ELLIS v. BlueSKY CHARTER SCHOOL Legal Environment, BUAD 5315 Mark Inman Instructor: Dr. April Dyer ELLIS v. BlueSKY CHARTER SCHOOL Thomas Ellis, Relator, v. BlueSky Charter School, Respondent. No. A09-1205. Court of Appeals of Minnesota. Filed April 20, 2010 Facts: In November 2008, the parties signed an employment agreement providing that Relator was to serve as the director of the school for the 2008-09 school year. The title of the agreement states the dates July 01/2008-June 30/2009. "The first sentence of the agreement lists the administrative positions to which the agreement applies and states, "This is a general at will agreement."(Ellis vs. BlueSky, 2010). Yet the agreement provides that "[p]ositions will automatically …show more content…
BlueSky, 2010). Reason: Even with a complete record of extrinsic evidence about the agreement, it would be difficult to discern what the "at will" clause was intended to mean. The most we have in this record is the statement that the board attributes to Ellis in its meeting minutes. Ellis, however, denies having acknowledged that his employment was at will. At the very least, I would remand to the board to create a complete record on the meaning of the agreement's terms and the parties' intent. See Dokmo v. Indep. School Dist. No. 11,459 N.W.2d 671, 676 (Minnesota, 1990) (stating that school board has obligation "to make a sufficient record to prove its actions were justified."). Alternatively, I would apply the well-established rule that ambiguity is to be construed against the drafter (as cited in Ellis vs. BlueSky, 2010).. References Ellis v. bluesky charter school. (2010, Apri). Retrieved from http://www.leagle.com/xmlResult.aspx?page=4&xmldoc=In MNCO 20100420259.xml&docbase=CsLwAr3-2007-Curr&SizeDisp=7 Miller, R., & Jentz, G. (2012). Business law today. (9th ed.). Mason, OH: South-Western Cengage
In addition, the “At-Will-Employment Law” gives the employer the capacity to unfairly change the terms of the employment relationship with no notice and no consequences.
An “at will” employee is an employee who agreed to a contract in which they can be fired at any time, for almost any reason. The law generally presumes that employees are employed at will unless they can prove otherwise.
However, the ruling in this case and others like it prove that employers can, in fact, be bound by articles written in an employee handbook when disciplining or discharging an employee. An abysmally written handbook can greatly jeopardize an employer’s right to terminate at will. Trends show that courts are increasingly acknowledging enforceable promises in the past employment practices of firms, in employer handbooks and in oral commitments. In addition to including an at-will disclaimer in employee handbooks, employers should also require employees to sign an acknowledgment confirming that they understand and agree to employment-at-will and that at-will employment can at any time be modified by a written agreement. Personnel manuals should explicitly state that the employer reserves the right to terminate employment at will. All written policies should also be free of any language that could be considered as a guarantee of job security. To be sure that these common pitfalls are avoided employers must retain the service of a labor attorney to draft and air-tight employee manual and acknowledgment
The employment At-Will doctrine is in place to allow employment relationships to be restricted. It allows employers and employees to terminate a relationship at any time without cause. The doctrine will allow employees to quit without any fear of being held liable for any inconvenience or disruption to the business at the time of quitting. This doctrine also allows employers to make any changes towards an employee’s term of employment (N, 2017). However, some exceptions could prevent an employee to make those changes if the employee is covered in that particular area. Doyle A
"Labor Code section 2922, which provides that an employment relationship of unspecified duration may be terminated at the will of either party, establishes a presumption of at-will employment. This presumption may be overcome by evidence of an implied agreement that the employment would continue indefinitely, pending the occurrence of some event such as the employer 's dissatisfaction with the employee 's services or the existence of a cause for termination. (Foley v. Interactive Data Corp. (1988) 47 Cal.3d 654, 680, 254 Cal.Rptr. 211, 765 P.2d 373.) `[Factors apart from consideration and express terms may be used to ascertain the existence and content of an employment agreement, including the personnel policies or practices of the employer, the employee 's longevity of service, actions or communications by the employer reflecting assurances of continued employment, and the practices of the industry in which the employee is engaged. ' [Citation.]" (Soules v. Cadam, Inc. (1991) 2
One of the things everyone looks forward to is having security. However, the job market has not been strong enough to give job security. Since the Market crashed in 2008, there has been an increase in “at will” employees. At will employment means that the company or the firm has the right to terminate your employment at any given time for any reason with or without a legit cause. At will also give employees the flexibility to quit their job as they wish without giving any notice or reason. In “Employment at Will and Due Process” by Patricia A. Wethane and Tara J. Radin expresses their views on “At Will” employment. Radin and Werhane mention several views on ethical treatment of employees, in principle and in practice, against at will employment. In this article they believe it violates certain rights that employees have, it violates the principle of fairness, and there are certain legal objections.
1. What is the legal issue in this case? Linda Dillon appealed her case against her employer, Champion Jogbra, on the grounds of wrongful termination. The company’s progressive policy for disciplinary action was not applied. Therefore, Dillon makes her claim that her at will status was modified according to the employee handbook and practices. Employee’s handbook should be written clearly and reviewed by legal experts (Walsh, 2010). Champion Jogbra countered that Dillon was an at-will employee and she could be terminated at any time. Dillon also, argues against that the
suggests companies take another approach. For instance, the impact of Title VII laws, and common laws along with fraudulent inducement, promissory estoppel, and or constructive discharges have all sufficed to erode the power of the At- Will employment doctrine.
The Court ruled on June 27, 1971, that the School Board had the right to decline to employ or re-employ any applicant for any reason or no reason at all.
On the contrary, employment at will is defended by Richard Epstein in his article “In Defense of the Contract at Will”. He is trying to show that the contract at will “is adopted not because it allows the employer to exploit the employee, but rather because over a very broad range of circumstances it works to the mutual benefit of both parties.” Then I will summarize the benefits of EAW that Epstein provides.
It is no answer that the parties' written contract was for an employment-at-will, where the employer foreseeably and intentionally induces the prospective employee to materially change his position to his expense and detriment, and then repudiates its obligations before the written contract begins to operate.
Employment at will is a law that is present in all fifty states in the US; although, in Montana there requires a stated cause for termination. Employment at will creates dissent among employees when they have been terminated for a cause that is thought to be unsubstantial or when no cause is given. There are pros and cons to the presumption, and employees and employers have different views. Employment at will means that the employer can terminate an employee at any time, for any cause without warning. However, even an at-will employee cannot be terminated because of discriminatory reasons. Employment at will also means that an employee can leave a job at any time without the fear of facing any legal consequences. An employer can also
The defendant also has a valid argument that he can dispute. This business is an employment at will employer. This means that the employee can be let go at any time for any reason. Elaine knew that this was an employment at will. When she read the letter and accepted the job, she also accepted all the conditions that came along with it. The plaintiff knew that she could be fired any time. This is the defendant’s argument.
Warhane and Radin, in their article “Employment at Will and Due Process”, suggest that one of the major reasons employment at will is acceptable is that it protects the proprietary rights of employers. In particular “the proprietary rights of employers guarantee that they may employ or dismiss
Employment-at-will has been an established segment of common law in the United States, which states that either party to