In a Job Interview, How to Explain You Were Fired

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I was an electrical lineman for power company and ran a small crew, one of the guys on my crew was a young (21 year old), incompetent, and sometimes insubordinate. I was on him almost everyday it seem like. He did not retain anything I or other co-workers taught him. Sometimes I think he pushed my buttons purposely. I am an aggressive, type A personallity kind of guy, I do get along with alot of my co-workers and most are considered friends. I was a former Marine and Police officer before I made this career change, so I can and have used obscene langauge alot in the past, especially when I'm pushed (most Men have, regardless of their occupation). Well one day this co-worker was given a task, which he decided to take a short cut, in the process breaking a major safety rule. I came unglued and called him every stupid "imeffer" in the book. After he made a smart aleck comment, I told him " I would be more than glad to meet him after work if he didn't like what I had to say". And by the way, I just had quit using tabacco, so I was easily agitated during that period. A couple of days later my supervisor calls me into the office from the field. When I got to the office there was an HR rep and corporate security rep that wanted to get a statement from me. I was immediately sent home (with pay) pending investigation. I was later terminated for harrassment and violence in the work place policies. I didn't even put a finger on this kid. I had all the backing from co-workers and supervisors. As a matter of fact, one of my supervisors nearly lost his job for yelling at the HR rep. They (HR) did not give in at all, I offered to take some angermanagement course just to appease them and keep my job of 12 years. The kid had a little over 2 years. I still don't get it to this very day. He wasn't even disciplined for the safety infraction, because I never documented it and or told anyone about it. What a joke!..HR seems to have alot of power these days. I was told that the kid laid it on pretty thick during his interview with HR. The old days are gone, there's a new generation out there. How do I now explain to my future employer that i'm not a psychopath who's going to go postal one day?

Mike of LA 12:52PM February 28, 2013

I was fired from a company that kept raising the bar for production. It's a job that also requires accuracy. When I protested about some of their management style they got upset and insisted they were "good people." During a three day period they didn't assign me any work and didn't communicate with me and I was advised by a labor attorney to file for unemployment. That also was a source of contention. This is a company that hires independent contractors, but doesn't do any real training and then they expect their office staff to compensate. It is essentially an impossible job, but you're supposed to take continued abuse without any comment.

Vulcanlogic of CA 8:57PM January 07, 2013

I was fired from a management position, for 'insubordination'. The real reason was that my boss sexually harassed me, I said 'no', and he retaliated with rage fits and threats and harassment for years. Just months before I could have retired, they fired me for refusing to move to sit next to this guy. There were plenty of other open spaces if they wanted to move me. The only reason they wanted me to move next to this guy was so he could harass me into quitting. Unemployment said it was wrongful termination. Prospective employers don't seem to ever consider that any termination may not have been the fault of the employee.

zz of OR 9:58PM October 30, 2012

I recently got fired from a bank for going to ATM machine and taking money out with my debit card and going to the bank and making a deposit to cover NSF. Then going back to ATM and taking more money out of my account and redeposit.

Melanie of OK 1:43PM August 13, 2012

I was recently fired from my job and i worked there for 5 years, cooperate thought i was stealing money from the register and i found out that they set me up with a gift card with 10 bucks on it witch i put in my pocket. Thats the reason i was fired but they thought i was taking money from the register witch i 100percent i never did. My concern is that if i put them down as a job reference that i wont be able to find another job. The reason i put it down is because if been working there so long. How should i handle this

NONAME of IA 9:52PM June 20, 2012

I've been using the reason the company was restructured since they let all their original employees go for one reason or another. Is this a sound excuse?

Annette of NJ 2:03PM June 08, 2012

I have to say, I love the comments here. Way too much of the internet chatter on "firing" is of the "I've NEVER been fired, and don't know anyone who has" or the "I was fired when I was 15 for skipping out of a fast food job to attend a Whitesnake concert" variety. It makes me want to scream way more than the weird, questionable circumstances leading up to my dismissal ever did.
Who are these people? Do they belong to trade unions? Are they French? I've known TONS of people who were fired. One of my best employees was once fired from his previous job. In every job, I've seen TONS of people who got fired. Some of them were truly incompetent, or just poorly aligned for the job. A small number were thieves, or crazy, or really really lazy. Others got stuck with really capricious and/or evil managers.
In my case, I worked for a company that was a revolving door. It was an "executive sales position" and the company regularly turned half its sales staff every year. In the span of five years, the company went from 200 to about 35 employees. I'd hate to think that I've been rendered unemployable for life, or that I'm going to have to drop back into entry level work just because I made a bad decision in accepting this job offer.

Mitch of MO 12:23AM May 16, 2012

I recently had a phone interview with an HR staffer who asked:
“You’ve had two jobs within the last five years. I know the economy is bad, but how would you answer someone if asked the reason why you worked for the last two companies for such a short time?”
I answered:
“Well, I would answer that question in the same you posed the question—Now, if you were listening to my reasons as to why I left the last two positions when you asked the first time, it was in fact because my role was eliminated due to acquisitions and re-orgs that the companies underwent DUE solely to the state of the economy and not my job performance. On a positive note, I have highly marketable skills that have allowed me to regain employment when those unfortunate circumstances did occur, and it's just a matter of time until I regain employment by a company who doesn't ask such ridiculous questions during a screening interview.”
Bottom line? HR staffers are morons and don't know the first thing about spotting talent. That is why they are HR staffers and not professional recruiters--where the REAL $$$ and respect is!

Al of IL 8:54PM January 17, 2012

Seriously, Employers are not the victims when one is fired. There are so many people for them to pick from any reason will do. Try and prove anything anymore in a court of law...Good Luck. No one, not anybody’s job is safe anymore.
Telling a potential employer some sob story that you were all at fault is a grave mistake - why would someone want to look or say they were incompetent at their job??? If the employer has a large turn over it most likely not the employee's.
I got a great job and was honest about the termination of my employment with a poorly run company. Since I was fired within one year so was the maniac incompetent supervisor I had, oopps he must have made one to million mistakes to many and they couldn't afford it anymore. So if you’re not honest with other potential employers - really why would they want you???

NotShy of MN 12:06AM November 06, 2011

I was terminated for being too casual on the phone with customers around 8 years ago. This experience taught me to maintain a professional distance with clients and associates. Going forward, I will be sure to monitor my conversations, not only because they're supervised, but also because the conversations you have represent not only yourself, but the company you work for. Delving into personal subjects at work is definitely a taboo.

Katy of WI 12:01PM August 20, 2011