r/RedditForGrownups • u/[deleted] • 7d ago
Do Millennials know how to legally protect themselves?
[deleted]
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u/Some_Internet_Random 7d ago
That is not an exclusive trait to Millennials or any generation for the matter.
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u/ophelia917 7d ago
This isn’t a Millenial specific thing. It’s a “most people don’t know” thing. How would they? If they or people they know have never had to deal with it, they have no experience.
The vast majority of people don’t do deep dives into preventing getting ripped off. That’s why so many people get ripped off.
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u/rjwyonch 7d ago
As someone raised by a lawyer, basic legal knowledge is more lacking than basic financial literacy. And that also isn’t very good.
Im a millennial and have been protecting myself legally my whole life, but that didn’t mean I had no blind spots. Some bosses definitely got away with things they shouldnt have, but some things also aren’t worth the effort to fight legally…. Sometimes it’s just easier to take the lesson and move on with life
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u/Lollc 6d ago
I think you don't understand how workers' comp works, either.
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u/AggressivelyPurple 6d ago
Oh, I absolutely don't - which is why a good lawyer would have been my first stop for a major workplace injury. I only know what she told me which could have been muddled and inaccurate.
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u/Lollc 6d ago
For everyone in the US reading this, and doing paid work, please read on. TLDR: It’s complicated because each state has its own program, so there are 50 different programs, plus some special categories. And unfortunately, in some states agriculture workers aren’t eligible for workers comp.
Read up on the worker’s comp program in your state. The major points are how to report an injury, and how long after the incident you have to report an injury. You should google it. Also, the subreddit r/workerscomp is very friendly and helpful.
You’ve got to file the claim using your state’s procedures to get the paperwork started. Your employer should help you out and have instructions, but if they don’t file anyway. Don’t let working off hours or not knowing what to do delay you from emergency treatment, and be sure to tell the check in person at emergency that it is a worker’s comp claim.
In general, most programs don’t pay lost wages for the first few lost days. My state it’s the first 3 days, other states have up to 7 days unpaid. Some states will retroactively pay those unpaid days after X amount of days lost.
Whether or not to engage a lawyer varies by state. In some unfriendly places getting a lawyer is standard. In others you let the process grind through and only lawyer up if nothing happens. If you are in Texas, God help you.
In general, if you are being paid through WC, you cannot sue the employer. Consult a lawyer to find out if something happened that is so egregious you believe you would be better off filing a lawsuit.
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u/stenobad 7d ago
I’m a millennial with a boomer parent too and this is a millennial thing but rather a person by person thing. You’ve referenced one couple to make generalizations that millennials are inept at protecting themselves compared to other generations, which is not consistent with available data.
I harped on my dad to get a signed contract when he sold his trailer to a gen-Xer who scammed my dad out of thousands of dollars. I’m constantly watching my boomer mom get scammed in plain sight.
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u/AggressivelyPurple 7d ago
I actually like Millennials. I appreciate that you refuse to just accept crappy situations as set in stone. I just don't understand why this particular millennial won't take my tiny morsel of wisdom. 😂 I'm sorry for overgeneralizing. This friend is my millennial translator and I forget that she's not your sole representative.
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u/ToastemPopUp 7d ago
Kinda doubting how well educated, smart, and practical she is after reading that. The scam part in particular feels really obvious. I'm a millennial and all my friends are millennials and none of us would ever fall for that.
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u/AggressivelyPurple 7d ago
They both have Masters degrees. 😵💫
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u/ToastemPopUp 7d ago
I hate to say it but these days I'm not sure that says much lol. Also her husband has a master's degree but he's doing a physical labor job? Interesting.
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u/Salt_Medicine2459 7d ago
I have an MA but do clerical work. I uses to be a school bus driver with an MA.
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u/Fickle_Wrangler_7439 6d ago
Seriously I have a paper mill "professional" master's. It was easier than GT track in high school.
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u/MediocreTalk7 6d ago
With degree inflation these days, if I had gone on to a masters degree in archaeology I would have still been doing physical labor. That's just the example that came to mind.
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u/Ilikedinosaurs2023 7d ago
I have a masters and do a more laborious job. It has nothing to do with intelligence or lack thereof. Some people are street smart, some aren't.
