Employee Review of Progressive Insurance - Check out more reviews of working at Progressive Insurance

Oh have I been waiting for someone to post something like this. I went through the exact same bullshit last year. As we all know management at that shit hole of a company creates objectives they know you will not be able to obtain, in order to find a reason to can you. Does not matter that the user community you serve thinks your work is great, if you do not fit in, or join a clique or whatever, your days are numbered (especially if you are over 40 (don't tell me Regressive does not shitcan older people because of their age - they most certainly do)..... anyway my advice to you is "DONT QUIT", you do that and you will not receive unemployment. Let them fire you. Hold you head up proudly and march out of the door and don't look back. Trust me when I tell you this - you will feel a hell of a lot better not working for them. As far as severance I am not sure about that, it depends on how long you have been with them, I was only there several years so I received none. And no gainshare for that matter because it was before the November cut off date so do not be surprised if it happens before then. Just make sure to document and save every piece of email and paperwork you have because you will have to prove to the Unemployment Dept that you did do a great job and you were fired for "unjust cause"... I am now working in a job I truly love, my managers are great people and have told me I am doing a superb job for them, and best of all.... no freakin cliques at my new place of employment. And one other thing - DO NOT beat yourself up because they canned you. You know you did a great job they are just assholes and do not deserve to have you in their service. It will be all right I guarantee it...... Good luck to you

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The previous post is correct. DO NOT quit unless you have another job with a firm start date in the bag. Not only will you not receive a return on your tax investment in the form of unemployment benefits, you will also look like a dumb-dumb to a potential employer for quitting a job with nowhere else to go. I know a former Progressive refugee that this happened to, so beware. Plus, if you quit you will have a tougher time with any legal recourse. Wrongful termination and hostile work environment can be proven with good documentation. If you quit, then you're just another quitter. The world is full of quitters. If there is any merit to the unfairness in how you are being treated, save all the documentation where you will have access to it after you are gone (paper, thumb-drive, forward emails to yourself at home, etc.). Hold them accountable for abusing you and use their ammunition for firing you as ammunition to fire back at them. You stand to get a lot more in a lawsuit or settlement than you would ever hope to get in severance or Gainshare, but shame on you if you don't preserve all the evidence. Good luck to you. I hope they either leave you alone and things get better, or you cost them a fortune through legal action.

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DrinkthatKoolaid and Guard Yourself are absolutely on point. In fact I've rarely seen two such well written responses- I'd take them to heart. Speaking of hearts, mine goes out to you - it seems at some point, and yes, 'Drink' had it right about being over 40, nearly everybody can expect to get kicked to the curb. I see now even branch managers are being targeted. It's sort of like living in Stalin's Russia - who's next ? So DON'T take it personally. But both posters have made excellent points. Buy time. Document everything. I made (an honest) complaint about a branch manager who was stupid enough to make inapporpriate comments of a sexual nature, and got a bit handsy. I complained and bought myself time. Now, I almost feel like I should have filed suit, or a formal EEO complaint. But, I JUST WANTED OUT. As for severence, I cannot see you getting it if you quit, so don't. If you feel you have enough ammunition, file an EEOC complaint- especially if you feel time is running out- that too could buy you time. At least consider consulting an attorney. If you stay in the insurance industry, trust me, Progressive's horrific reputation is known far and wide. It's highly unlikely a termination will be held against you. If they keep the heat up, try to make sure you have a good support system. Things will likely get rough. BUT, keep in mind there is life after this miserable company, and things can only get better. You will get through this, you just may have to play hardball. Like most bullies, Progressive does not like being pushed back. They will bide their time, but on your side you can buy some. If you get to leave on your terms, it's an experience that rivals good sex, seeing your first born child, winning a Nobel ( ok.. maybe not that.. but close ). You're basically telling them to F themselves. Speaking of .. supperprogger if you weigh in, why don't YOU 'F' yourself. Good luck to you ! This will have a happy ending.

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They don't like people over 40. Some time ago i saw a chart of the age distribution of progressive workers and the over 40 people were like an endangered species. That's when your time runs out and you can expect to be shitcanned at anytime.

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Yup - Over 40 got it right on the money. This can't come as news to anybody who has or is currently working for Prog. Any office I've ever been in.... it's amazing- almost like a trip back to college. The strange thing is that as poorly as this company treats its "older" workers (please, 40 is hardly old.. at least not in a normal environment), Progressive treats its female employees who are young mothers like garbage too. I've seen women trying to juggle a young child suffering a serious illness with work obligations get treated like garbage, be put on STO's, you know the routine. I guess the moral of the story is that this is a company that treats almost everybody like dirt, some really nasty dirt, some just everyday dirt. If there is a God in heaven, somebody will file an age discrimination suit.

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Nice to know I am not alone. What is amazing is the lies, manipulation of facts. They haven't adhered to any of the guidelines that are supposed to go along with the disciplinary process. Who am I to turn to HR? If the HR rep is approving all this then what good are they. Where are you supposed to go when there are so few HR people in some areas? The HR Reps are so closely tied with management that I have yet to meet one that will actually go to bat when someone is getting steamrolled. Wow...I've seen this happen to others and now me. Golden Rule..what a Joke! Someday that manager that is forcing me out will have a manager at least half as nasty and lacking skills as they do.

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Can't wait to start another another week to jump through hoops until I get canned when my sto days are up .

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Hang tough Over the hill... just remember to keep all of your emails, correspondence , etc etc ad nauseum. You will need them to prove to unemployment you did a great job and got railroaded out of that shit hole. I know what you are going through.. I was counting down the days waiting for that day to come. You will be ok...

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I may know some of you and I agree with most of the comments. This is sad, I see this happening and yes, they attempted the same with me - much older than 40. Do not quit!! Get out your objectives - why cannot not meet them? Think about the area you are in - IT? Who is your director - don't answer but you may find an alliance - I can just guess. Keep all your paperwork and you may want to print everything now. If you are on STO's now, you need to do something asap - I would already be at an attorney - enough is enough - don't wait. Good - Luck and understand that Progressive like any company is motivated by $, making a profit is what it is about so whatever area you are in how can you help?

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For those in Ohio - it is an at will state, meaning that Prog can fire you at will. This happened to my husband 5 yrs ago. They made up a complete lie the same month he got a bonus for excellent work, then the manager who fired him was dumb enough to accidentally email the entire dept that the real reason was a 3% across the board decrease in staff. He found a job right away, so he received less than a month's worth of unemployment. Progressive hired a New York law firm to fight the unemployment claim. My husband won 3 appeals through the state. He ended up paying back the unemployment after a year of fighting it because he did not wish to take a day off of work to appear in person at a hearing in Columbus - we had a baby who had surgery and the new employer had been really good about letting him take off. The only consolation is that Prog probably spent more on legal fees than was paid in unemployment. I believe that at least in Ohio the % that employers pay into unemployment is based on the # of prior employees who are eligible to collect - Prog definitely has an incentive to fight you on it. My advice is to be prepared to fight or bank the $ if you do manage to get unemployment payments. Also - find a lawyer who says they would take the case before you're in the situation - good luck finding someone in NE Ohio. I don't mean to bum out those who dream of getting fired (which is about 95% of the employees), I just wanted to get that info out there so you can be prepared if it happens to you.

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