California Wrongful Termination Law When
an employee in California has been fired when they should not have
been, California law generally refers to this as a "wrongful
termination." Unfortunately, many employees feel that they have been
unlawfully terminated, when in fact, according to California labor law,
they have not. Therefore, it is necessary to speak with a California
wrongful termination attorney in our office in order to ascertain
whether or not you have suffered a wrongful termination. California Wrongful Termination and “At Will” Employment California
and many other states, utilize an "at will" doctrine for employment,
which means that an employer may terminate an employee for any reason,
at any time. There
are, however, a few categories of employment referred to as "protected
categories" that provide California employees with some exceptions to
the “at will” doctrine as it relates to California Wrongful
Termination: Discrimination It
is unlawful for an Employer to discriminate against any employee for a
variety of reasons, including: on the basis of age, race, sex, national
origin, disability, to name a few. Employers also cannot discriminate
against an employee for reporting an employer for an illegal action
(sometimes referred to as being a whistle-blower), or for other
protected activities such as filing a workers' compensation claim or
taking medical leave that is protected under the Family Medical Leave
Act. Wrongful termination is illegal if an employer fires an employee
because of one of these reasons and under both federal law and
California labor laws, an employee may sue and seek damages. Employment Contract Another
exception to the “at will” employment doctrine in California is when
there exists an employment contract between employee and employer, such
as a collective bargaining agreement entered into by union employees,
which may state, for example, that the employee may only be fired for
willful misconduct or other just cause. Except
for these and a few other more obscure exceptions, California employers
may terminate the employment relationship for any reason, even if it's
simply because they do not like the employee. To be clear, it is
important to understand that in many circumstances, just because an
employee feels that they have been wrongfully terminated, does not mean
that it is necessarily the case that there is an actionable violation
of California labor law. It is understandable that an employee may
become very emotional when they are terminated and feel they have been
unlawfully discharged. However, even if a wrongful termination did not
occur, it is not unlikely that an experienced California labor law
attorney will be able to uncover other potential violations of
California labor law such as misclassification, unpaid wages, meals and
breaks, or non-reimbursed expenses. Contact Our California Wrongful Termination Attorneys If
you have a current potential claim against your employer related to
your workplace and/or believe you have suffered a wrongful termination,
our experienced California wrongful termination attorneys are available
to assist you by providing a free, thorough review of your claim. Our
law firm provides contingency fee legal representation, meaning that if
we take your case, our firm will advance all relevant costs and
expenditures, allowing you to avoid any “out of pocket” expenses. We
accept all our employment termination cases on this contingency fee
basis, so unless we prevail and collect for you, you pay nothing. |
