You’re Promoted! Um, Never Mind

Question: My wife, who works at our local library, was promoted. All of a sudden her boss tells her the new position doesn’t exist. Not only that, but her hours have been halved. Some of her colleagues have suffered a similar fate. Her life has been turned upside-down. Does she have any recourse?

Answer: If your wife hasn’t had a sit-down with the person who caused all this chaos, she should soon. She needs the facts so she isn’t distracted by speculation.

Whether the library’s action was legal depends on a host of things.

If the nixed promotion eventually goes to a man and all the workers who lost out on hours and promotions were women, she could have a sex-discrimination claim, said John Diviney, a senior associate at Portnoy, Messinger, Pearl & Associates in New York.

“Taking away hours and failing to promote are actionable under civil-rights laws if there is discrimination on the basis of race, religion or gender,” Diviney said. “She should look to see if someone starts doing that work,” he added. “That may provide support for a host of claims.”

If your wife is a civil-service employee, there are rules about promotions, Diviney said. The same holds true for union membership. If this applies, she should talk to her representatives.

Another possibility, but which is hard to prove: If she made some important financial decisions based on that promised promotion, she might have a claim. To prove that, Diviney said, she’d have to have the offer in writing.

Short of these reasons, the company has the prerogative to change its mind.

“Companies pretty much are free to cut people’s hours, and they are free to take back promotions as long as they are not for improper reasons,” Diviney said.

While she’s having that talk with her boss, she should reiterate the reasons she felt she was the best candidate and ask if anything can be done to reverse the situation. If there isn’t, she’ll have to ask herself if she wants to stay.

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, which enforces antidiscrimination statutes, can be reached at (800) 669-4000.

* Kirsten Downey Grimsley can be reached via e-mail at downeyk@washpost.com.