Preview

Employment - At Will Doctrine

Powerful Essays
Open Document
Open Document
2035 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Employment - At Will Doctrine
Law and Ethics in the Business Environment
Terry Halbert | Elaine Inguli
Strayer University

Employment –At – Will Doctrine

Alicia Marie Bing
Law, Ethics & Corporate Governance – LEG 500
Dr. Demetrius Abraham
26 January 2014

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Title Page i Certification of Authorship ii
I. Abstract 5
II. Summarization: Employment-At-Will Doctrine 6
II a. Allowable Exceptions to Legally Fire 6
II b. Decision and Reasoning to Limit Liability and Impact Operations 7
III. Position Recommendation; Pros and Cons of Whistle blower Policy 9
IV. Fundamentals and Rationale of a Whistle Blower Policy 10

V. References 12

Abstract

In legal terms, during the later portion of the nineteenth century, “at will” termination, whether initiated by employer or employee, came into focus in the United States. Simply because a person desires to disassociate oneself with the business, whatever it is, for whatever reason, whenever one chooses, is fine and acceptable. This doctrine exists because it is presumed to exhibit and respect freedom from contract. It applies to the all of “U.S” except the state of Montana primarily because of the belief that employee and employer prefers employment relationship to be “At Will” instead of job security (NCSL, 2014).
“In the following pages I offer nothing more than simple facts, plain arguments and common sense; and have no other preliminaries to settle with the reader, other than that he will divest himself of prejudice and prepossession, and suffer his reason and his feelings to determine for themselves; that he will put on, or rather that he will not put off, the true character of a man, and generously enlarge his views beyond the present day—Thomas Paine, Common Sense” (Paine, 1779), (Grote, 1995). In other words we can debate claims and



References: Halbert, T. & Ingulli, E., (2012). Law and Ethics in the Business Environment (7th ed.). Doi: www.cengage.com Friedman, M. (1970, September 13). The social responsibility of business is to increase its profits. New York Times, Retrieved from http://www.whistleblower.org/blog/42-2012/2012 25 January 2014 Deloitte (2012) Grote, R. C. (1995). Discipline without Punishment. AMACOM, American Management Association, New York, NY. ISBN 0-8144-0276-3 NCSL

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Better Essays

    In the event that the case is filed, the defense may argue that the courts in Texas have always held that employment for an unspecified period may be ended at will. This argument is backed in the dissenting opinion in Aiello vs United Air Lines, Inc., 818 F.2d 1196 (1987) In this case, the judge quotes East line & RRR Co. Vs Scott and 72 Tex. 70,75 10, S.W. 99, 102 (1888). Yet another case cited in the Aiello vs United Air Lines, Inc., 818 F.2d 1196 (1987) case, is the Joachim v. A& T Information Sys., where the court ruled against the plaintiff following claims of discriminatory dismissal. The court in this case held that despite the provision that the company shall not terminate employment based on sexual preferences, the implied contract was not binding according to Texas law. However, Texas law provides that a disclaimer must be included in the handbook to ensure clarity regarding the nature of employment. This position, therefore, may be…

    • 1906 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Better Essays

    According to the Employment-at-will doctrine an employers can terminate their employees for any reason, however there are three exception to the rules. They are public-policy exception, implied-contract exception, and covenant-of-good-faith exception.…

    • 1143 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    What is the employment at-will doctrine in the United States, and what are some of the major exceptions to the doctrine? How might the employment at-will doctrine engender a legal but immoral discharge? (based on Legal Challenges text Chapter 21 and Business Ethics text Chapter 16, Parts I and II; tied to course competencies 1, 2, 3, and 4)…

    • 644 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    The employee seems to be unable to learn the computer applications that are basic to her job responsibilities, but, consistently “tells” her boss that she is “a good worker and a genius” and that he does not “appreciate her”. Even after a few months of training and support, she is unable to use the computer tools to be productive and efficient in completing the required tasks.…

    • 870 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Chap 21 outline law

    • 1140 Words
    • 5 Pages

    A. Is where either party may terminate the employment relationship at any time and for any reason, unless doing so would violate the provisions of an employment contract or a statute?…

    • 1140 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    References: Muhl, J. (2001) The employment-at-will doctrine: three major exceptions Retrieved April 13, 2012 from findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1153/is_1_124/ai_71704724…

    • 1254 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Wal-Mart Ethical Issue Paper

    • 3088 Words
    • 13 Pages

    This paper will obtain information about a researched issue that deals with business ethics. The paper will include a summary of the Article and issue. This paper will also touch on the following topics, what seems to be the basis of the issue, what ethical change, deficiency, or conflict brought it about, and how did the organizational leadership come into play. The paper will conclude by proposing a plan for revising the ethical standards and communication of these standards in order to resolve the ethical issue. “Chalace Epley Lowry started working at Wal-Mart Stores (WMT) as an administrative assistant in the communications department, on Jan. 2 of the year 2008; she went through a day-long orientation with a heavy emphasis on ethics. Chalace stated that, "We were told that even if we see something that has the appearance of something unethical we should report it”.…

    • 3088 Words
    • 13 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    The purpose of this essay is to discuss if Alex Rodriguez should be banned from baseball. I will present some arguments about the use of anabolic steroids in sports, and respond to these arguments by showing that the reason for banning steroids is not always as clear as it seems.…

    • 1167 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The at-will agreements allow employers ease of hiring as well as firing. For any employee who is underperforming, they are bound to face the sack, which may qualify them for unemployment insurance if there lacks a paper trail of disciplinary action. Conversely, employees can be terminated for no good reason or any virtually any reason. The longevity of one’s contract may depend on the mood of the supervisor. As such, employees can never be 100 percent of their job security. In most cases, workers may devise a plan for side incomes, which robs the organization of productivity. The ruling in Montgomery County Hospital Dist. v. Brown (1998) provided that an employer's general oral assurances that an worker would not be terminated without good cause does not modify the employee's at-will status, absent a definite stated intent to be bound not to terminate the employee except under…

    • 465 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    example, a Texas court recently found that an employee’s at-will status was modified and an…

    • 881 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    Employment at Will

    • 1705 Words
    • 7 Pages

    of the employment relationship with no notice and no concerns. To illustrate, an employer can…

    • 1705 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    References: Halbert, T., Ingulli, E., & Frey, M. A. (2015). Law and ethics in the business environment with readings from essentials of contract law. Mason, OH: Cengage Learning.…

    • 951 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    Ethics Class Case Study

    • 1044 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Halbert, T., & Ingulli, E. (2012). Law & ethics in the business environment. (7 ed.). Mason, Ohio: South-Western.…

    • 1044 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    Employment at Will

    • 969 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Public policy exceptions to at-will employment are recognized to varying degrees by many states. In the employment relationship, public policy violations normally involve employee termination for refusing to violate the law, exercising or fulfilling a legal right or duty, or disclosing law breaking by an employer. (Bennett-Alexander, 2007, pp. 28-31)…

    • 969 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    In association with at-will employment, employers cannot terminate an employee who has requested or is employing the benefits of this Act. (William H. Holley, 2009, p. 319)…

    • 2955 Words
    • 12 Pages
    Powerful Essays