The article I have chosen features a story about Canadian male employee, Mehaidli, being fired by the American based company he worked for due to a complaint he posted on twitter about the holiday gift he received from the corporation. More than half of the article talks about the specific tweet, and why he was fired.
Although, I think the main message and primary issue being discussed is how the corporation, Fastenal, refused to pay Mehaidli any severance pays and only offered his final pay cheque and unused vacation hours. A lawyer in employment law explained that off-duty conduct like complaining to social media about your job is becoming more common on the grounds of dismissal recently, but only severe cases. In my personal opinion this was not extreme, if anything deserved a warning and instructions to never repeat again especially for a long term and trusted employee.
Mehaidli states he had been working for the company upwards of six years, and in terms of a correct dismissal process, employees are entitled to severance pay if they have been employed by their employer for five years and above, and if the employer has a payroll of at least $2.5 million (Achkar Law). Fastenal in the last year had a reported revenue of US$5.2 billion. Considering this information, I am confident his employer meets the requirements of payroll to give Mehaidli severance pay. Some information that may be missing in the article is the details in Mehaidli’s contract when signing with Fastenal initially, in terms of what steps will be followed in case of a dismissal. We do not know what the contract stated, and whether this is why they are so confident in the decision to not give him any severance pay.
Either way, severance pay is a huge deal and effects basically everyone who has a job/decides to read this article. Everyone wants to make sure they have a safety net in case of a possible and untimely dismissal. It is how we are able to purchase the necessities we need and pay our bills in the meantime while finding another placement.
The issue at hand helps to remind all employees to read the fine print of their contracts, and to make sure you know the meaning and details incorporated in the document. As an employee you are your biggest advocate. Articles like these show how the intentions of certain corporations have a possibility of being corrupt and can prepare legal loopholes, making it possible to be denied severance pay even if you are a long-term employee. Although, stories like these also force companies to treat their employees correctly even if their intentions are to not. In the age of social media, it is becoming harder and harder to get away with these things, as many people are aware of the (in my personal opinion) untimely and unfair way Fastenal let Mehaidli go.
Personally, I do not think Mehaidli deserved to be fired because of the tweet as it was not severe; I would understand a warning, especially since this was during the holidays and right before the new year. I think this would be a common outside opinion, but it is the corporation’s decision whether they want to continue with the termination. Moving on from this point, in terms of the severance pay issue it seems to me if his initial contract does not say otherwise, Mehaidli has every right to receive them.
Chosen Article:
Additional Sources: http://www.achkarlaw.com/severance/
Aly Davis' Blog 
Hi Aly,
I love your post. I like that you gave your personal option about the situation and I could not agree more. You’re right, someone who has been working for a company for several years should not be treated like this for something not severe. I also really like that you pointed out what information is missing in the article that are important details to consider in this case which many help us understand why Fasternal acted this way in response to Mehaidli tweets. I love that you extracted an important message out of this story and reflected on in and after reading this, I will for sure pay attention and read the fine print before I sign a contract. You’ve clearly explained why you think Fasternal is wrong but if you were in Mehaidli place, what would be your next step/how would you deal with this?
Best,
Amira
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Hi Aly!
I would have to agree with you that the employee should have been given a warning before being terminated. I liked how you touched on information that may be missing as that’s always important to note when looking at articles. It crazy how some corporations have loopholes. It can sometimes feel as though these companies really do not care for their employees. Do you think the articles could be leaving out some details and there could be more reasons to why Mehaidli got fired? I wonder if it was all from his point of view.
Looking forwards to hearing what you think,
Sarah
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