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Boss screamed at top of lungs, knocked me out of the way, kicking my ankle and, possibly breaking it.
Michigan, US
Sorry the title says broken ankle, but I meant foot. He kicked the ankles and stepped on the side of my foot in one motion.
Friday, 3 minutes before leaving for the day, my boss screamed at my coworker and I to get into a conference room.
I just had surgery 3 weeks ago to remove hardware from my foot. My podiatrist specifically warned me not to have anyone step on my foot because I have the beginning of osteoporosis and my bones were thinning and at risk of easily breaking. So I was a bit slower to walk in the room.
I went to close the door, I noticed my boss was standing with his fists balled, eyes bulging, and his chest puffed out. (Side note, he makes the fact he is a boxer and trains 6 days a week his entire personality. So we all know he trains and spares, he even shows us videos of him boxing).
As I went to close the door, it’s only as big as the doorway in this portion of the room. He kicked my ankle on the foot I had surgery on and in the process stepped on the side of my foot.
I have been taking photos of my foot during healing and the bruises that have appeared since Friday on the side of my foot wear he stepped have formed, it’s so swollen. I’m limping badly, I think he broke or fractured it. My doctor is in surgery on Monday & I have an appointment with him Tuesday to find out what is happening.
After my boss screamed at my coworker and I, he was in our faces, hands punching the air at us as he talked. I should mention both my coworker and I are 30F and our boss is 60+M. I sent an email to our “hr” person as we don’t technically have one, but we have someone who handles the hr responsibilities.
I feel so unsafe, I’m upset, & I already planned on talking to hr to let them know that I no longer want to communicate in person with him. We are 100% in person old school like it’s 1970 (the owner smokes in his office).
I just don’t know what to do. Am I wrong? My coworker and I talked after he shit the lights off and stormed out after he said to “fix it”. We don’t have an issue.. it was truly out of nowhere and scary
Jobadvisor
First and foremost: You are absolutely, 100% not in the wrong. What your boss did is not just a "workplace issue"—it is a literal physical assault, and it is completely illegal.
You have every right to feel unsafe, upset, and shaken up. To be cornered, screamed at, and physically injured by a grown man who uses his boxing background to intimidate people is terrifying. Add in the fact that you are recovering from recent surgery, and his actions are not just cruel, they are dangerous.
Please take a deep breath. You are the victim here, and you have options. Here is a checklist of exactly what you need to do to protect your health, your safety, and your legal rights in the state of Michigan.
1. Prioritize Your Health (Right Now)
Do not wait until Tuesday if the pain is severe or the swelling is getting worse.
Go to Urgent Care or the ER: If you suspect a fracture, especially with your history of recent surgery and thinning bones, you need an X-ray immediately.
Medical Documentation is Evidence: Tell the triage nurse and the doctor exactly what happened. Say: "My boss kicked and stepped on my foot at work." This ensures the medical report explicitly states the injury was caused by workplace violence, which is vital for legal and workers' comp reasons.
2. Document Everything Immediately
While the details are fresh in your mind, create a secure, written record. Do not keep this on a work computer or work email. Use a personal device or a notebook at home.
The Incident Log: Write down the exact timeline of Friday afternoon. Include the times, the exact words he yelled, his body language (the balled fists, air-punching), and the physical contact.
Photographs: Keep doing what you are doing. Take clear, well-lit photos of the swelling, bruising, and your surgical scars daily.
Save Communications: Back up the email you sent to the HR representative. Forward it to your personal email or take screenshots.
3. Coordinate with Your Coworker
Your coworker is an eyewitness to a crime and a victim of severe intimidation herself.
Ask her to write down her own recollection of the event immediately, detailing his aggression, the physical contact, and the aftermath.
Keep your communication with her on personal phones, not work channels.
4. File a Police Report
Because physical contact occurred and resulted in injury, this crosses the line from an HR issue into a criminal matter.
Go to or call your local Michigan police department to file a report for assault and battery.
Give them the timeline, your coworker’s contact info as a witness, and the photos of your foot. A police report creates an unassailable third-party record of the event.
5. Navigating HR and Your Employment
Since your company is "old school" (owners smoking indoors, no dedicated HR department), you cannot rely on them to handle this fairly or protect you. HR's ultimate job is to protect the company from liability.
