Can At-Will Employees File Wrongful Termination Claims?
Many employees in Palm Beach Gardens and throughout South Florida are at-will employees. What this means is that these employees do not have an employment contract with their employer that governs the terms of their employment. Rather, they can be fired at any time by their employer for almost any reason, and they can also decide to quit or leave their job at any time and for any reason. At-will employees may be hourly or salaried employees. The defining feature of at-will employment in Florida is generally that no employment contract exists to govern the terms of the employee-employer relationship.
You may be thinking, if an at-will employee can be terminated for almost any reason, can at-will employees ever file wrongful termination claims and win? The answer is yes — there are a couple of important things to note about at-will employment, including key reasons that an employee cannot be terminated.
Wrongful Termination Due to Discrimination
Various federal laws and the Florida Civil Rights Act (FCRA) protect employees against discriminatory actions, including termination. An employer cannot fire an at-will employee because of the employee’s actual or perceived race, religion, color, ethnicity, sex, gender, disability, or age (40 or over), for instance. These are just some examples of the protected classes under federal and state law. If you are fired for a reason based in discrimination, you may be able to file a wrongful termination claim. At-will employees cannot be terminated due to unlawful discrimination.
Wrongful Termination Due to Retaliation
Employers cannot retaliate against employees for exercising their rights under discrimination laws, or under a range of other federal and state laws such as the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) or whistleblower laws. If you exercise rights by reporting legal violations, participating in investigations, or related acts and are terminated by your employer in response to your decision, you may be able to file a wrongful termination claim. At-will employees cannot be terminated by an employer in retaliation for exercising rights under state or federal law.
Wrongful Termination and Layoffs in Violation of Federal Law
Sometimes mass layoffs violate a specific federal law, the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act (or the WARN Act for short). This law is only applicable in specific circumstances, but it does protect particular at-will employees from termination without proper notice. The law requires that employers who have 100 or more employees must provide those employees with at least 60 calendar days of advance written notice of either a plan closure or mass layoff that will affect at least 50 employees.
Contact a Palm Beach Gardens Wrongful Termination Lawyers
If you were recently fired or laid off from your job in South Florida, it is important to speak with an experienced Palm Beach Gardens wrongful termination attorney at Sconzo Law Office even if you are an at-will employee. As we have made clear above, there are certain reasons that at-will employees cannot be terminated. When employers terminate at-will employees for unlawful reasons, the employee may be able to file a wrongful termination case in Florida. Contact us today to discuss the details of your case.
Sources:
bls.gov/opub/mlr/2001/01/art1full.pdf
dol.gov/general/topic/termination/plantclosings