It goes without saying that “it is unlawful for your employer to punish or retaliate,” according to the National Labor Relations Board. Yet, it’s wild that some businesses still do and oftentimes get away with this devious practice. One such employer that so unlawfully fired one of their workers due to being called out about their compensation was a particular Renaissance festival located in Florida. “The thread was in a private Facebook group consisting of other festival works,” the woman explained. However, it wasn’t until she named her employer in the chat that things took a sour turn.
Shortly after, the manager of the Florida-based Renaissance festival messaged her about “the comment” she made on Facebook, as someone had told on her during a meeting. During a phone call, the manager fired her and then followed up with a confirmation email. Posting her situation on r/legaladvice, she asked whether the NLRA (National Labor Relations Act) would apply in this situation. And while one commenter stated she was technically not even an employee, the National Labor Relations Board claimed she was and that her comment about wages was categorized as “protected speech.”
Fortunately, the story has a good ending; the woman spoke with an NLRB agent shortly after her termination and filed a labor rights violation charge against the Florida festival. Finally, the employer came to her with a settlement, offering her job back with increased wages, including extra pay for the missed days of work after the manager had fired her. As it turns out, the law sometimes does work in the people’s favor!
Needless to say, “this whole experience has been eye opening,” the woman concludes. She encourages anyone going through the same situation to call the NLRB and provide them with as much information as possible. Legally employed workers have rights and deserve to have their voices heard when mistreated, and hopefully, their story has a good ending like this Renaissance festival staffer.
