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At-Will EmployeeFAQ’s What does at-will mean? Manypeople are surpr ised to learn, whether from an or employeehandbook, that theyare an "at-will employee". But what does being an at-will employeemean? Being an at-will employeemeans that your employercan ter- minate your employment at anytime,for anycause - with or without notice.Anemployerhas every right to walk up to an at-will employeeand say, "Idon’t likethat your favor ite color is purple.You’re fired." There are ver y fe w,ifany,remedies for you, unless your employerdid something to violate your employeerights or brokelabor laws. All states but one have adopted laws that protect the employerinanat-will setup.That is,the employerdoes not have to have good cause to terminate your employment. Most employers takeadvantage of this protection. Unless you signed some sortofemployment contract that states you cannot be terminated without good cause,itisassumed that you are an at-will employee. Montana is the only state that protects employees from being terminated without good cause,aslong as theyfulfill a probationaryemployment period. Manytimes,anemployerwill come right out and saythat you are an at-will employee. Onthe contrar y,employees have woncases where their employers told them theycould only be fired for good cause.Evenstatements as lighthearted as, "You’ll alwayshaveaplace here,aslong as you keep up the great wor k," have been held to mean that the employerdoes NOTfollowthe at-will employment law. When statements likethis are made,especially if made repeatedly,orwere the reason you accepted the ,your employermay not be able to fire you at will. If you are told, however, either during the hiring process or after accepting the job,that you are an at-will employee, your employerhas every right to rely on that statement in a legal proceeding, as proof that you maybefired without cause. What is an employment contract, and howdoes it affect me? An employment contract is an agreement between the employerand the employeethat outlines the basic details of the job.Solong as the employeesigns it, the contract is binding. There are var ious types of employment contracts.Even within one company, different employees maybeasked to sign different employment contracts,based on each employee’s duties.Sometimes there is no written contract, but the contract is implied through an oral understanding or simply bythe behavior of the employerand the employee. The typical employment contract includes the employee’sstar t date,salar y,and benefits.Other common elements that mayormay not be on your employment contract are • confidentiality agreements,where the employeepromises not to share anyinfor mation on secrets,processes,for- mulas,data, machineryusage,orhow is conducted. Theconfidentiality duty typically extends beyond the ter mination of employment • non-compete agreement,where the employeeagrees that for a specified time after employment ends,the employeewill not wor k forany competing companyorengage in anybusiness that competes with the employerand will not steal anyofthe employer’scustomers • ownership of inventions,where the employeewho invents as partoftheir employment agrees that anything she invents within the scope of her employment belongs to the employer • exclusive employment,where the employeeagrees that she will not wor k forany other companyinthe same or similar type of business while employedunder the contract • no additional compensation,where the employeeisnot entitled to anyadditional compensation should she become elected as an officer or serve onacommittee • termination,where either party mayter minate the employment for anyreason--evenifthe employeebecomes unable to perfor m the wor k due to illness or injury • arbitration,where the employeeagrees to use arbitration or mediation to resolveany issues with employer, rather than going to court • choice of law,where the agreement asserts that should anydispute everarise in a lawsuit, it will be governed by the laws of a particular state,regardless of where it is filed My employerisasking me to sign all kinds of documents. What do theyall mean? It is common to expect to read and sign numerous documents when you startyour job.These documents often include companypolicies,applications,employeehandbooks,at-will employment agreements,and job evaluations. Employers are almost alwayscer tain to include that their employees are at-will employees.Look through these documents at your job and see if anyofthem mention that you are an at-will employee. Evenifthe documents do not use the term "at-will," anylanguage implying that your employment can be terminated at anytime means the same thing as "at-will". Chances are it is written somewhere. Even if you’re employerhas not written it in anyofthe documents,you are probably an at-will employee, unless the docu- ments state otherwise.Ifyou signed anyofthese documents that state that you are an at-will employee, then you have agreed you understand you can be terminated at anytime. Though it’srare,some employers do have written policies that require good cause to terminate an employee. Usually, these types of documents include an exhaustivelist of causes for termination. If the policy does not include such a list, theymight spell out certain other job protections that you have . Even in a state that follows at-will employment laws,ifyour employerhas adopted protectivepolicies,you are entitled to them. Do I have to sign the at-will agreement? Alot of times,employers will ask you to sign an at-will agreement, among the endless stackofother documents to sign. This is to ensure that theyhavesecured their right to terminate at will. Sometimes this is its