Common Signs You’ve Been Wrongfully Terminated

Getting up and going to work each morning is a blessing that millions of people enjoy. That blessing can be cut short without notice quite quickly. More and more employees are being fired in Los Angeles and throughout California for various reasons. Some of those reasons are legitimate, while others can be viewed as wrongful. If you’ve recently lost your job you might want to consider looking into whether or not you were wrongfully terminated. Our Los Angeles wrongful termination attorney would like to share the common signs you’ve been wrongfully terminated in this post.

Implied or Written Promises Violated

One of the most glaring signs out there that you’ve been wrongfully terminated is that implied or written promises were violated by your employer. When you accept to perform work for a set amount of pay, it is considered a contract. It doesn’t matter if the contract is written or unwritten. There’s usually no stipulation for the length of the contract, although if one is present and you are fired before that timeframe ends, you could have a wrongful termination case.

Public Policy was Violated

When an employer fires an employee it cannot be done in violation of any public policy that protects employees or other work statuses. For example, employees cannot be fired for getting pregnant, for having a baby, for caring for a sick loved one (outlined in the Family Medical Leave Act – FMLA), for voting, for serving on a jury or for serving in the armed forces (including National Guard).

Retaliation

Retaliation is another big warning sign that you were wrongfully terminated. This most often happens when you blow the whistle on a co-worker or your employer for illegal or unethical activities. Whistleblowers are protected under federal laws from retaliation but it doesn’t mean that the employer will still not fire you for speaking up about something illegal.

Defamation Occurred

If you are fired from your job and a reason is given, you will need to show some other form of illegal activity to prove wrongful termination. If the firing occurred while your employer was slandering you or making false claims about you, then you likely have a case for wrongful termination. When an employer makes false statements about an employee they fired it can hurt the person’s chances of finding new employment.

Breach of Fair Dealing and Good Faith

There are some unfair employment practices that employees are not allowed to fire employees using. Two of those are fair dealing and good faith. If there has been a breach of either of these, you could have a case for wrongful termination. For example, if your employer fails to pay you for the sales commission you earned, this is a breach of fair dealing. The same can be said if the employer created a reason simply to fire you or if you were misled about a potential promotion or about the wages you will be paid.

If any of the signs mentioned in this post are visible in your career it’s important for you to contact a Los Angeles wrongful termination attorney. Call Rager & Yoon – Employment Lawyers at 310-527-6994 to schedule a free consultation today.