California is one of the at-will employment states. It means that the employers are within their right to fire any employee for almost any reason they want, but only when there is no employment contract signed by both parties that state otherwise.
If you wonder, ‘can I sue my employer for firing me under false accusations in California?’, then the answer is that a false accusation alone is probably not enough to warrant legal action. However, if the accusation results in personal, income, or reputation losses, your claim is justified.
There are some reasons for which the employer cannot fire the employee abruptly. In specific situations, California laws protect employees from unilateral firing. Six of the top situations where you might have been wrongfully fired or terminated by an employer are;
- Violation of implied contract
A majority of employment contracts contain a provision prohibiting an employer from firing an employee without good cause. The term ‘good cause’ is pretty flexible –it can be anything from being incompetent to looking unkempt. However, if there is such a contract, the employee may contest the firing in court.
If nothing is signed between an employer and employee, even then, a contract may exist, called an ‘implied contract’. It can be created by an employer’s manual or handbook. For example, if the manual states that the employee will only be fired for a good cause, then this provision can create a legal obligation to uphold it. Similarly, other implied contracts may be made by the general statements of the employer or language they used in the engagement letter.
- Violation of the public policy
There are some public policies in California that may act as exceptions to the at-will employment doctrine. For example, if an employer fires an employee for refusal to break the law, that termination is unlawful.
- Discrimination
The federal as well as California state laws prohibit discriminating against an employee or firing them for their race, gender, sexual orientation, age, disability, religion, etc. Therefore, if an employer fires an employee for one or more of these reasons, such termination is unlawful and may be successfully contested in court.
- Harassment
An employer cannot fire an employee for filing an official complaint about discrimination or harassment or opposing either of them. Such retaliation from an employer is illegal and may be contested successfully in court.
- Whistleblower
Generally, employers keep silent when they see an employer breaking the law in fear of losing their job. However, disclosure is encouraged in California. Several laws protect whistleblowers from retaliation by employers, such as;
- Labor Code § 1102.5
- Labor Code § 98.6
- Government Code § 12653
- Labor Code § 6310
Please note that it does not matter if the employer committed the violation; as long as the person reporting a violation had a reasonable basis for doubt, they cannot be fired. Moreover, it is also not strictly required for the report to be made to a law enforcement agency or other government departments. Filing an in-house report to a superior or someone else who has the authority to investigate or question the employer’s illegal activity is also a sufficient cause for activation of protections granted by the law.
- Constructive discharge
Under state law, an employee cannot file for wrongful termination if they willingly quit the job. However, there are some extenuating circumstances that may just make the suit lawful. For example, if the employee left the job because the employer made working conditions so worse that they had no other recourse. Quitting because of a hostile work environment may fall under ‘constructive discharge’, which is illegal.