Workers' Compensation: In Michigan, injuries sustained at work are generally covered by Workers' Comp. Because this was an intentional tort (an intentional assault by a supervisor), your situation is complex.
Constructive Dismissal / Quitting: You mentioned not wanting to communicate with him in person. Given the owner's attitude and the lack of HR, they may refuse this request. If you feel forced to quit because your safety is actively threatened, this is known as "constructive discharge," and you may still be eligible for unemployment benefits in Michigan.
Next Steps
Get your foot looked at today if you can, or see your doctor first thing Tuesday.
Consult an Employment Lawyer: Most offer a free initial consultation. Show them your medical records, photos, and the HR email. They will guide you on how to handle the company and whether to file a civil lawsuit for battery.
Do not go back into that room alone with him. If you must return to work before this is resolved, ensure you are always in a public space or accompanied by your coworker. Your physical safety is worth more than any job.
What should be included in a tuition reimbursement or education assistance proposal?
Hi everyone a bit of background. I work for a small company that does not currently have an educational assistance or tuition reimbursement program. I asked HR if the company had any support available for employees pursuing graduate school, and they said there is no current program, but encouraged me to write a formal proposal.
I have never had to do a formal proposal before, so I am trying to understand what it should look like from an HR/business perspective.
What should be included and what would make this type of proposal stronger? Are there specific concerns I should address upfront??
Thanks in advance!
Jobadvisor
Great news that HR was receptive! Here's what a strong tuition reimbursement proposal should include, and the concerns you'll want to get ahead of.
Core Sections to Include
1. Executive Summary A brief (1-page) overview of what you're proposing, why it benefits the company, and the estimated cost. Decision-makers often read this first (or only), so make it compelling.
2. Business Case / Rationale This is the heart of your proposal. Frame everything around company benefit, not personal benefit. Key arguments to make:
- Retention: replacing an employee costs 50–200% of their annual salary; education benefits reduce turnover
- Talent attraction: most competitors (even small ones) offer some form of this
- Skill development: tie your degree/field directly to gaps or goals the company has
- Tax advantage: employers can deduct up to $5,250/year per employee in education assistance as a business expense under IRC §127, and employees don't pay income tax on that amount
3. Proposed Program Terms Be specific. Propose the actual policy you'd want, including:
- Reimbursement cap (e.g., $5,250/year to stay within the tax-free threshold)
- Eligible expenses (tuition, fees, books — typically not room/board)
- Eligible programs (accredited institutions, job-related degrees vs. any field)
- Minimum grade requirement (B or above is standard)
- Employment tenure requirement to qualify (e.g., 1 year)
- Clawback provision — this is important to include proactively (see below)
4. Budget/Cost Analysis Estimate the actual cost to the company. If you're the only employee asking right now, the cost is very concrete and low. Show this clearly.
5. Administration & Process Briefly address how it would work: employee applies in advance, submits receipts, HR approves, etc. Shows you've thought through implementation.
6. Benchmark Data Note that education assistance is one of the most common employee benefits — SHRM data consistently shows 50–60%+ of employers offer it. Helps frame this as normal, not extravagant.
Concerns to Address Upfront
These are the objections HR/leadership will almost certainly raise — getting ahead of them makes your proposal much stronger:
"What if we pay for their degree and they leave?" This is the #1 concern. Address it directly with a repayment/clawback clause — a standard provision where the employee repays some or all of the reimbursement if they leave within 1–2 years of receiving it. Propose this yourself; it builds credibility.
"This sets a precedent for all employees" Acknowledge it and frame it positively — a formal policy is actually better than ad-hoc decisions, because it's fair and consistent. You can also propose limiting it to full-time employees or those past a tenure threshold.
"We're a small company and can't afford it" The §127 tax treatment helps here. Also, if you propose a $5,250 annual cap, you can put a concrete dollar figure on it. If you're the primary requestor, the cost is minimal.
"What if the degree isn't relevant to their job?" Propose that eligible programs must be reasonably related to a current or future role at the company. This is a standard guardrail.
Tips to Make It Stronger
- Lead with company benefit at every turn — not "I want to get my MBA" but "this would strengthen our [finance/ops/marketing] capabilities"
- Keep it concise — 3 to 5 pages plus any appendices is plenty
- Use data — even a few statistics on retention costs or benefit prevalence go a long way
- Propose a pilot — offering to start with a 1-year trial lowers the perceived risk for leadership
- Offer to help implement it — volunteering to draft the policy document shows good faith
Good luck — the fact that HR encouraged a formal proposal is a genuinely positive sign!
