When NAPE/AFSCME member Alyssa Drummond received a letter out of the blue terminating her employment, she contacted her union representative right away. “I knew something was wrong with the situation, and I knew my union rep could help me figure out my options,” Alyssa said.
Alyssa was hired in June 2024 as a Social Services Worker at the DHHS local office in Columbus. In November 2024, she received a letter that her initial probationary period was being extended to January 5, 2025. The letter said she would be given a performance improvement plan, but that never happened.
Despite not receiving a performance improvement plan, January came and went, and Alyssa completed the extended original probationary period. So it came as a surprise in April 2025, when Alyssa received a letter terminating her employment immediately. The letter stated her employment was being terminated because she was on original probation.
“I had already completed my original probation, but it didn’t seem to matter,” Alyssa said. “I had to leave my job even though I knew it wasn’t right.” Alyssa’s union representative promptly filed a grievance on her behalf. During the grievance process, DHHS agreed it had violated our contract, and Alyssa was reinstated with back pay and wages for the time that she was wrongfully terminated.
In order for an agency to extend an original probation period under our contract, it must do so in writing, provide the reason for the extension, and if there are performance concerns, the specific areas for improvement must be included. Once an original probationary period or extended original probationary period concludes, an employee cannot be terminated without first being given a notice of allegations and an opportunity to respond. That didn’t happen in Alyssa’s case, so she filed a grievance.
“I’m so proud to be a member knowing that my union was ready to fight for me,” Alyssa said. “I hope nobody else has to go through this, but if they do, be sure to reach out to your union representative right away.”
