Employees With Rights To A Job
I am a civil service employee and have been notified that I am being terminated. What happens next?
Because of your employment classification, your employer is required to follow certain procedures. If the requirements are not fulfilled and you are still terminated, you have a cause of action against your employer.
Typically, the procedure for terminating a civil service employee requires:
- providing the employee with a written notice giving the reasons for termination;
- allowing the employee a reasonable time period (10 days, for example) to respond or file an appeal;
- permitting the employee to take the appeal to a higher authority (a state personnel board of review, for example);
- setting a hearing within a reasonable amount of time (30 days, for example);
- allowing the employee to give his side of the story, including presenting evidence at the hearing;
- allowing the employee to have a legal or union representative at the hearing; and
- permitting the employee the right to appeal a hearing decision to a court.
During this time period, the employee remains on the job (unless there has been alleged criminal activity) and continues to be paid.
TIP: Civil service employees generally work under a probationary status when they first begin a job. During a probationary period, the employee is an employee at will and has no property interest in the job. Once the probationary period ends, if the employee stays on or is offered the job, she has a property interest in it.
I work in the state transportation office. Am I a civil service employee?
Not necessarily. Some employees, such as those who work for elected officials, are at-will employees.
Can I sue my employer for firing me when I was told I would always have a job at the company until I retired?
Yes. If you employer made a clear and unequivocal promise that you had lifetime employment, you may have been wrongfully terminated. However, some state courts require you to show that you gave some additional consideration (something beyond your agreement to do your job) to the employer in exchange for the lifetime job. For example, if you had to move to accept the job, you gave the employer additional consideration.
SIDEBAR: If the agreement was for lifetime employment as long as the employee performed satisfactorily, the agreement may be unenforceable. In such a situation, either party can terminate the employment at will because the employee has a duty to perform satisfactorily regardless of the duration of the job. In that case, it seems unlikely than an employer would offer lifetime employment.
SIDEBAR: An oral promise that cannot be performed within 1 year must be in writing. If you were promised a job until age 65 when you were hired at age 55, the promise must be in writing. Without a written agreement, the court will not even consider if it is enforceable or not.
TIP: If the employer promised that the job would last "until retirement," the agreement may not have to be in writing. It is conceivable the employee could retire within the year, making a written agreement unnecessary.
I have a teaching contract for a year. Does that mean I cannot be terminated during the year?
No. The contract means certain procedures must be followed by the school district before it can terminate you. Typically, you have the right to notice of the termination and an opportunity to a hearing before the school board before a final decision is made. If the school district fails to follow its procedures, you will have a cause of action for wrongful termination.
SIDEBAR: There is no inherent constitutional right to public employment. The constitutional right that does exist is the right to be heard before termination. These due process rights exist because of an employment contract or a specific law that protects that job (a postal employee, for example).
My employer refuses to tell me why I am being terminated. Am I entitled to an explanation?
You are if you have a property interest in your job. In that situation, the law requires that you be furnished with:
- an oral or written notice explaining why you are being terminated, including any allegations or charges against you;
- an explanation of your employer's evidence; and
- an opportunity to present your side of the story.
You are not owed an explanation if you are an employee at will.
My employment contract does not state how long I have a job but it does include a 6-year bonus schedule. Am I guaranteed a job for 6 years?
No. Bonus schedules do not alter the duration of an employment contract. If your contract does not state how long you will be employed, you can be terminated at any time.
TIP: An offer of employment at "an annual salary of $40,000" is not an employment contract for 1 year. The term "annual" does not limit the employer's right to terminate the employee at any time.