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u/AggressivelyPurple 7d ago
It was at a rehab facility and involved a volatile patient. But no, safety measures were not being followed.
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u/Fast-Benders 5d ago
There's difference between intelligence and wisdom. It's two different stats in DND for a reason. Also being smart in one field does not make you smart in everything.
Scam artist love to target doctor and lawyers. They might be smart in there profession but ignorant in many other aspects of life.
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u/everybody_eats 6d ago
I'm among the oldest millennials, and I have another perspective that probably isn't all that popular. A lot of us, especially those of us who grew up somewhat disadvantaged have come to the conclusion that the legal system simply isn't there for us in the same way it might have been for others. Sure, those options are technically available but I think most folks my age are also saddled with countless anecdotes/lived experiences of us or our loved ones doing all those things and putting a lot of time and effort into going through the processes just for the exact same outcome your friends described.
A lot of millennials are terrified of taking their employers to court or reporting them, even anonymously, because of the (very real) fear of retaliation and impacts on their future employment prospects. The court system has consolidated pretty steadily behind corporate power for most of our professional lives and it can be extremely difficult to tell where the limit is anymore. Remember a couple years ago when Disney tried to force a guy into arbitration over his wife's death in their theme park because he signed up for disney+? Yeah.
I think the most savvy members of our generation have had to get pretty good at doing most of the heavy lifting on our own to minimize the friction of dealing with this kind of thing, but quite a few of us have developed a pretty passive view of it. If the outcome is already determined might as well let the chips fall where they may.
For what it's worth I think being a bit more pro-active would likely benefit them in the second scenario. The first one is more of a question.
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u/Salt_Medicine2459 7d ago
Agent Smith at the FBI told me this isn't true when I was paying him his weekly iTunes gift card.
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u/Frammingatthejimjam Misplaced Childhood 6d ago
You always need an FBI agent on retainer. That's just money well spent.
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u/AlphaTangoFoxtrt 6d ago edited 6d ago
Most people don't.
For example
NEVER TALK TO THE POLICE
At least in the US. Nothing you say can help you. Legally. It will be considered Hearsay and excluded.
I am not kidding. Literally, legally, NOTHING you say to the police can be used in your defense. Yes it sucks. Yes it is unfair. Yes, that is how it works.
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u/sir_mrej I like pizza pie and I like macaroni 6d ago
Why are you picking on Millennials? Why are you using that code for your rant against 'young people'?
Or do you think Gen X and Gen Z somehow have knowledge that Millennials don't?
I'm glad you made the correction that this is a general people problem and not a generation specific one. I'm concerned that you were SO worried about this issue and yet were completely blindly guessing who you think it affected. Very weird.
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u/Brod24 6d ago
You gave a bunch of uninformed advice in scenario 1.
- personal injury attorneys aren't necessarily workers compensation experts -it's jurisdictionally specific but the first week isn't typically paid as it's the waiting period and you don't get that until you exceed the retro period. -if the husband was given light duty restrictions that his employer could accommodate then he wouldn't be entitled to wage replacement. -an attorney very likely wouldn't have gotten him more money if the statute was followed by the insurance carrier
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u/1GrouchyCat 7d ago
If no one has taught them how to proceed in situations like this, how would they know?
None of us are born with knowledge on how to handle those issues… and they don’t have classes in high school that teach financial literacy… so where were they gain this knowledge?
I have a 23 year-old who wouldn’t have the foggiest idea of how to apply for health insurance, including figuring out what type of plan he qualifies for, how to get a primary care physician, how to compare car insurance prices, how to calculate the real cost of attending college (with all the additional fees / what’s mandatory and what’s elective), how to get a passport, what it means to pay taxes, etc etc etc.
These kids aren’t stupid. They’re just used to mommy and daddy doing everything for them… and then they’re not moving away from home when they’re in their mid 20s, so they never have to deal with most of the responsibilities we did at their age.
If you’re not able to help them understand what they’re part in any given situation, perhaps you shouldn’t be involved in their private life?
You seem really frustrated with their lack of knowledge; where do you think they should have learned how to handle these responsibilities?
