Why Are Severance Agreements Important

Introduction Instead of seeing the relationship on equal footing, courts and senates gradually began to identify that employers regularly have fundamental and monetary advantages when negotiating with potential or current employees (EAW, n.d.). Provisions are put in place to protect and educate employees and employers. Laws are set to enable organizations to manage in the fairest manner possible. This paper will provide background on Employment at Will and the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act. Secondly, it will examine what act has the greatest and the least impact on employees in the private-sector U.S. workplace. Lastly it will provide a brief summary.

Facts and Laws: Unlawful Termination The company has the right to terminate an employee as long as the termination does not discriminate or

"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

* First, employees who leave voluntarily are less likely to sue over their separation and more likely to sign a release in exchange for severance, assuming that it’s offered. Some disgruntled former employees may claim constructive discharge that they were forced out. But that is an uphill climb for plaintiffs under any statue or theory. If the plaintiff signed a valid release of all claims then the employer can raise that defense in a pretrial motion that should end the case at that early stage.

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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

Werhane and Radin’s theory holds that employees and employers alike are allowed to end their employment “For a good cause, for no cause, or even for causes morally wrong” (pp.255) without being penalized for doing so. So essentially, the employer may terminate an employee’s service for any of the

As for a union, they don’t exactly have remedies as it is stated that the employer can pursue arbitration over the union violation of the agreement and the court will issue a suit for damages pending arbitration (Cihon & Castagnera,

The ability to measure the effectiveness of a combined At-Will Employment doctrine that is accompanied by a strong employee termination policy is important. Measuring the new policies and how they reflect the impact of both federal and common law on the doctrines coverage is very noteworthy. Consequently, organizations can proficiently measure the return on their investment for the cost of adjusting their termination policies pretty easily. When companies minimize turnover by reducing terminations, and in particular decreasing wrongful terminations they are ahead of the game.

When an employee begins a new job, before he/she can begin, the employee is handed a number of important documents containing their rights and responsibilities for the job. The same can be said of a collective bargaining agreement. An employee cannot expect a union representative to voice their concerns without having full knowledge as to the inner workings of the legal system that may or may not be able to protect them.

Depending on the status of the employee upon hiring or later, he or she may be granted at a will contract or a property interest contract in a continued employment (Varone, 2012). Because at a will employees cannot expect a continued employment, they can be terminated for any reason or without reason (Varone, 2012). For property interest employees, due process must be provided before job termination stated Varone (2012). Public employees such as municipal and district firefighters even under at a will contract cannot be terminated without just cause or in a violation of law affirmed Varone (2012). A fire chief who was fired due to an alleged incompetence filed a law suit against his employer. The facts, the issues, the ruling, the rationale, a perspective, and example in which the court’s decision might be cited are addressed in this paper.

This is the case with most union employees, the union enters into a collective bargaining agreement that helps protect members from termination without cause.

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 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

Some of the employees that have been with the organization for a long time may be looking to retire or would be interested in a severance package: