When Can You Sue Your Employer after Being Fired?
If you’re one of the lucky few, you have an employment contract in place, an agreement that ideally prevents your employer from terminating you without cause. But just because you have a valid employment agreement doesn’t mean you won’t find yourself the victim of wrongful termination or discharge.
If you don’t have anything specific in writing that protects your job, you may still be able to bring legal action against your employer after an inappropriate firing. Let’s look at Texas employment law and identify the situations where you can sue your employer after you’ve been let go.
How Do the “At-Will” Employment Laws in Texas Affect You Rights to Your Job?
For more than 130 years, Texas has been an at-will employment state. That means that either party to an employment relationship may terminate the arrangement at any time for any reason. There are, however, exceptions to that rule:
- An employer may not terminate you in violation of a valid employment contract
- An employer may not terminate you in violation of state or federal law
- An employer may not terminate you in violation of public policy
Discharge in Violation of an Enforceable Employment Contract
If you have a valid written employment contract in place, which sets forth the conditions under which you can be terminated, your employer must strictly comply with those requirements. If your employer violates the terms of the agreement, you can file a breach of contract claim and seek damages.
It’s not necessary, however, that your employment contract be in writing to be enforceable. While written contracts are typically easier to enforce, with terms that may typically be less subject to challenge or dispute, an oral employment agreement may be enforceable. As a general rule, the oral statements must be clear and definite, and there must be credible witnesses to the oral promises. Nonetheless, courts have held certain types of oral commitments to be enforceable:
- Oral promises of employment until retirement
- Oral promises of employment for life
- Oral promises of employment provided work meets expectations
- Oral promises that a person may only be terminated for cause
Furthermore, in the absence of a written document specifically identified as an employment contract, a court may find other writings that, taken together, imply an employment agreement. For example, if an employee policy manual specifies progressive discipline or indicates that a person will only be terminated for specific reasons, it may be used to support the existence of an employment agreement.
In addition, a person who voluntarily quits may have a claim for breach of contract under a theory of constructive termination. Such a situation occurs when an employer wrongfully makes an employee’s work environment so difficult that it compels the person to quit.
Termination in Violation of Law
A number of state and federal laws have been put in place to protect workers. An employee in Texas may file a lawsuit for wrongful discharge if an employer terminates him or her in violation of one of those statutes. Examples include:
- Termination in violation of state or federal civil rights laws
- Termination in violation of the Age Discrimination in Employment Act
- Termination in violation of the Americans With Disabilities Act
- Termination in Violation of the Pregnancy Discrimination Act
- Termination for filing a valid workers’ compensation claim
- Termination in violation of the Federal Whistleblowers Protection Act
Termination in Violation of Public Policy
This type of termination typically involves a firing for:
- Exercising a legal right
- Refusing to do something illegal on behalf of the employer
- Reporting illegal or unethical conduct by an employer
Contact the Proven Employment Law Attorneys at Bailey & Galyen
At the law office of Bailey & Galyen, we know the stress and anxiety you can experience when you have been wrongfully let go from your employment. We offer a free initial consultation to every client. To speak with a results-oriented lawyer about concerns about wrongful termination or discharge, Contact us by e-mail or 844-402-2992 call our offices at one of the convenient locations listed below. We will take your call 24 hours a day, seven days a week.