Complaint Review: Caffe Luna Rosa

I worked at Caffe Luna Rosa for almost two years. I gave my all to the job to the point where I was overworking and exhausted. I injured myself on the job right before Thanksgiving 2003 and had to take the time off in order to allow my injury to heal. Meanwhile, I wanted to report the injury and management refused to the point where they said they didn't have injury report forms. Questionable.

I had to report the injury to workman's compensation because management would not do that either. Instead, I was told to report my injury to AFLAC, the supplemental insurance to the already existing insurance provided by the employer. AFLAC covers injuries that occur off of the job and they wanted me to lie. Once workman's compensation was notified they contacted the employer and I was given the wrong workman's comp insurance information by the employer which caused delay. I went months without money and had to live off of my credit cards. I do not have a family so it wasn't like I could run to mommy and daddy and ask for some help and the friends I have are just as financially inept as I.

I finally received the correct insurance provider after I did some research on my own. See I have never been hurt on the job before and Luna Rosa does not have any information regarding workman's comp hanging around on their walls as do other places of employment and they strongly discouraged that I file a claim with them. So, contact had been established and I tried to collect. Of course, there were problems.

Meanwhile, I was finally released to work Jan 23, 2004 on limited work duty. I called management and informed them and waited for them to schedule me shifts. I was a server and they said they didn't have server positions available, although season in Florida begins after Christmas and they have 7PM-10PM shifts, but suddenly there were shifts available. No one called. I left message after message after message. I even went and purchased clothing for the hostess shift because sitting on your behind for almost 3 months and not being active tends to make some people gain weight which I had and my normal clothes were not fitting. Finally, I went Caffe Luna Rosa to see what was going on. The schedule manager would not speak to me or look at me, healthy especially for a place of "serenity." Finally, I was told to talk to the general manager who had been supportive the entire time, told me not to worry, to heal and come back when I was better. He sat me down and talked to me.

Basically, I was fired because I was considered a liablity and that their insurance premiums were going to increase. WHAT???? This is from the same person who would not allow me to get another job because my security was safe there and I would make money during season. Whom also said countless times that I was one of their strongest servers along with other accolades was firing me because I had gotten injuried while working my a*s off for them! How fair is that?

On top of it all, I find out that the other part of my termination was because the owner, a weasel of a man, had been in the local coffee shop one morning and saw me come in. I didn't say hi to him, poor guy; how selfish was I? Meanwhile, I had walked in that particular morning because I was having an MRI done on my injury and the line was too long and my appointment was in 15 minutes, so I walked out. I never even saw the faces of the people in line, so he took my walking out as a sign of disrespect.

I lost everything. My job, my money, my self worth, my friends, etc. I had to hire a lawyer for the workman's comp portion and when it came time for the deposition, my ex-enplyers/co-workers turned everything around on me. Things I had said to "friends" in confidence told their lawyer and their lawyer used it against me. At one point, it all became overwhelming. The people I cared about and basically considered a family rejected and abandoned me, which I realize is my own personal stuff to deal with, left me out to the sharks where today I struggle; financially, mentally and physically. What is the most incredible thing is that the state of Florida is a right to work state and employers are allowed to do whatever they want include fire hard working, devoted, and honest people and replace them with illegal immigrants, who are supplied with illegal visa's through Luna Rosa. I just do not get it and I am hurt. I worked hard at that job and they fired me during the most lucrative time, the time I would make all of my money to help support me throughout the rest of the year.

I would not work for them, my warning to others. And since I have worked there, there are many inappropriate activities that go in their kitchen, meaning if I were a customer, I would not eat there. When I ate their I watched how they made the food and looked over the plate which the food was placed upon.

Robin
Delray Beach, Florida
U.S.A.