It may not seem as insane as you might imagine, but it was still illegal, and I was really in an impossible situation and had to resign.
Background: Every year, there is a competition for RNs put on by a company for them to win a grand prize. Rules: the RN innovated something to improve patient care, and the grant $ will be used to pursue its development and/or implementation.
My boss pressured me for over 6+ months to enter this competition, to which I replied that his company is not eligible, and I am not eligible personally. The company has nothing to do with RNs researching and creating something for patients. We'd be DQ'ed entered as a company, or I'd be ashamed to enter something that I knew I didn't create nor research and had nothing to do with patient care improvement.
What happened: I went out of town for my birthday. I came back and saw a notification in my email that I had registered for this competition – on my actual birthday (irrelevant but icing on the cake for me). I asked my colleague to whom my emails were FWD in my absence to come to my office and ask what she knew about the email.
Things she said: She and another colleague debated whether or not to call me on my vacation (mind you, the first time since I started my job that I did not have my work phone for emergencies) and decided not to and to let me find out on my own the day I got back. She got the notification, and she walked to the owner's office and confronted him and told him to stop what he was doing. He looked red in the face and embarrassed. She and the other colleague found it, logged me in and withdrew the application.
I went home, and the the other colleague sent me screenshots of what she found. I did some more digging. I found the withdrawn application. And wow.
What he did: Looked up my personal email, my personal home address, and my personal phone number in ADP. Used it to apply for this contest. Wrote a biography, as me, in the first person, about my story being a nurse and how I got to this job and what I created (again nothing with patient care) – reading it still makes me queasy. Used my credentials inappropriately (wrote that I was an MSN not just an RN). Used an incorrect work title (I'm not a CNO). Agreed that what I wrote was true and was following the T&C. E-signed my name.
I was mortified when I read the 'biography' I wrote. No one can own my story and who I am but me. I felt so used and disgusted a grown man would do this. Although it was withdrawn, I had to contact the: Board of Nursing, Dept. of Health, and the contest promoters to ensure everyone knew that I was not falsifying my credentials and claiming I had an MSN and that it really was withdrawn.
In addition, the owner owns another company which could be seen as a conflict of interest. So was my name the face for things I did not know about? As a “nurse?” Who knows what else my name was on falsely instead of his name or what else my name was used for…? My mind still wonders.
I confronted him and had another body (the one who caught him) in his office and asked him what happened since I explicitly said that I, nor the company, are eligible, and this was something he did as me, personally and not professionally (both wrong).
Things he said: it is normal for marketing, it is really important, he withdrew it (only because he was caught IMO), he's done this before, he should've asked me, he should've told me he was doing it, it won't happen again, etc. only after I kept saying it caused extreme distress and was wrong to do, and I cannot move forward knowing that he can so calmly do this and say it is okay.
I turned in my resignation and formally stated why and only used third person for him. For 4 days I could not eat or sleep but was still training my colleague, who caught him, to do my job from home and turned in my work materials on the 5th day in the work parking lot after he left for lunch. I did not get to say bye to my colleagues I sent every day and lunches with, explain anything to anyone, and it was all hush-hush. No one has reached out to me besides the two who knew. I never not give a two weeks, but looking back, I should've not even given my 4.5 days.
My colleague – not the one who found it – said for weeks he kept fishing around and saying it was okay and so important for marketing of the company, etc., and she just said to him each time, “Stealing someone's identity is a serious crime.” until he finally stopped harassing her about it. He kept looked at my LinkedIn, and I had to block him.
My entire life was upended abruptly – I am depleting my savings and lost a great job that I thought was a career. Some say I shouldn't have left, but I felt like I had no choice. A crime was committed against me, and I did not feel safe working there. It has been hard to find work having had been there less than a year and applying to roles that are less senior than a director (as I was).
Question: What the heck do I say when people ask why I am looking for a job?! I am unsure what to say and how – I am extremely against lying, but it sounds insane to say, “My former boss used my identity, pretended to be me, and falsified my credentials for personal gain against my knowledge and will and only stopped because he was caught.”
I have until April until I am out of liquid $. Don't want to drain anything else. I've been hunting since mid-November aka worst timing to look for jobs (holidays, end of year)…never going on a birthday trip again, I guess.
If you made it this far, bless your lil' heart.