Restrictions On Employee Firing
Usually the employer cannot dismiss and employee for complaining about illegal or unethical activities at the office. There are many employment laws that protect a workers right to complain to the authorities or management about illegal activities at the workplace. Some of the employment laws that prevent retaliation also deal with certain types of whistle blowing. For instance you cannot fire someone who has filed an OSHA complaint or a charge of discrimination with the EEOC merely because he or she has done so. You cannot fire an employee just because he or she has complained about financial irregularities or improprieties relating to a government contract. A number of employment laws protect the right to blow the whistle on improper employer conduct, including the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, which protects employees who complain of accounting irregularities and potential shareholder fraud.It is advisable not to fire an employee for complaining of illegal or unethical behavior. This is because there are many types of whistle blowing activity that are protected by law. Consult experienced employment attorneys before you take any disciplinary action against an employee who has made this type of complaint.
Virtaully all states have employment laws prohibiting the firing of an employee in violation of public policythat is, for reasons that most people would find morally or ethically wrong. Well, since morals and ethics are relative, in each state the prohibited reasons for firing are different. Employers are explicitly prohbited by certain state and federal employment laws from firing workers for taking advantage of certain rights, like taking family medical leave or supporting a union. Unless there is a specific law that provides what exactly the employer is permitted to do and what the employer cannot do, in some states an employee can successfully argue that he or she was fired in violation of public policy. Despite the differences in rules and laws across different states, it is generally accepted that firing of an employee for any of the following reasons would be a violation of public policy:
refusing to commit an illegal act like falsifying insurance claims or submitting false tax returns
being a whistle blowerthat is, for complaining about illegal workplace conduct and
exercising a legal right (such as voting or filing a workers compensation claim).
To find out more about the employment law regarding public policy in your state, contact your state labor department or your state fair employment office. Before you fire someone, you have to determine whether your company has an employment contract with that worker. While this can be easily done in most cases by just looking for an employment contract amongst the employees personnel files, in come cases, it is much more difficult. You may sometimes create an employment contract without the intention to do so or without knowledge. These contracts are referred to as implied contract. Implied contracts are not written down, but instead are inferred from your actions and statements are every bit as binding as signed, written contracts.
Virtaully all states have employment laws prohibiting the firing of an employee in violation of public policythat is, for reasons that most people would find morally or ethically wrong. Well, since morals and ethics are relative, in each state the prohibited reasons for firing are different. Employers are explicitly prohbited by certain state and federal employment laws from firing workers for taking advantage of certain rights, like taking family medical leave or supporting a union. Unless there is a specific law that provides what exactly the employer is permitted to do and what the employer cannot do, in some states an employee can successfully argue that he or she was fired in violation of public policy. Despite the differences in rules and laws across different states, it is generally accepted that firing of an employee for any of the following reasons would be a violation of public policy:
refusing to commit an illegal act like falsifying insurance claims or submitting false tax returns
being a whistle blowerthat is, for complaining about illegal workplace conduct and
exercising a legal right (such as voting or filing a workers compensation claim).
To find out more about the employment law regarding public policy in your state, contact your state labor department or your state fair employment office. Before you fire someone, you have to determine whether your company has an employment contract with that worker. While this can be easily done in most cases by just looking for an employment contract amongst the employees personnel files, in come cases, it is much more difficult. You may sometimes create an employment contract without the intention to do so or without knowledge. These contracts are referred to as implied contract. Implied contracts are not written down, but instead are inferred from your actions and statements are every bit as binding as signed, written contracts.
