Wrongful Termination Basics – Part 2

On Monday, I reviewed the basic contours of a wrongful termination claim.  I pointed out that, under state common law, you may have a wrongful termination claim against an employer if you were fired in violation of public policy, but that states vary on what public policy means in this context.  

Even within a state, the line that courts draw around public policy in wrongful termination cases can be less than bright.  In Virginia, for example, a state near and dear to me (we like to call it the “Commonwealth”), the line has been drawn so that:

• A former employee of an assisted living facility has a valid claim for wrongful termination if she was fired for answering the questions of a state investigator about the safety of the facility’s residents.  McFarland v. Virginia Retirement Servcs. of Chesterfield, LLC (E.D. Va. 2007).  [477 F. Supp. 2d 727]
• But, a former employee of a tractor supply company does not have a valid claim for wrongful termination if she was fired for pressing criminal charges against her manager for assault and battery.  Rowan v. Tractor Supply Co. (Va. 2002).  [263 Va. 209, 599 S.E.2d 709]
• Yet, a former employee does have a valid claim for wrongful termination if she was fired for refusing to engage in a sexual relationship with her boss (which, in Virginia, would violate criminal laws prohibiting fornication and lewd and lascivious cohabitation).  Mitchem v. Counts (Va. 2000).  [259 Va. 179, 523 S.E.2d 246]
• And, two former employees who also were shareholders of a bank do have a valid claim for wrongful termination if they were fired for exercising their rights as shareholders to oppose a merger proposed by the bank’s management.  Bowman v. State Bank of Keysville (Va. 1985).  [229 Va. 534, 331 S.E.2d 797]

Got that?

• The Basics
• Wrongful Termination