the OP has never claimed or asserted when asked, you need a lawyer if you are charged with a crime.Quote:
Quoting bam!
Theft As Macy's Employee
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09-25-2011, 04:31 AMfree9manRe: Theft As Macy's Employee
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09-25-2011, 05:39 AMjackson55Re: Theft As Macy's Employee
My bench warrant was for a traffic ticket. I went to court for it the day following the incident at Macy's and they scheduled a new court date. If I go talk to Macy's LP alone as they requested and they feel I am guilty can I still be arrested on spot or is it more common to get notification in mail of a suit? I am not alleging guilt here but I would like to know what I could be facing if found so. I have dealt with police and the courts on traffic cases before and always find myself on the short end of the stick when I cooperate. Go figure.
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09-25-2011, 06:50 AMPandorasBoxRe: Theft As Macy's Employee
I would consult with a Criminal Defense Attorney.
For starters, LP is going to be HIGHLY suspicious of you, they will want to know why you would not open your bag and show what you had in it. If they feel you are guilty, they can keep you in the office and call for police and press charges. You can bet they have you on tape refusing to show the contents of that bag - and that will likely be shown to HR. If you did steal something, that will also be on tape.
Again, I would not count on having a job there any longer - most stores have a policy in their handbook that your locker and it's contents can be searched at any time; and most require you open your purse, bags, etc., upon leaving the store. -
09-25-2011, 07:19 AMcbgRe: Theft As Macy's Employee
So, bam!, no apology? After all, I really did turn out to be an HR professional.
It might interest you to know that hiring/firing decisions are made by the departmental manager and rarely if ever by HR. Just another way in which you don't understand HR's role as well as you think you do.
No matter how many ways you try to backpedal, I can't find any way to read your response that doesn't translate to, don't call a lawyer, HR will act as a lawyer for you. You may not have meant that, but it is damn sure how your response came across.
Why would they need a lawyer if they were innocent? They claimed to never have stolen, so a lawyer would serve what purpose?
Oh, like maybe protecting the employee's legal rights. And the poster actually never did claim not to have stolen - in fact, he's hedging around enough in his most recent post to make it pretty sure that he did.
And if you seriously believe what you posted that I quoted, above, then you have NO business posting on legal boards. -
09-26-2011, 11:05 AMbam!Re: Theft As Macy's Employee
Five years as a district director of hr for the company mentioned here and most recently seven years in legal compliance, loss prevention policy and procedure for another company.
So yea I have a handle on what this poster is going through. This case can be as simple as a policy violation or as serious as theft of company property. Back then, if an employee retained legal counsel, we would not talk to them and refer them to our corporate HQ legal team.
HR conducts a separate fact finding investigation. The employee should contact hr and check on their employment status. Then they should obtain legal counsel should they need it. Other than that, there is no reason to jump the gun.
Did I answer your questions to your level of satisfaction?
My apologies.Quote:
Quoting cbg
As HR, you do not make decisions based on assumptions. You look at the facts. Simply put, a phone call to HR will let the poster see what options they have. Do they need a lawyer? Not immediately. Why retain a lawyer when you have been fired for a policy violation. If they had hard evidence, they would have physically detained the employee once they left OR notified the police who in turn would contact the employee. My best guess based on the limited information is that the OP has been terminated for a policy violation or may be on final warning for this violation.
Again, your job is to offer factual advice not make judgements on what you assume. -
09-26-2011, 11:09 AMcbgRe: Theft As Macy's Employee
Do not tell me what my job is. I know what my job is far better than you do.
And as for making assumptions, you've done a fair amount of that yourself, sport. -
09-26-2011, 11:39 AMbam!Re: Theft As Macy's EmployeeAh. Struck a nerve.Quote:
Quoting cbg
Offer some HR advice on how the OP should handle this besides "get a lawyer". Did you accept my apology?!? -
09-26-2011, 12:26 PMcbgRe: Theft As Macy's Employee
I'm still considering it. It's not worth a whole lot when I had to remind you to do it. And you know what? If an employee came into my HR office and told me he was being investigating for stealing and wanted to know what he should do before going to meet with LP, I'd tell him to talk to a lawyer. You claim to know what my job is so much better than I do, but you don't know that?
Please notice a couple of things. At no time did I tell him to take a lawyer to the meeting with him. Please also notice that the poster did not ask what to do about his ongoing employment. He asked what to do before going to meet with LP. You were not answering the question he asked.
You can preen yourself that you "struck a nerve" and how that makes you superior. I still maintain that telling someone who is being charged with stealing (and who by all implications is probably guilty) NOT to get a lawyer is about the most irresponsible piece of advice you can give.