My kids were diagnosed with “an illness suspicious of covid-19. My employer laid me off. Then upon clearance from medical provider after our quarantine Saying im cleared to return to work. My employer told me there is no position for me to return to. And they threw away all my belongings.
I feel so betrayed. And lost. Im not eligible for unemployment yet. And have not received any covid relief funds at all. Im about to be evicted. When i spoke to employer and explained mg situation their response was “ i find that hard to believe
There has to be something I can do about how they are treating me
You should find an employment lawyer asap. In my opinion, it is illegal for them to fire you because your children might have had Covid 19. I think you were wrongfully terminated and therefore should find a lawyer familiar with this area of law to help you out.
Best,
Reba Weiss
Weiss Law Firm PLLC
"Im not eligible for unemployment yet." Unless you have filed an unemployment benefit application since 18 April, you likely are wrong that you are not eligible. Under the new regulations, anyone who has worked within the last year likely is eligible, at least under the federal part of unemployment benefits.
"Im about to be evicted." The WA governor has prohibited practically all residential eviction in WA until at least 4 June 2020 (unless the tenant is being violent). So, you likely do not need to worry about being evicted for a few weeks.
The coronavirus emergency has caused a lot of changes in government benefits for which a person can be eligible. To get an overview of what benefits you may be eligible for, you can check out https://www.coronavirus.wa.gov/ . You should check back at that website frequently as the information is frequently changing.
You can check out WA Labor & Industries at www.lni.wa.gov to see whether you qualify for any benefit.
Many private law offices are physically closed. Some law offices are talking with clients via electronic means. It may take a while for you to find law offices whose attorneys can review your situation. However, you can contact law offices in your area to see what they can do for you. In the meanwhile, you can collect the evidence and keep it in a safe place for when you can find an attorney.