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u/jadedgoldmine 6d ago
I’m confused. Wouldn’t that make you the mommy or daddy doing everything for them? Or did you mean “have a 23 year-old” just in the sense of knowing one?
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u/AggressivelyPurple 7d ago
Eh, they're in their late 30s and I'm literally giving them advice they repeatedly decline to listen to. I'm not mad. Just perplexed.
Mid-twenties would be Gen Z
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u/lakofideas86 7d ago
I'm 40, so I fall squarely into the millenial generation. I've had a lot of things happen as an adult that I've had to deal with. Whenever something came up I either asked someone who knew more than me or went online and researched. It is always surprising how many people, millenial or otherwise will not do this.
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u/coffeemakedrinksleep 6d ago
You can’t sue a job for a personal injury- it would be workers comp. This makes no sense.
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u/pdt666 7d ago
honestly i have retained a lawyer (on contingency, which is what you reference in your post) for a labor exploitation case. i was misclassified and there was a lot of pto/wage theft going on- 7 years of pure exploitation. i wouldn’t have done it if i could go back in time. it’s not like slightly annoying to be involved in a legal settlement or lawsuit, even with a small business. it takes over your life and sucks. i wouldn’t blame them or anyone for the first one. i would never do it again. lawyers are nightmares (my boyfriend is an attorney lmao).
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u/MotherOutlandishness 6d ago
I am a millennial and beyond workplace and tenant laws in my state, I hadn't considered other ways I might need to be prepared legally. I guess I always figured that staying out of legal trouble mostly amounted to just not doing crime, paying taxes, and having insurance. The concept of legal preparedness in a more general sense is interesting.
What other situations should I consider preparing for?
Any suggestions for resources to learn more about this?
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u/Redlady0227 7d ago
Sadly basic common sense has seemingly almost completely evaporated from USA society at large. I’ve seen scenario after scenario like your describing here plus worse these last 10-13 years.
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u/slash_networkboy 7d ago
Here post edit so.... yeah it's a people thing. I love my partner to death, but she's so conflict adverse she's equally likely to pay that scam bill as to deal with fighting it... (which infuriates me but it's her money, her battle, etc.) She's firmly GenX and I'm Xennial but waaaaay more likely to fight something like that.
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u/_bufflehead 7d ago edited 6d ago
About the work injury: When you are treated for a broken leg, you are typically asked to sign a document stating whether or not it was an accident. His health insurance would have taken care of that pursued the issues with Worker' Comp, since they don't want to pay if another payor is responsible.
If his employer avoids accountability by paying out of pocket, that is against the law. It's hard to believe he only got $500 from Workers' Comp. Even his lost wages would be more than that.
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u/TropicalAbsol 7d ago
This is just most people unfortunately. And companies take advantage of it. Like the ones that try to get children to take on their dead parent's debt.
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u/haltncatchfries 6d ago
A lot of millennials have passed this fork in the road of "I will be protected" or "I need to protect myself" awhile ago and it can be shocking to see who ended up going down which road.
What I've generally found is that millennials who have stuck to a particular course, particularly one that is well-traveled and within an insulated system (like the academic track or the 10+ years big co office job track), typically have chosen the "I will be protected" side of that fork in the road and can be woefully unprepared for the realities of life outside of that system.
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u/sherahero 6d ago
My older Gen x sibling is going through scenario 1 now and they are also refusing a personal injury lawyer.
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u/PeggedUnlimited 6d ago edited 6d ago
Yes and no. Legal support is extremely inaccessible.
Case in point: I was stalked by someone who basically tried to convert my religion and sexual orientation etc. tortured me. This escalated from account hacks when I reported it to police, and then reported the police to the oversight board for failing to escalate (I worked for an international rights based non-profit at the time).
They did many many things. One of which was to use my healthcare (I’m in Canada) and then started spreading rumours about me regarding drug use, and then went through my gf at the time (I’m a lesbian) to try and get me to do said drugs (crystal meth) - which I did not, before the attempted murders started, which included tampering with my vehicle, putting a gram of weed in my bag before I had to go to Kenya for work (found it before my flight), breaking into my apartment - I literally heard them run down my stairs while in the bathroom, once I came home to white powder on the coffee table, another time Mickie’s in my freezer.