own separate document. Other times,itwill be a section of another document, such as an employment application, an employment contract, an employeehandbook acknowledgment for m, or evenanemployment offer letter. Theoretically,you do NOThavetosign the at-will agreement. Courts have consistently held that the employercan termi- nate you or evenrefuse to hire you if you refuse to sign the at-will agreement, however. Most people sign it. Just because youhavesigned it does not mean that your employerWILL terminate you on a whim. Good employers knowthat doing so would be wasteful, and that firing people abruptly and without good cause servesnopur pose. Instead, theytypically want to wor k with the employees to solveany problems or issues with the employment. A ver y pop- ular method of doing so is using a perfor mance improvement plan. This is basically a document that asks the manager to fill in what a certain employeeneeds to improve byacer tain date. Take caution when signing at-will employment agreements if you relied on your employer’scomments about guaranteed continuous employment when you accepted the job.For instance,ifyou have aninter viewand the employerpromises to giveyou a full year to learnthe ropes and you can’t be fired during that year.This sounds likeagreat deal for you, and for this reason you takethe job.Donot sign an at-will agreement in this instance.Ifyour employerattempts to terminate your employment within that year and you takelegal action, you will be able to use your employer’sone year promise against her.Ifyou sign that at-will agreement, however, holding her to her promise goes out the window. The courts will rely on the at-will agreement to determine that you were an at-will employee. If you find yourself in this situation, ask your employerabout the discrepancy between her guarantee and the at-will agree- ment. If the employerdecides to uphold the earlier promise,ask that it be put in writing. If the employerchanges her mind and refuses to honor the earlier promise,you maywant to consult an employment lawyer.This is especially true if you resign from another job on the reliance of the newemployer’sbroken promise. HowdoIknowifIhaveaclaim for wrongful termination? There are actually manylabor laws an employercan break in wrongfully terminating an at-will employee. Just because youare an at-will employee, does not giveyour employerthe right to be discriminator y.Asdiscussed below, state and fed- eral lawprohibits discrimination based on severalcategor ies,including race,religion, gender,age,national origin, disabil- ity,pregnancy status,and, in manystates,sexual orientation or gender identity.Ifyour employerhas done anything to dis- cr iminate against you, she could face serious legal trouble. Not all wrongful termination claims are based on discrimination, either.Ifyou have anemployment contract with your employer, evenifitisanimplied contract, and it is terminated prematurely,then your employerbreached the contract, and youhavealegal claim. In this case,you maybeabletobring a claim for wrongful termination or breach of contract. If your employerter minates youout of retaliation because you exercised some right, such as reporting the companyfor public health and safety violations or making a harassment claim, you mayhaveawrongful termination claim. Likewise,if your employerter minates youfor refusing to perfor m an illegal act, such as doing construction at a designated height with- out safety ropes,you mayhaveawrongful termination claim. If you takeoff wor k forapur pose protected bylaw,such as voting or militaryser vice,and your employerter minates you, you mayhaveawrongful termination claim. Damages for wrongful termination can include backpay,apromotion, reinstatement, front pay, compensator y damages, reasonable accommodations,injunctiverelief (forcing the employertodoorstop doing something), punitivedamages,and attor ney’sfees.Itisbest that both the employeeand the employerhire an employment lawyer. What are myat-will employeerights? As explained above , ev enat-will employees have rights.State and federal laws provide protections for certain categories and situations,eveninat-will employment. These categories include race,religion, national origin, disability,pregnancy status,age,and gender.Some states evenprotect against employment discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identification. Discr imination can come in manyfor ms.Acommon misconception is that discrimination laws protect everyone but white, middle-aged, men. This is not true.Ifyou are discriminated against because you are white,you are protected under the race class.Ifyou are discriminated against because you are a certain age,whether young, middle-aged, or mature,you are protected under the age class.Ifyou are discriminated against because you are a man, you are protected under the gender class.These labor laws exist for a reason; if you are discriminated against based on anyofthese categories, repor t the discrimination to human resources.Ifthis does not alleviate that situation, consult an employment lawyer. Yo uare also protected against retaliation. For example,ifyou complain about illegal activity likediscr imination, harass- ment, or health and safety violations in the wor kplace,your employercannot retaliate byter minating your employment, suspending you, or reducing your hours.Similar ly,you cannot be terminated for exercising your right to takefamily leave , medical leave , militar y leave , to taketime off to vote,ortoser veonajur y. FINDLAW.COMThe FindLaw Guide to Online Fraud EMPOWERS and Identity Theft PEOPLE WITH TRUSTED, TIMELY AND INTELLIGENT LEGAL INFORMATION

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