[saganite]

Maybe you're better off not working in a company with a jackbooted thug as the chief of security. It sounds like his own company is scared of him. If you were reinstated you can bet the guy would make it his mission to make your lives miserable.

[Harmless Teddy Bear]

Likely it depends on the laws of your state but as a general rule if you are under contract through an agency then you don't have much legal recourse.

Your agency would have to be the one to do it as they are the one's who actually have a contract with the company. Your contract is with the agency.

But I am not a lawyer nor did I stay at a holiday inn last night.

[Dog Gone]

In general, unless your employment is pursuant to a contract with the employer, or you are represented by a union, you can be terminated for any reason or no reason at all.

It sounds as if you were hired by a stupid company and fired by a stupid company. Stupid companies eventually go out of business because capitalism does not reward stupidity.

[Boundless]

I would have first tried active noise-cancelling headsets.
Listen to silence or tunes most of the time, and phone
calls as they arise.

I've worked where such signs are allowed, and had a cube
right outside the cafeteria - the signs don't work, and
are hardly worth losing your job over.

[svcw]

You are contracted / temp workers .... they can get rid of you because they do not like the color of your tie.

[theDentist]

Seek an attorney. Even if you are re-hired, would you want to work in such a violent and threatening environment?

[Dallas59]

Your better off..Agreed. What a jackass company.

[somemoreequalthanothers]

I hope you have other opportunities available.
I certainly wouldn't want to work for jerks like you describe. Say good riddance and move on. Good luck.

[Experiment 6-2-6]

This makes no sense...

Usually, it is your supervisor that fires you, and SECURITY escorts you out.

Your company has security fire you, and the supervisor takes your badges?

[jocon307]

You and your co-worker are lucky to be out of there. You could talk with a lawyer about suing, but if you were not a bona fide employee I doubt there is much that can be done. Count your blessings, something better will come along. Crazy people are to be avoided at all costs.

[bert]

Should have got your TPR reports in on time.....

[Dittohead68]

You have no recourse. Ohio is a Right-To-Work state, which means you can be fired for any reason, or no reason at all - same is true on the flip side - you can walk out for any reason, or no reason at all.

You're better off - really. I used to work for an insurance broker in the Akron, OH area that was completely INSANE. Screamed at the employees over the intercom, brought his 15 little ankle-biting dogs to work with him every day, threw temper-tantrums on a regular basis, threatened his employees on a regular basis, screwed his employees out of promised raises and pay, etc...... Working there was a nightmare. Bottom line was that, short of suing him for "holstil work enviornment" in a civil suit, noting could be done about the way the company was run. Not even Dept of Labor or OSHA had an impact or recourse (impotent beurocrats - all of them).

The best thing I ever did was find another job and walk out on the boss. I left him "high and dry". Not to worry though, I won't need him for a reference. I have been with my new company for over a year, now, and life is great!

Moral - when things start getting bad, get out. You can't change things. Inevitable, if the behavior is detrimental to the company, someonw will develop the backbone, or common sense to weed out the stupidity.

[G Larry]

I'd spend the money to take out a half page ad to explain your situation.
I'd bet that Security thug was one of the recent loud mouths in the hallway, and that's why he asked "who was talking loud".
In the ad, name the company, the content of the sign, the actions of the security thug (don't use his name), and the fact of your termination, along with an editorial such as, "Who'd want to work for these clowns?"

[Publius6961]

software engineers, contracting through an agency to a very large company in Cincinnati, Ohio.

Celebrate yor good fortune. I can't tell if the agency is ultimately responsible or the "very large company", but clearly, whoever it is is not long for the business world.

Every classic book on computer science and large programming projects, from the most scholarly to the pedestrian, emphasize the importance of quiet and lack of interruptions as essential for productivity. Not "nice to have" but essential.

Having a security type "run" a firm certainly sounds like a change of management is in order here. and soon.

Just find yourself a job at a real company. Really. I could not imagine working in such a place.

[wolfcreek]

I would have walked out right after security accosted me or at least immediately reported it to my super.

[MindBender26]

Sorry, but you have no chance of prevailing legally.

You were/are and employee of the agency, not the company.

Right to work state.

What permanent damages can you prove. Getting yelled at, then fired, when you have three interviews lined up is not grounds for damages.

[Bloody Sam Roberts]

There are times that Coworker and I cannot hear someone on the phone because it is that loud. We can't even talk to each other.

My company routinely puts up signs that have the same effect as yours but are a bit more diplomatic:

"You are in a work area where people are conducting conversations and business with customers. Please conduct yourself accordingly. Thank you."

If the company isn't willing to go that small distance to make a comfortable work environment for you in the face of harassment by some tool with a quasi-badge, you're better off not working there.

[laceybrookesdad]

I have a friend that was contracted out to the largest pharmaceutical company in Kentucky. He was placed in charge with the companies largest acquisition and was told if he was successful he could write his own ticket with the company. $60 million and three months later the day after the acquisition was complete the owner of the company called his supervisor while they both where in Chicago dotting I's and crossing T's. They immediately gave him a promotion and renewed his contract through January 2007 with serious talk of making him a partner. The following day while at the airport getting ready to fly back to Kentucky the owner of the company called and fired him over the phone. He was told that he received a sexual harassment charge from own of his employees and that there business relationship was over. Turns out the woman who accused him has had two other contractors fired in the past for the same reason. She was upset that she did not get the promotion and wildly accused my friend and he had no recourse. It's really sad that contractors can be treated so unfairly in today's workplace with all the laws that are in place to protect the employees rights. Knowing my friend and the type of workplace professionalism he ascribes to, I knew immediately that the charges were just not believable. Unfortunately he could do nothing but find another job. Lets hope that someday the laws will be changed to better protect not only the hired employee but also the contractor who is brought in short term.

[Galveston Grl]

As a temporary worker, don't you sign a contract with the employer? What does the contract say about firing you before the job is complete? Next time, make sure your employment contract has some economic protection for you.

It was irrational for this group to fire you and your co-worker and this kind of insane institutional culture is going to sink the company. If they have a board of directors, president, etc. write them a letter documenting your job, your progress and what happened - not to get your job back, but to inform them of the crazy nuts running the place. They need to know they have put people in power who are abusive and irrational to the point of harming the company.

[Larry Lucido]

Yea. Do a good job for someone else. And don't look back. The best revenge is to live well.

Or, you can use aikido on them.