Long story short, I’m a security guard and after a couple of months decided that with a history of suicidal ideation I probably shouldn’t carry a pistol, I told the doctor at my work, they said I could no longer carry a pistol and I figured they were going to bring me in today (yesterday now), fire me and that’s that. Well, somehow I was not fired, I got in at 1:30, sat for 2.5 hours waiting for something to happen and the people who should have done the firing just went the fuck home… So, I continued to sit. I sat until 9:00 when I was told to go collect trash from the various guard posts. Ok. Then they told me to report in tomorrow at 7:30am (I don’t work at 7:30) and they would have me working days until “my issue is resolved”. So tomorrow I’ll just let them know that it’s not going to be resolved, hopefully they can me then, if I quit I cannot claim un-employment. This is weird as hell because I may end up in a stalemate as a glorified janitor until I can find another job and resign.
That’s good call. Good on you for making that decision. I’ve decided long ago I should never own a gun (not that I was ever considering it).
I agree it does sound like they’re trying to do something and maybe you can ride that out for a bit?
Yeah, I’m going to ride it out for this week at least and see what happens. I am going to talk to them tomorrow and see if they can help me get a different position at the same location that is better suited for me, if not I have some folks I can reach out to to try to get work in short order.
Regarding guns; The funny thing is that I am totally ok around rifles and shotguns, I grew up using them on a ranch and consider them tools rather than weapons. Pistols though, in my mind, only exist to kill people and I don’t want to be near them.
The mind’s a funny thing like that. I have no experience around guns and suspect in a moment of desperation I’d make any work.
The hardest part of any weapon you are not familiar with is operating the safety (if equipped).
Hey, thanks so much for doing this.
There’s a couple people in my life I’ve really, really worried about, but who put off actually doing anything responsible with their firearms while they were/still are going through such inner turbulence.
Its weighed on them, and even though I’ve tried to be respectful about how I express my concerns, I worry that my being concerned weighs on them, too, but it means so many things- having to admit to problems, face them, call attention to them, face financial repercussions, etc.I don’t know you, but I’m so extremely proud of you.
This is one of those things that should be common sense behavior, but is actually an incredibly difficult action to take. It says so much of you as a person.
Even if you can’t be Happy, being a person with that kind of integrity is something you should allow yourself to appreciate.
Im pretty sure legal does not want you fired.
They might have to talk to legal first and make sure firing you won’t bite them back in any way. If they can reasonably place you in another position, they will likely choose that option for a while and then let you go for “poor performance” or something. Basically at this point you’re a risk to the company and they can’t afford to keep you long-term. They might be going for an amiable parting down the line, but it depends on who’s in charge and how they handle it. Sometimes there are good people in management who do want to help if they can.
That’s a good take. Someone did mention to me that they were waiting on some paperwork today that may not have come through by their normal quitting time.
Are you in the USA? Most other countries, security would not carry a pistol, so perhaps they feel you can still do your job?
The fact that they want you working days instead may be a sign they are trying to work wkth you to find a solution but don’t feel firing you is warranted.
Do you want to be fired? If security is not for you, you’d be better served finding a different job and continuing to work days until you find something else that hopefully you like and is better for your mental health. Even working days rather than nights may be helpful.
Please don’t take this the wrong way, but as someone who doesn’t work security nor janitorial, I’d think of a janitor as a harder worker worth better hours and needing more training/experience. Security is often better paid but more dangerous, with unsociable hours, hence the pay. Your comment made it sound like you think yourself better. However, I presume you intended it as just that you can’t complete security tasks.
I’d go in tomorrow with an open mind.
Yes, USA. It is required where I work to have at least one person with a gun at each post and I am designated to be that person. Unfortunately they cannot just make another of the people take that position but I cannot go into much detail as to why. For what I am being paid I actually consider it to be woefully inadequate for a guard but perfectly acceptable for a janitor so I’ll fill that role for a while at least until I can find something different or they may show me the door tomorrow, time will tell.
We do not know your employer or management.
They could legitimately want to help find a solution or workaround.
They could just string you along, trying to make your life more difficult until you quit.
It’s up to you if you want to keep the job, but remember that being already employed does normally make you more employable.
Best of luck however it goes.
this type of comment saddens me so much. so many jobs are being made minimum wage adjacent. My father was a janitor and was able to raise a large family and have a decent retirement and my mom did not work. Its crazy the way things are today.
This is the way, let the current employer keep paying you, win/win. Do not quit until you are actually offered and accept another job. Keep an open mind throughout. There is nothing wrong with doing whatever they ask you to do (picking up trash, etc.) while your requests are sorted out, it makes you look good actually. These people may not be your allies, but they may not be enemies. Be cool.
Good luck friend, sounds like a surreal situation. I hope things go well for you.
This is how security companies work. They will not fire you unless you fuck up really really really bad. They will likely just take away almost all your hours and force you to quit.
In a country with pretty strict controls on firearms - especially pistols - so this whole thing reads super weird to me.
Mental health concerns aside (and massive respect to you for being brave enough to be honest with yourself) what is the point of you having a gun in the first place? What does management expect you to do with that gun?
Putting myself in your place, if I’m supposed to stand there being a deterrent sure, but I’m not killing someone to stop them stealing stuff (you guys are insured), so unless I’m here to stop armed intruders hurting others (isn’t that what the police are for?) or to defend myself (would I need to defend myself if I wasn’t standing around with a gun, and again, if someone is trying to break in, wouldn’t I be better to just avoid confrontation and call the cops?) what’s the point of being armed in the first place?
[email protected], apparently.
It may qualify as a disability that requires accommodation, and they are accommodating it by giving you different work. If you want a different job look for one.
