AT WILL EMPLOYMENT

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California employees are presumed to be "at-will." This means that the employee is free to leave their jobs at any time and employers are likewise free to fire the employee at any time for any lawful reason—or even no reason at all. Under normal circumstances, both the employee and the employer have a right to end the employment relationship, unless doing so would be unlawful.

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EMPLOYERS CANNOT FIRE EMPLOYEES FOR UNLAWFUL REASONS

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Employers are prohibited from firing employees for unlawful reasons. These reasons include:

• Firing an employee because of their race, gender, disability, sexual orientation, religion, or other protected characteristic;

• Firing an employee for their political beliefs or affiliations;

• Firing an employee because the employee requested time off that they are legally-entitled to take;

• Firing an employee because the employee reported a violation of the law; or

• Firing an employee for reasons that violated public policy

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AN EMPLOYER'S WORDS OR ACTIONS MAY INDICATE THAT THE RELATIONSHIP IS NOT "AT WILL"

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Sometimes, employers may have contracts in place that indicate whether an employee is at-will or not. If a contract indicates that an employee must be fired "for cause," this means that an employer must have a good reason for terminating the employee. Such contracts may be made in writing, verbally, or even implied. Four factors, based on the totality of circumstances, may prove an implied agreement (1) employer’s personnel policies and practices; (2) employee’s longevity of service; (3) employer’s actions or communications reflecting assurances of continued employment; and (4) practices of the industry.

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