Terminating an employer-employee relationship, no matter the reason, is one of the most difficult situations that a manager will face in their career and easily one of the most unpleasant parts of the job. Terminating an employee is risky business, and it’s a manager’s obligation as an agent of the company to do so in the legal confines of the United States law. Terminations happen every day at every level of an organization, in companies big and small. Therefore, it is in the best interest of all companies to have knowledgeable managers handling terminations. When is at-will employment not employment at-will? Can managers identify legal and illegal reasons to fire someone? This paper will not debate the ethical or social …show more content…
In addition, this paper will explore what constitutes a wrongful discharge under three main common law exceptions to employment at will in the Public-policy exception, the Implied-contract exception, and the Covenant-of-good-faith exception. Finally, the paper recommend some course of action for organizations to put in place to mitigate high-risk terminations. High-risk terminations are those instances in which employers are faced with decisions to terminate employment of employees whose circumstances likely fall within one or a combination of statutory and common law exceptions to the at-will doctrine discussed below. The risk of being sued is reduced when there is a clear, non-discriminatory and well-documented cause for termination. Like much of the United States’ common law, employee and employer rights within the United States can trace its roots back to England. According to the Statute of Laborers, a general hiring of labor for an unfixed term was presumed to be for a year, and a “master” could not “put away his servant” except for “reasonable cause.” Employment at-will’s origin in the United States have been hotly debated by legal scholars and there is still not a consensus as to where employment at-will doctrine actually developed. Traditionalists suggest that
The company has the right to terminate an employee as long as the termination does not discriminate or
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
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
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.
| |How might managers in an organization use knowledge of employment-at-will and its exceptions | | |
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.
At-will means that an employer can terminate an employee at any time for any reason, except an illegal one, or for no reason without incurring legal liability.
When we are dealing with the employment relationship between employers and employees, ethical issues are most likely to emerge. Especially, if a manager fires a worker without a proper reason, critics will follow this employer’s behavior. In Patricia Werhane’s paper, “Employment at Will and Due Process”, discusses two doctrines which are Employment at Will (EAW) and Due Process. It also addresses some justifications and objections for EAW, and shows Werhane’s supportive view to Due Process. In contrast, EAW is defended by Richard Epstein in his article “In Defense of the Contract at Will”. In my paper, I will attempt to develop my argument in favor of Employment at Will that could improve flexibility and efficiency of
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
Based on facts and legal laws, the judge can look over the evidence and rules and make a decision. The employment-at-will doctrine clearly states that the employer can fire the employee at any time for any reason. There are many exceptions to the employment-at-will
Employment-at-will has been an established segment of common law in the United States, which states that either party to
In dealing with a person’s livelihood, and often, sense of self, it is of no surprise that ethical issues regarding employment practices are of great concern. The issues of employment at will and due process contracts in the workplace are among the most widely contentious in the realm of employment. Employment at will is the doctrine that employment may be ended, by either party, for good, bad or no cause at all.1 Due process, on the other hand, is the employment practice in which a person may appeal a decision as a means of receiving an explanation and the opportunity to argue against it.2 Employment at will is the standard in the majority of private corporations today and is argued for relentlessly by freedom of contract enthusiasts,
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
Employment-at-will is a law that stipulate that as long as a employee is not been discriminated he or she can loose their job and any given time. This paper aims to analyze 8 different scenarios and determine whatever or not an employ can lose his or her job based in some behaviors, actions, or inactions that had lead to a somewhat hostile, aggressive, and even disrespectful work environment. At the same time the paper will address the importance of whistleblower police for any organization. While the employment-at-will allows employers to terminate their staff at any moment, at the same time it protect the staff from any type of discrimination.