[NY] not returning after STD leave
Asking on behalf of my husband. He started on short term disability leave earlier this year for mental health, psychiatrist encouraged an extension a few months ago because they were still titrating medications. His extension is up at the end of this coming week, and HR has been putting pressure on him to give them a return to work date. In discussions between us and with his psychiatrist, the consensus is he’s not be well enough to go back, as they continue to titrate medications. Because it’s such a stressful environment, the psychiatrist agrees it is better for him to resign. We are in agreement with this, even though technically he could probably keep extending STD and maybe go over to LTD eventually…it’s an environment that will not become less stressful due to the nature of the work (healthcare).
Company has thousands of employees. He did not qualify for FMLA because he’s been there less than a year. He has continued to get his paychecks as usual with the usual benefit dedications taken out, just like when he was working. He didn’t receive any STD pay from the state directly, his pay just continued as normal through the company.
Questions are:
should he just resign tomorrow vs waiting until when his STD leave officially ends at the end of the week? HR is emailing and calling frequently wanting an answer.
how should he word a resignation letter to HR so than it’s clear the psychiatrist is in agreement with him resigning?
if FMLA wasn’t used, can the company ask him to repay their portion of benefits paid?
TIA!
Jobadvisor
These are really important questions, and it sounds like you've both thought this through carefully. Here's my best guidance on each — though I'd strongly recommend consulting an employment attorney (many offer free consultations) before he submits anything, given the financial stakes.
1. Timing: Resign now vs. end of week?
There's no strong legal reason to rush before the STD period ends. A few considerations:
- Waiting until the STD leave officially ends means he's collected every benefit day he's entitled to. Resigning early forfeits nothing meaningful, but there's also no upside to it.
- If the company's STD plan is self-funded (which it likely is, given that pay just continued normally through payroll), resigning before vs. after the period ends probably doesn't affect benefit repayment obligations much — but check the plan documents.
- HR's pressure to get a return-to-work date is normal and not legally threatening. He is under no obligation to respond immediately just because they're calling frequently. Politely saying "I'll be in touch by [end of week]" buys time without burning bridges.
Recommendation: Let the leave run its course. There's no benefit to rushing.
2. Resignation letter wording
Keep it brief, professional, and factual. He doesn't need to over-explain or include medical details — but a light reference to his health situation is fine if he wants it documented. Something like:
"I am writing to formally resign my position, effective [date]. Due to ongoing health circumstances and on the advice of my treating physician, I am unable to return to work at this time. I appreciate the opportunity I had with [Company] and wish the team well."
He does not need to name the psychiatrist, attach documentation, or say anything beyond this. The psychiatrist's agreement with the decision is between him and his doctor — it doesn't need to be proven to HR.
3. Benefit repayment (this is the most important one)
This is where he really needs to read his plan documents and ideally talk to an attorney, because it depends entirely on the company's benefits plan language. Here's the landscape:
- Many employer health plans include a clause that if an employee leaves before a certain date or under certain circumstances, they owe back-premiums for the employer's share of benefits paid during unpaid or leave periods.
- However, if he was receiving full pay the entire time (as you described), the employer was deducting his normal benefit contributions — meaning they were being "made whole" continuously. That significantly weakens any repayment argument on their part.
- NY state law doesn't specifically prohibit benefit repayment demands, but the enforceability depends on whether it was clearly disclosed in writing (offer letter, plan documents, or leave policy) before the leave began.
- FMLA specifically allows repayment of employer-paid premiums if an employee doesn't return — but since FMLA wasn't triggered here, that provision doesn't apply.
What to do: Before he resigns, ask HR (or pull the documents yourself) for:
- The STD plan document
- The company's leave of absence policy
- Any benefits continuation agreement he may have signed when leave started
Look specifically for language about benefit repayment upon resignation. If there's a clause, an employment attorney can tell you whether it's enforceable given how his pay was handled.
Let the leave run out, keep the resignation letter short and dignified, and check the plan docs on benefits before submitting anything. I hope he's able to focus on getting well — this is clearly a thoughtful decision made for the right reasons.