Legal Question in Employment Law in Washington

Re: employees rights

The school system is addressing two issues; having your child with you at work and using drugs. My comments for each are different.

Looking at the issue about the child, their request is reasonable. You agree that although you received a verbal warning, you continued, so a written warning is the next proper step. If you have your child with you, your child will take some of your attention, as is natural for any parent, and if other children are present, they may feel left out. The policy may seem harsh, but is understandable in a workplace where things would get crazy if everyone had their children with them at work. Bigger employers cannot easily make exceptions to the rules.

The drug accusation is an entirely separate issue. The school system has not established by any evidence that you have a problem, and in fact seems to be saying that they do not believe it themselves. Did they tell you who the known accuser was or the circumstances of when they said you used drugs? Your email does not explain exactly what the letter says about drug use (and maybe law guru software does not allow you space to write it out) but my advice in any case would be to say, if there is no credible evidence of a problem, there is no reason to put a letter in your file.

Most public school employees are union members, and if you also are a union member, I would suggest you talk to your union rep about this. He or she may have some thoughts about this to help you.

Additionally, I would ask the head of human resources or your boss to rewrite the letter to just address having your child at work, and tell them that you are willing to sign that letter without objection, assuming the letter does not accuse you of anything that you do not admit to doing.

I would say that regarding the drug issue, you should not be required to sign a letter that is not required of all employees, unless the school has cause to hold you in particular suspicion. The implication of the presence of that letter in your file is that there has been a problem, no matter what the letter says. If there is an implied (or explicit) admission of drug use, you should absolutely not sign it, no matter what your boss is saying to you verbally.

Finally, if the school system continues to press this issue, and you have no help from a union, you may want to tell them that you need to speak with your attorney, and then get an attorney to at least review the letter before you sign it, and talk to you in greater depth about your options if they insist.

The school system has a right to make you acknowledge a written reprimand for something that you did and were verbally warned not to do, even if the rule itself seems a bit cold. I would have to read the letter first, but if it amounts to a confession of something that you did not do, especially if the school system has no other evidence that they are willing to confront you with, they cannot make you sign it.

Hope that helps. Good luck!