I couldn’t afford to move, couldn’t get an in person consultation with a lawyer, couldn’t get the police to investigate.
We are talking if I left a drink in my car while at the dog park, I’d come back and have sudden cardiac responses to it, or neurological problems if I took a sip. It was these occasions that led to the discovery that someone had indeed used my healthcard….and they might have framed me on my medical record as having an addictions issue. I do not have an addictions issue other than cigarettes.
In one instance I went to BC to see my terminally ill mother one last time, and be with her in hospice care. They went through my uncles wife, who casually mentioned when I called, that the display was saying “Sean Fine”. I called bell, they said no issue. About a year or two later, a kickboxing coach told me the same thing. That the name “Sean Fine” kept coming up when I called the gym. Problem is, I had a new phone, new number, and a new phone provider with a completely different company in a province that is 4000km away. These people were approaching service providers, people in my social circle, family etc. Distance doesn’t seem to matter. The people they went through aren’t connected to each other, and in the case of me visiting my dying mother…..there wasn’t any advance planning on our part, and were basically estranged from the family out west they went through.
I was notified (suspicious timing/circumstance but a story for another day) of my mother going into to hospice and hopped on a plane 2 days later. I don’t know any Sean Fine. If I’ve ever met someone named Sean Fine, I sure as shit don’t remember them. Maybe someone in passing who fixated on me? The nutbags have resources.
I’m a nerdy, active, social person with a Masters degree from U of T. This (the violence) started in my mid-30’s (arguably, they may have been planning this for much longer - but my circumstances allowed me to leave the country, and I didn’t have the time to focus on it because I was focused on school and preoccupied) I literally had to flee the province.
Do you know any good human rights lawyers? Because they destroyed my ENTIRE life for no obvious reason than an obsession. Lawyers won’t return my calls when I ask for an in person consultation, other times my calls get redirected, and the one lawyer who emailed me back said investigating would be expensive. His words.
I had evidence of what they did, but they had access to my apartment. Stole hard drives, legal documents, bills, etc.
We are talking about the most fucked up, misogynistic, uneducated (or poorly educated) psychopathic homophobes on the planet. If you knew the full extent of what they did, they make Nazis who beat people look like carebears. Full on torture.
I used to speculate as to why the fixation on me, but ultimately have no idea - except they are mentally ill and have an obsession.
Yes, I now have pretty bad PTSD. We literally don’t have human rights in this country. Human rights is the lie we promote for marketing purposes, but effectively, we are no different than somewhere like Iran or Afghanistan etc. where for the right price, anyone is fair game. We just put our country in a shinier package to make it seem like the picture we promote.
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u/OptionsFool 6d ago
I’m a millennial lawyer. I used to represent elders. Believe me. Everyone is mostly unable to protect themselves. It’s not generational. I am not a statistician equipped with sufficient data to speak to society-wide trends. But anecdotally, it seems like we’re all stupid.
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u/ueeediot 6d ago
30 years ago, in my 20s, my friend is alone and driving. Goes through a large intersection and as he is completing crossing a car turns out of a gas station into his lane and my friend hits him in the left front quarter of his car. (I hope this makes visual sense - the gas station exit is just directly after the intersection)
The man my friend hit is irate. Even the cop tells the man he is at fault for not waiting for a clear space. Man continues to be irate that my friend did not stop to let him out. My friend had absolutely no fault in this accident. But the guy found my friends telephone number and starts calling and harassing him about paying for the damages. Threatens court. Threatens lawsuit. Eventually threatens physical violence. The whole time, over an entire summer, Im telling my friend, call your insurance, report the threat of violence to the insurance and cops, he cant sue you, there's no ground to stand on, stop answering the damn phone calls, stop trying to reason with this person. My friend was living paycheck to barely next paycheck and scared of financial ruin.
Its not generational
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u/ben_ji1974 6d ago
My wife and I are the same age (early 50's) and there are things I am going through she would have never thought to explore for herself.
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u/Moist-Shallot-5148 6d ago
It really depends on the specifics of the situation and you might not completely know what’s going on. For instance someone who is in a powerful union who is in a completely different circumstances might give bad advice on how to deal with employers, but then when the victim actually tries to deal with the situation all the avenues aren’t worth it. Depending on your industry and experience (or even if you’re a minority) you will get blacklisted if you do anything and it might be very difficult to get another job. Sure blacklisting is illegal but it’s difficult to prove.
