Updated 3/17/20

Many people especially in 2020 may find themselves the victim of wrongful termination. Getting fired from a job is probably one of the lower points that some people experience during their working lives. It’s a big difference from being laid off. Laying off workers is a simple matter of economics requiring a company to reduce the number of otherwise valuable employees. Being fired is a sign that you did not perform to the expectations of the employer. It can also be a red flag on your resume that can have a sizable effect on your future prospects.

But what if you were wrongfully terminated? Unfortunately, we do not live in a world where everything happens for valid, logical reasons. Sometimes people are fired from jobs on no reasonable grounds at all. However, sometimes the reasons motivating those decisions are downright malicious. Such as racism, sexism, religious discrimination, or even standing up for your rights. What do you do in such cases where you know you’re a victim of wrongful termination? Let’s find out.

Let’s Begin.

What Is Wrongful Termination?

It goes under a few different names, including wrongful dismissal. However in Ohio, we use “wrongful termination,” and it simply means that you have been fired without just cause. So first, let’s take a look at an acceptable dismissal and what makes you the victim of wrongful termination.

Of course, employees have an expectation of providing work to the company of a minimum level of acceptable quality. For example, someone is found to be exploiting expense accounts while traveling. Even sneaking family members into “stealth vacations” that they then expense to the company. This is clearly a breach of trust and professional obligations. A company would have every right to terminate that employee. Such as if an employee commits a crime, such as physically assaulting fellow employees or customers and clients.

Wrongful termination is what happens when just cause is not the real reason for deciding to fire someone. And it can be for any number of unprofessional, or unethical purposes. Discrimination is one of the most common causes of wrongful termination. Since it covers a broad spectrum of different prejudices and biases, but “retaliation” is another common cause.

Wrongful termination as retaliation is what happens when an employee who was the victim of harassment, discrimination, or other illegal workplace behavior speaks out, files a report, or is even known to be researching legal options. After they take actions against their harasser or abuser, that person may then be terminated by management for “rocking the boat.” This dismissal is illegal.

Your Options When Wrongfully Terminated

If you’re the victim of wrongful termination, the good news is, it is illegal. While it’s not a criminal violation that will be penalized with fines to court or jail time, this is grounds for a lawsuit based on wrongful termination. However, it is important to remember that a wrongful termination lawsuit is about compensation, not a substitution for a job.

While it’s true that in some cases, gross malfeasance or other extreme acts can merit something more exceptional, such as punitive damages, that is the exception and not the norm. In the majority of wrongful termination cases taken to court, you’ll be acting to secure financial compensation for your lost wages–you won’t be winning a lawsuit worth millions of dollars that will require you never have to work again. So do not view a wrongful termination lawsuit as a “golden ticket” out of employment and living off sizable winnings for the rest of your life, courtesy of the American legal system.

Getting Proof of Wrongful Termination

Here is there things will depend a lot on the circumstances of your work. Depending on your actions, and those of your company, you may have any number of ways to show an attorney that there’s a strong case you are a victim of wrongful termination at work.

Compiling Documents

If you’ve been fortunate enough to keep emails, text messages, printouts, or other “receipts” that prove malicious intent, these are some of the best ways go straight to court and win. For example, if you’ve received text messages from a superior asking for sexual favors, and you kept those text messages after you were fired for refusing, this is evidence.

If you have emails or you took screenshots of “group chat” software such as Slack chat channels that document harassment, discrimination, or even threats of termination, preserve them! Even documentation, such as your filing of a report for harassment that then immediately leads to you becoming the victim of wrongful termination, are all great forms of evidence.

Hiring & Firing Practices

If your place of work has hiring and termination practices with a discernible pattern, this is another way you can prove wrongful termination. For example, while it’s legal to terminate people for showing up late for work, if you and other people of color in your company were terminated for one—or a few—instances of tardiness, while other employees regularly show up late with only a verbal warning, this is another easily provable case of wrongful termination.

What’s in Your Contract?

The simplest possible way to prove that you were wrongfully terminated is if you have an employment contract that states what the grounds are for dismissal, and you haven’t violated any of the conditions. Though it may be to believe, sometimes employers simply ignore their own contracts—or forget about them—and wrongfully terminate employees without remembering they are violating their own contract. If they can’t prove you breached the agreement, the burden is on them, not you.

Quick Answers

What Is Wrongful Termination? Wrongful Termination simply means that you have been fired without just cause. Is Wrongful Termination Illegal? If you’re the victim of wrongful termination, the good news is, it is illegal. While it’s not a criminal violation that will be penalized with fines to court or jail time, this is grounds for a lawsuit based on wrongful termination.

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