News & Events
Wrongful Termination/Discharge
Wrongful termination, or wrongful discharge, refers to the dismissal of an employee from a workplace which runs contrary to established laws, or which violates a contractual agreement upon which the employee was hired. Even when there was no written agreement when an employee was hired, there could still be a case made for wrongful termination if the nature of employment constituted a de facto contract in the company's legal jurisdiction.
While there can be many grounds for an individual to claim an instance of unfair termination, such as workplace discrimination, retaliation on the part of an employer, or a breach of employment contract by the dismissal, one of the most common reasons for wrongful discharge lawsuits to be filed is because of personal injury. Cases such as these can all fall under the category of personal injury, especially if they are due to conditions which were actually caused by the employer:
- *Mental Illness
- *Long-Term Ill Health
- *Intermittent Ill Health
- *Disability Claims
- *Failure to Consult
However, with all of these factors, there are caveats to take note of, since dismissal with one of these conditions may not always mean that there was wrongful termination involved. If the employer or the workplace environment caused the injury or illness which later led to the dismissal of the employee, there could usually be a strong case made for wrongful discharge, especially if the employer was reluctant to offer sick pay, disability pay, or make allowances in an employee's work schedule for sick time or doctor's visits, for example. In the case of a failure to consult, this will usually be ruled in the employee's favor as wrongful discharge since it is unreasonable for an employer to dismiss an employee following a personal injury or disability case without consulting the employee to see how they may go about accommodating them while they heal.
While many personal injury cases are successfully ruled as wrongful discharge, the employer may try to make the case that they granted the employee reasonable concessions before the dismissal occurred, so consulting a lawyer who specializes in personal injury law can be a great asset for someone considering filing a wrongful termination lawsuit. This will ensure that one gets the greatest amount of input as to whether they have a valid personal injury case, and inform them what to expect during the legal process, thus ensuring the greatest degree of success.
