Is it legal to fire an employee over these terms?
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Is it legal to fire an employee over these terms?
A family member was fired due to taking home old food that they were throwing out. She was told that she would be written up but instead came in the next day and was fired. She has never been reprimanded before. Is this legal?
Asked on November 14, 2016 under Employment Labor Law, New York
Answers:
M.D., Member, California and New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 7 years ago | Contributor
Did this person have a union agreement or employment contract that prohibted this action? Did it constitute some form of legally actionable discrimination? If not then she was an "at will" worker. This means that her employer could set the conditions of work much as it saw fit. This included when and why to fire her. In fact, it could have terminated her for any reason or no reason at all, with or without notice.
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