LEG 500 Employment-At-Will Doctrine Assignment#1
Analysis of employment-at-will doctrine and legal implications.
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Running Head: Employment-At-Will Doctrine
1
Employment-At-Will Doctrine
Assignment#1
LEG 500
Assignment 2: Employment-At-Will Doctrine
Imagine you are a recently-hired Chief Operating Officer (COO) in a midsize company
preparing for an Initial Public Offering (IPO). You quickly discover multiple personnel problems
that require your immediate attention.
1. John posted a rant on his Facebook page in which he criticized the company’s most
important customer.
2. Ellen started a blog to protest the CEO’s bonus, noting that no one below director has
gotten a raise in two (2) years and portraying her bosses as “know-nothings” and “out-of-
touch”
3. Bill has been using his company-issued BlackBerry to run his own business on the side.
4. After being disciplined for criticizing a customer in an email (sent from his personal
email account on a company computer), Joe threatens to sue the company for invasion of
privacy.
5. One of the department supervisors requests your approval to fire his secretary for
insubordination. Since the secretary has always received glowing reviews, you call her
into your office and determine that she has refused to prepare false expense reports for
her boss.
6. Anna’s boss refused to sign her leave request for jury duty and now wants to fire her for
being absent without permission.
1
Employment-At-Will Doctrine
Assignment#1
LEG 500
Assignment 2: Employment-At-Will Doctrine
Imagine you are a recently-hired Chief Operating Officer (COO) in a midsize company
preparing for an Initial Public Offering (IPO). You quickly discover multiple personnel problems
that require your immediate attention.
1. John posted a rant on his Facebook page in which he criticized the company’s most
important customer.
2. Ellen started a blog to protest the CEO’s bonus, noting that no one below director has
gotten a raise in two (2) years and portraying her bosses as “know-nothings” and “out-of-
touch”
3. Bill has been using his company-issued BlackBerry to run his own business on the side.
4. After being disciplined for criticizing a customer in an email (sent from his personal
email account on a company computer), Joe threatens to sue the company for invasion of
privacy.
5. One of the department supervisors requests your approval to fire his secretary for
insubordination. Since the secretary has always received glowing reviews, you call her
into your office and determine that she has refused to prepare false expense reports for
her boss.
6. Anna’s boss refused to sign her leave request for jury duty and now wants to fire her for
being absent without permission.
Running Head: Employment-At-Will Doctrine
2
Introduction
Since the 19th century, America’s employment philosophy has traditionally been what is
referred to as employment-at-will. It basis is found on two of America’s enduring founding
structures. For example, the laissez-faire concept of the free market philosophy, and the
traditional principle of democracy—of personal liberty as embodied in the constitution. As two
sides of the same coin, the free-market and the constitution, each in its own way views the
employer/employee relationship to be on equal a footing. By definition, "employment-at-will is a
legal rule…giving employers’ unfettered power to 'dismiss their employees for good cause, no
cause, or for cause morally wrong, without being guilty of legal wrong (Ingulli, 2012).’” By the
same token employees also have the free will to choose to terminate their employments with
their employers for no cause, or for good cause, or for cause morally wrong without any
obligation.
But the seemingly unfettered power at the disposal of employers to terminate the employment of
employees at will, which some people particularly the trade unions, had variously characterized
as exploitative, inhumane and unfairly stacked against employees has not been so unfettered after
all. Overtime, some major exceptions to employer’s right to fire at-will have since been
gradually introduced into this arrangement. As of the 1950s, at least four major exceptions to
employment-at-will which are deemed to be adversely disparaging to employees have been put
in place by way of America common law tradition, and tort law. Most notable and adopted in all
50 states among these exceptions is the one which prohibits termination actions taken against an
employee for either not participating or reporting a violation of a state policy or local ordinance.
Then there is the exception which prohibits as a basis for termination, race, age, gender, national
origin and disability. Another exception that is enforced nation-wide is the one that places a
2
Introduction
Since the 19th century, America’s employment philosophy has traditionally been what is
referred to as employment-at-will. It basis is found on two of America’s enduring founding
structures. For example, the laissez-faire concept of the free market philosophy, and the
traditional principle of democracy—of personal liberty as embodied in the constitution. As two
sides of the same coin, the free-market and the constitution, each in its own way views the
employer/employee relationship to be on equal a footing. By definition, "employment-at-will is a
legal rule…giving employers’ unfettered power to 'dismiss their employees for good cause, no
cause, or for cause morally wrong, without being guilty of legal wrong (Ingulli, 2012).’” By the
same token employees also have the free will to choose to terminate their employments with
their employers for no cause, or for good cause, or for cause morally wrong without any
obligation.
But the seemingly unfettered power at the disposal of employers to terminate the employment of
employees at will, which some people particularly the trade unions, had variously characterized
as exploitative, inhumane and unfairly stacked against employees has not been so unfettered after
all. Overtime, some major exceptions to employer’s right to fire at-will have since been
gradually introduced into this arrangement. As of the 1950s, at least four major exceptions to
employment-at-will which are deemed to be adversely disparaging to employees have been put
in place by way of America common law tradition, and tort law. Most notable and adopted in all
50 states among these exceptions is the one which prohibits termination actions taken against an
employee for either not participating or reporting a violation of a state policy or local ordinance.
Then there is the exception which prohibits as a basis for termination, race, age, gender, national
origin and disability. Another exception that is enforced nation-wide is the one that places a
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Document Details
University
Strayer University
Subject
Civil Law