Punched at work

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Today at the end of the day I was walking by with a 2x10x12 and swung the end at him, he was looking at me, I was grinning and stopped way short, said "wa-pish" like a sound effect. Kept walking.
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Hmmmmm? Seems to me he read you the wrong way. But let me ask you this. In retrospect, if you could rewind the video tape, would you do it again, or would you think otherwise? It never fails, antics on the job always lead to negative things. Guys going "postal" is the extreme, but it happens. I'd watch my back if I were you. Like you, he lost his job. That will elevate his anger towards you, and could very well cause him to look for retribution.
 
toomany young guys with toomuch young boy stuff at some jobs sites.i worked sites where the rule was if he can kick your butt he can have your job.had 2 young brothers think they could scare me into not bidding against em just last week. it was comical. it took me a while to understand what they were up to then i started laughing and it went downhill. the marine gunny who wanted the tile job came out to watch, i start it next week
 
Feedback?
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Only one side of an adversarial event.

Too hard to take a position based on OP.

Fight could have been started by either one.

Some evidence that both guys complicit. Some history is there between the two. If company policy is as stated, then it's a fair resolution for both to be canned.


It is probably a good example of a physical altercation not escalated to deadly force level. That part is positive. No need for escalation. It was just a punching fight.
 
As a sub you have different rights than an employee. Do you have a written contract or work order? Did you file a police report? The perpetrator has at a minimum performed an act of assault and he has caused you economic harm; if there are any witnesses I would consider a small claims court action for the civil part; the criminal part is beyond your control once you report it unless you want to prosecute it yourself (if that is an option).
 
As the owner of a small contracting firm I can't count the number of times horseplay has escalated into hostility and or violence. If you were injured in the altercation, depending on the State and type of job you were working on, you might be covered by the G.C.'s workmans comp policy even as a sub. If there were no witnesses to corroborate you side, I would have fired the both of you also. I disagree with the poster that considered this an OSHA violation since the G.C. apparently had no prior knowledge or warning that this guy was going to punch you. at best its an assault case for the police. And I also would assume that the G.C. has a corp. policy that calls out horseplay and violence as unacceptable
 
I've worked with "kids" my being 30 and them 18or so and any horse play that was around me they were told you get me injured I'll have you fired and if you think I'm blowin smoke try me. I've made near 30 yrs on my job and still have all my original parts and plan to keep it that way. In my plant fighting
between 2 employees on or OFF the job grounds for terminations.
 
I don't know about Vermont, but in Virginia you would have been an employee. Virginia law (and Federal law) states that if you are subject to the "direction and control" of your employer, then you are an employee, not an "independent contractor".
Direction and control generally means that the employer decides (1) where the work is to be done, (2) the hours in which the work is to be done, and (3) who is to do the work.
To be considered an independent contractor, you must (1) have your own business license, (2) perform the work during hours of your chosing, (3) perform the work at the place of your chosing, and (4) be able to hire someone else to actually perform the job.
Based on the above, it appears to me that you were an employee, not an independent contractor. YMMV.
 
Today at the end of the day I was walking by with a 2x10x12 and swung the end at him, he was looking at me, I was grinning and stopped way short, said "wa-pish" like a sound effect. Kept walking.
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Yes you did not hit him and he hit you. But where I work, safety is first above all else and what you did is considered "horseplay" and an act subject to discharge because it is unsafe. And as a manager, I would have fired both of you, too.

He was in the wrong for hitting you. But no prosecutor would touch an assault and battery case against the other guy because your action, even though done in fun, is legally considered assault (an act that causes another to apprehend immediate and personal violence), to which the other guy can claim that he acted in self defense. IOW, if you swing at someone with no intent to actually make contact, a third person witnessing from a distance might not be able to tell for sure on the witness stand that it was not a joke.

This is a no-win situation for you and it can only cost you. Move on - find another job and learn from this experience.
 
esq_stu said:
Today at the end of the day I was walking by with a 2x10x12 and swung the end at him, he was looking at me, I was grinning and stopped way short, said "wa-pish" like a sound effect. Kept walking.
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Yes you did not hit him and he hit you. But where I work, safety is first above all else and what you did is considered "horseplay" and an act subject to discharge because it is unsafe. And as a manager, I would have fired both of you, too.
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BINGO!

The company I did thirty years with has a policy stating that such actions ARE a terminating offense.

Stop acting like a teen-ager, take your lumps and move on. :rolleyes:

P.S. You also might take comfort in the fact he didn't hit you with a hammer.
 
It sounds to me like you two had a playful relationship where you both chest thump and harass eachother in a fun way.

Each takes it a step further, but have thier limits.

You pretend to hit him with a board, taunt him that he is too slow etc
He does similar things on previous days, it is all just normal juvenile camaraderie done throughout the day on a regular basis.

Likely such things go back and forth on a regular basis since you have been working together. One day someone retaliates in a way totaly out of line because a line is crossed that was not a line in someone else's mind.

The way to avoid these problems is to not have juvenile threats and harassment be a part of your normal relationships. Even if they are just playful and 'fun' 95% of the time.

It might be okay in highschool, but it leads to fights on occasion there as well. The stakes are now much higher though.
You are an adult and no longer in highschool. If you don't want the occasional mutual combatant fight then don't engage in that behavior. Otherwise you will be a criminal.

If it went to court your joking and playful swing with the 2x10x12 is assault with a deadly weapon, also known as aggravated assault in some jurisdictions.
He may have no longer been in danger (and in reality never really in danger according to your testimony), and his misdemeanor battery was uncalled for, but you would both be charged, and if you pressed your luck you would actualy get the more severe charge, a felony even though you never hit him or intended to.
You may feel you did nothing wrong, it was just another normal thing done in a playful way the same as is done on a regular basis. I can assure you the courts would see it differently.

I know those type of playful rough housing relationships are common in certain fields, especialy in certain blue collar type jobs, but it always does eventualy lead to conflict between someone. Everyone has different boundaries, and what was okay the day before can make someone snap on another day.
Don't engage in juvenile behavior and playfulness yourself and you will witness such incidents between others rather than be a part of it yourself.
That may make you less popular among the juvenile type crowd, but that is part of being a responsible adult.

Consider this your wake up call. You could have easily become a violent felon, a criminal and prohibited person over this instance and never allowed to own a firearm again. What you did is technicaly a felony, especialy from his likely version of the story if it went to court.
 
Quote:
Originally Posted by 1911jock
Why not just take the OP word for it?

Probably for the same reason a judge or jury listens to both sides before rendering a verdict.
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OK folks lets try common sense here.

How likely is it that we will get the other side? HOW ABOUT 0%. the OP wants feedback based on what he said. It is just absolutly senseless to expect that the other party is a member here on THR and even more senseless for you to think they will simply pop up and say here I am here is my side.

The OP asked for constructive feed back and saying stuff like
Only one side of an adversarial event.
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although true is just not helpful Just my $.02
 
1985 or so at the river club in dc two chefs were snapping each other with barmops (towels) one dropped his and he bent to pick it up at same time other guy went to snap him in the thigh end nailed him in the eye. he lost his temper for a few seconds and bear hugged the other guy hard. broke his back. and workers comp did not cover the mutual horseplay.
 
I would have smacked him back if the sucker punch had enough oomph. Sounds like it did. If not I'd just say, that's your free pass, back to work ssssssslacker.

Sounds like the old, can dish it but not take it routine.
 
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