There are certain reasons that you can never use to fire an employee.
Both state and federal law forbid you from using certain reasons to fire an employee. These prohibitions apply regardless of whether the employee has a contract for employment with you or not.
Discrimination
Federal law makes it illegal for most employers to fire an employee because of the employee's race, gender, national origin, disability, religion or age (if the person is older than 40). Federal law also prohibits most employers from firing someone because that person is pregnant or because that person has recently given birth or because of any related medical conditions.Most states also have anti-discrimination laws that include all of the characteristics listed in the federal law. Many state laws, however, are broader than federal law. They include additional prohibitions (for example, prohibiting discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation or marital status) and they include a wider range of employers.
Retaliation
It is illegal for employers to fire employees for asserting their rights under the state and federal anti-discrimination laws described above.Refusal to Submit to a Lie Detector Test
The federal Employee Polygraph Protection Act prohibits most employers from terminating employees for refusing to take a lie detector test. Many state laws also set out strong prohibitions against using lie detector tests.Alien Status
The federal Immigration Reform and Control Act (IRCA) prohibits most employers from using an employee's alien status as a reason for terminating that employee so long as that employee is legally eligible to work in the United States.Complaining about OSHA Violations
The federal Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA) makes it illegal for employers to fire employees for complaining that work conditions fall short of complying with state or federal health and safety rules.Violations of Public Policy
Most states prohibit employers from firing an employee in violation of public policy -- that is, for reasons that most people would find morally or ethically wrong. Of course, morals and ethics can be relative things, so the law will vary from state to state. Some states may prohibit reasons that other states do not. In addition, the reason must be pretty bad to violate public policy. A reason that strikes most people as merely mean or unfair usually won't do it.Despite this relativity, most states agree that the following would violate public policy and would therefore be illegal:
- terminating an employee for refusing to commit an illegal act (such as refusing to falsify insurance claims)
- terminating an employee for complaining about your illegal conduct (such as your failure to pay minimum wage), and
- terminating an employee for exercising a legal right (such as voting or other political activity).
