Assignment 1: Employment-At-Will Doctrine
Ian Keller
Strayer University
Law, Ethics, and Corporate Governance
LEG 500
Professor Joyce Weddle
April 21st, 2013
Introduction Jennifer is a recent college graduate who has been hired by an accounting firm. In the short time she has been employed with the firm she has discovered a number of behaviors she feels could be inappropriate regarding the employment-at-will doctrine as well as some liabilities with the employer. She has brought this up only because she feels obligated to report the behaviors’ in which she has witnessed and wants to ensure she won’t be held liable for not informing the management team (LEG 500 - Law, Ethics, and Corporate Governance, 2012). Jennifer identified four
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The company would be able to ensure a quick processing of this particular termination if they could show that all the times this particular employee was late, was documented in writing. This should always be done in any given case of tardiness or un-authorized absence. The Employment-At-Will Doctrine means that an employer can terminate an employee at any time for any reason, except when the reason was illegal or for no reason without incurring legal liability (At-will employment – overview, 2013). Under the doctrine, the employer can change the terms of the employee’s employment with no notice and the company would still have the right to terminate the employee. An example, although it may seem unfair would be if the employee was hired at a certain amount and the employer wanted to reduce that amount, the employer could legally do so without violating any law or rights of the employee. Once the employer reduced the pay, they could still terminate the employee and not be in risk of breaking any laws or violating anyone rights (At-will employment – overview, 2013).
Labor and Laws
In this scenario the employee takes an un-authorized day off from work to observe her religious holiday. This holiday falls on a day that is during “tax season” and the day off occurred during an incredibly busy period for the company. Prior to this time frame the company announced to all of its employees they were not allowed to take off during
Identify and describe the specific issues Maalick encountered in the workplace. Do the actions of other workers at Treton represent discrimination and harassment? What elements of law are important for Treton to consider?
An employee can be legally fired at any time for any reason, unless they are being discriminated against (depending on the state), or if the firing is in retaliation, or if the firing goes against a
than $5.15 an hour. Overtime pay at a rate of not less than one and
The National Labor Relations Act (NLRA), also known as the Wagner Act, was enacted in Congress in 1935 and became one of the most important legacies of the New Deal. Prior to the passage of the NLRA, employers had been free to spy on, interrogate, discipline, discharge, and blacklist union members. Reversing years of federal opposition, the statute guaranteed the right of employees to organize labor unions, to engage in collective bargaining, and to take part in strikes. The act also created a National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) to arbitrate deadlocked labor-management disputes, guarantee democratic union elections, and penalize unfair labor practices by employers. The law applied to all employees involved in the interstate
In our situation a complaint was never filed with the company letting us know the employee was unhappy or giving us the opportunity to respond to the situation. Therefore the company was unaware of creating an intolerable working condition for that employee and we did not intentionally do it. The company experienced growth so the production schedule changed for all employees. The
1. Assume that the state of Ohio passed a hazardous waste statute, seeking to protect the general public and workers. The state statute did not violate the Commerce Clause because it imposed no restriction on interstate commerce. Both the state statute and the federal Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA) established job safety standards and specified worker training and employer licensing, but the requirements differed. Which statute(s) Ohio corporations had to obey? Pick the best ANALYSISwer.
4.) Employee Compliance to the Code: The entire staff is expected to be compliant to the rules and regulations set forth by Company X. Reported accounts of non-compliance will lead to an internal investigation of both the accuser as well as the accused; disciplinary action will necessarily follow if company rules and regulations have not been adhered to or improperly dismissed. Granted that there are many different situations that could arise in which one would believe unethical behavior or misconduct transpired; therefore, it is suggested that first the issue in question is evaluated before presenting to one’s direct
In her book, Labor and Legality: An Ethnography of a Mexican Immigrant Network, Ruth Gomberg-Muñoz describes the lives of ten busboys, she referrs to as the Lions, living and working in the Chicago area. Gomberg-Muñoz provides an insight into the lives of these undocumented Mexican workers. They share their stories of crossing the border, the affects of their absence on family back in Mexico, and the daily struggles of living in a country without the benefits of citizenship. The Lions, as well as other undocumented Mexicans, have to face Americans stereotypes every day. Probably the biggest stereotype the Lions contend with is the belief that all Mexicans are hard workers.
The Knights of Labor represented the pinnacle of the up lift labor movement. They, at one time, had membership that numbered in the hundreds of thousands and nearly hit a million members. This organization was unique in its time because it espoused many of the ideals we hold today as statutory for an ethical and equitable society as well as employee and employer relationships. The Knights of Labor did not begrudge industry or capitalism, moreover they were less of a concern than the organization’s larger goal to protect and promote social equity in labor and society, for the common man.
The original assignment in this module dealt primarily with employers trying to find wrongdoing by employees. We now turn to the question of employee rights and employer obligations. Using at least two (2) of the foundational ethical theories studied in Module 2, you should answer the following questions. With each answer, you should discuss the issues and set forth and defend a clear position.
Facts of the case: Imagine you are an HR manager and your boss and owner of the company, Bill, comes to you suspecting his assistant, Paige, is stealing money from the company. Bill would like a polygraph test conducted to see if Paige is stealing from the company. He would also like you to conduct electronic surveillance on Paige’s work e-mail for anything suspicious.
When we are dealing with the employment relationship between employers and employees, ethical issues are most likely to emerge. Especially, if a manager fires a worker without a proper reason, critics will follow this employer’s behavior. In Patricia Werhane’s paper, “Employment at Will and Due Process”, discusses two doctrines which are Employment at Will (EAW) and Due Process. It also addresses some justifications and objections for EAW, and shows Werhane’s supportive view to Due Process. In contrast, EAW is defended by Richard Epstein in his article “In Defense of the Contract at Will”. In my paper, I will attempt to develop my argument in favor of Employment at Will that could improve flexibility and efficiency of
The aim of this early conciliation is to encourage as many cases as possible to settle ‘compromising’ the claim through a settlement agreement (previously called a ‘compromise agreement’) an agreement achieved through Acas conciliation (a ‘COT3’). Appendix 3 is an early conciliation Flow Chart (ACAS)
Case Example A: Elaine has sued Jerry because Jerry fired her. Elaine was on the job for two months.The job offer letter that Jerry had sent her mentioned the great career opportunities at the company and stated that her annual salary would be $30,000. The company is an employment‐at‐will employer. Elaine was given no reason for the termination. After the termination, Jerry hired a man named Kramer, who had less job experience and education than Elaine, for the position. Elaine has sued to get her job back.
Employment at will is essentially a rule that strips employees and employers from their rights to due process when it comes to workplace termination. Under this principle employers may let any person go for any reason at any time during their employment with or without just cause. Your stature at the company, time worked, personal conduct; none of those things have to be taken into consideration if you are let go. This means that if an employee does not agree with their grounds for termination, they have no legal right to fight it in a court of law. Employment at will also allows employees to quit their job at any time, again regardless of having just reasoning or not. The only case where an employment at will principle would not apply is if an employee, when hired, signed a document that stipulates other specific terms and conditions regarding grounds for termination/quitting. An important thing to make note of is just as if an employee had signed a contract, they are made aware before being brought on full time, that they are an “at will” employee. These soon to be employees are voluntarily signing that they abide by what is defined in the employment at will principle.