WASHINGTON – It’s finally time to tell your boss you’ve had it. You’re tired of his terrible attitude, you know he was were wrong on your performance review, and if worse comes to worse, you’re positive he can’t fire you. After all, that lovely lady in human resources will have your back. Right?

Not really.

Before you summon up the courage to tell your boss to take this job and shove it, U.S. News & World Report has a list of some workplace myths that may make you bite your tongue and save your bank account.

One big myth is having legal recourse if your boss is hostile on unfair. The only way an employee is allowed to pursue legal matters is if an employer is being a pain due to problem with race, gender, religious or other protected classes. Being a jerk, unfortunately, isn’t against the law.

Another big myth is that the human resources department is strictly there to help employees. In most cases, it’s quite the opposite. The HR department is there to determine what is best for the employer – not the employee.

Furthermore, HR does not have to keep any information confidential unless you both sides agree to it. A human resources department is required to report things, such as harassment or illegal behavior. Being negligent or silent is the last thing you can assume.

If there is some unforseen set of events that leads to your termination, you can still collect unemployment benefits. Most states do not prevent fired employees from collecting checks, unless they were fired for intentional misconduct.

See the 10 workplace myths that U.S. News & World Report busts.

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(Copyright 2011 by WTOP. All rights reserved.)