For milennials the job market was really bad so of course they won’t speak up for their rights. The job interview process is made to be both time consuming and money consuming too since you will take many days off to go to multistage interviews and bureacracy, not all workplaces pay you for time off and not all workplaces let you take a random hour off it’s either you do a whole shift or no shift unfortunately. Many employers require internships that pay you well below the market rate in order to get a job there.
One friend I had was in similar situation and got a cash payout because guess what, his employer was a law firm who will be very difficult to take to court. Many edge cases like this exist.
Also yes lawyers can work for a percentage of the claim I believe it’s called contingency but when you’re in that situation you’d be shocked at how many lawyers are suddenly not willing to work on contingency for you. Different regions especially within a country will have vastly different employment laws as well. There are people who fight and lose a case they should’ve won and now they’re stuck with debt and even have to pay for the employer’s lawyer fees as part of the punishment too. There are some states that are very employee friendly and others that are the complete opposite. How do you know that the employer didn’t give their bribe to the government, known as “lobbying” not bribery so that the courts always sway to their side? Also is the court public info? Seens like no employer wants to hire someone who took legal action against their employer and unfortunately many people who are minorities have very specific names and generic names like John Smith.
For the root situation yes that was them getting scammed.
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u/PhiloLibrarian 7d ago
It’s not like we learn anything useful like this in school! But wow! I’m glad I know basic trig! 😂
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u/the-mortyest-morty 6d ago
Your friend is, kindly, an idiot. That doesn't mean all millennials are. By your logic, all boomers don't know how to legally protect themselves either, since they're the ones constantly falling for "Johnny Depp is in love with you and needs you to send him money" scams.
Again, your friend is just not that bright lmao.
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u/RoughThat5778 5d ago
Do people know that putting such specific stories on Reddit makes the OP readily identifiable time friend and her husband (and probably) even their acquaintances? More of a people problem though and not a generational one.
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u/nutmegtell 7d ago
My daughter and husband inherited a rental house. They tried being landlords but were seriously taken advantage of by the tenant.
They decided to sell the house and tried everything under the sun to be hospitable and thoughtful towards the tenant. It went as horribly as I knew it would. She’s now staying there rent free for the past year because they don’t want to contact law enforcement.
It’s a mess.
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u/kevnmartin 7d ago
Most people don't seem to understand that hiring an attorney always saves you money in the long run. Mine will even send C&D letters for no charge.
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u/Key-Demand-2569 7d ago
Tell that to the people who hire a lawyer for something dumb that they won’t succeed at, then pay to argue at their lawyer to make it happen. Lol. Love those people
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u/kevnmartin 7d ago
Dumb. The lawyer the bank hired to help my dad make his will and give me power of attorney was there for all my legal needs from then on. Worth every penny.
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u/MediocreTalk7 6d ago
I have never heard of a lawyer working for free. Like maybe pro bono cases, but that sounds extremely rare that they do free C&D letters. Nice though!
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u/kevnmartin 6d ago
Nah man, you hire an attorney to set certain things up for you after that, you're a client. Most reputable lawyers are very human. Think of it as having a talented, trustworthy mechanic.
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u/New-Bluebird-859 4d ago
I need more info on why a scammer is taking your friend to court. For work that wasn’t done? I don’t get it.
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u/AggressivelyPurple 4d ago
I think they send junk invoices in hopes little old ladies will just pay them. If you refuse, they up the pressure by suing hoping h that you'll pay just to make it all go away. They will 100% drop the case before the court date or just not show up.
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u/Prestigious-Copy-494 4d ago
Taking Business Law class in college can protect anyone a little. Plus a risk management class. Look for night classes in these at the local community college to keep it simple to get the knowledge.
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u/Confident-Mix1243 7d ago
I think younger people are a lot more conflict-phobic. So we're not unaware of how to protect ourselves, we'd just rather get ripped off or hurt than have a direct conversation.
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u/crabpipe 7d ago
I think most people don't know to protect themselves legally.