Employment at Will in Texas Has Exceptions

There are some exceptions to employment at will in Texas. Knowing what they are may come in handy.

“In my line of work I get phone calls all the time from people that have just been let go from their jobs. The first question they always ask is if the employer has the right to do that. Unfortunately, in a lot of cases, yes, the employer can do that and does,” explained Seth Wilburn, of the Gomez Law Group, a Dallas employment lawyer and Dallas business lawyer.

Employers can fire people in Texas because they can. That’s because Texas is known as an “employment at will” state. This isn’t great news for a lot of people, but it is what it is. At will employment means that unless there is an employment contract, you may be fired at any time. On the other hand, you may quit anytime too with or without a reason. This provision cuts both ways, but as with a lot of things dealing with the law, there are some exceptions.

For example, no one may be fired for refusing to do something illegal. If an employee refuses to sell what they know to be a defective product to someone, knowing it will cause them harm, they can’t lose their job. While it might not be a grand place to work after that incident, their job is still protected. “No one in Texas can be let go because of their age either. There’s a Federal law that says it’s illegal to discriminate against anyone if they’re over 39-years old,” added Wilburn, a Dallas employment lawyer and Dallas business lawyer.

One of the other more interesting exceptions deals with, of all things, refusing to take a lie detector test. “There is actually a Federal law that prohibits an employer from asking a worker or prospective employee to take a lie detector test, which doesn’t apply if the request is related to an investigation into a theft, etc.,” commented Wilburn. If nothing else, the law in this area is rather interesting and challenging.

Are there instances where existing laws conflict with one another? “Oh you bet there are and in cases like that we try to give a reasonably probable reply; a good news versus bad news scenario. Let’s take a quick example. If someone was fired for voicing their opinion about something, then that may have violated their freedom of speech. On the other hand, if that opinion dealt with racial issues and was directed at a person of color, the employer has every right to fire the person,” concluded Wilburn.

For those who were let go from their employment and don’t know why, it’s a good idea to speak to a skilled Dallas employment lawyer and Dallas business lawyer.

Gomez Law Group is a Dallas employment lawyer and Dallas business lawyer. To learn more, visit http://www.gomezlawyers.com.

Tags: Dallas business attorney, Dallas business lawyer, Dallas employment attorney, Dallas employment lawyer

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