Was I wrongfully terminated?

Jurisdiction: 

Area of Law: 

Question: 

I have worked as a Title Officer with this company for nearly nine years. On Thursday, May 24th I was called into my manager's office and told I was doing a great job and was given a raise. I was also told at that time that he requested my raise be retroactive to my May paycheck vs. being effective on my next paycheck as per the usual. On Friday, June 2nd I was again called into the manager's office and told that I was being prewarned that there would be a meeting in my department on Monday where changes were being implemented and he didn't want me griping and complaining about the changes. He also told me he was tired of the office moral and the conflicts between my department and the escrow department. He said I often had snide comments and complained all the time. He was so angry when he was telling me this I actually asked him if he was pissed at me, because I could feel how angry he was at me. I told him I was very confused about this conversation and that I didn't believe I complained or had negative comments any more or any more often than any other employee in the office. By the end of the conversation he told me ask a long time employee, he just wanted me to embrace the changes with a positive attitude and help the other people in the office be more positive. I told him I would. Over the proceeding weekend, I found out from a coworker that an Escrow Officer in our office had received an offer from a competitor for a huge amount of money to come work for them. I also learned that she had been in the manager's office the day before my meeting with him indicating she wouldn't even have considered this offer if things were better between her department and mine. I've also been told that she offered my manager the opportunity to match their offer. (I cannot be sure about that part as I was obviously not in the office with them). This particular Escrow Officer has apparently had a problem with my not talking or being friendly with her over the last couple months. This is due to her consistently going over my head to dispute items I've shown on my title reports. However, there were no arguments or crosswords between her and I. Today I was working at my desk as normal when I was called into the manager's office where he told me "this was the hardest thing hes ever had to do as manager, and that the company was going a new direction and they didn't need me any longer". I asked what was happening, was I being fired or laid off or what? He then said again the company is going a new direction and my services were no longer needed. I inquired if I could know why. To which he answered "I don't want to get into it". He said he would be adding a severance to my last paycheck and he would not dispute unemployment. The Assistant Manager who was in the room with us mentioned I would be receiving my check tomorrow. At that point I left his office and on the way out I asked the Assistant Manager if I could delete my personal emails. He said I could. I sat at my desk and deleted my emails and cleaned out my desk. Then I left. I truly enjoyed working for this company. I loved the people I worked with and the people I worked for. I hate the idea of making things hard on them, but I do feel like I was wronged in this situation. The Escrow Officer who complained about me is apparently staying at this company. I should also mention that she is the top producer in our office and if she left, she would be taking a large portion of our customers with her. I feel that is why I was terminated. The company stood to lose a lot less money getting rid of me rather than her. Mainly, I just want to know if I was wrongfully terminated. Thank you

Selected Answer: 

DakotaLegal's picture

Luckily for you, Oregon

Luckily for you, Oregon actually has some the of the country’s most progressive rules and laws for protecting employees from wrongful discharge. Oregon also has a “common law” rule against wrongful discharge. Having said that, it’s not easy to prove wrongful discharge without three things: (1) a fairly detailed history of discrimination or unlawful acts that is against a law, public policy, or contract, (2) specific evidence of a hostile work place, or (3) direct witness testimony.
 
To some extent, this means getting a lawyer who knows the in’s and out’s of Oregon’s laws. You should try to get a free consultation, with an attorney who specializes in wrongful worker discharge cases. Try the Oregon Bar Association’s referral system… http://www.osbar.org/public/ris/ris.html. To a great extent, your ability to find a lawyer who is willing to take the case strictly on a contingency basis (you only pay if they win) will measure whether you have the facts supporting a claim of wrongful discharge. You may also be eligible for sliding-fee legal help: http://www.law help.org /program/694/index.cfm. If you don’t want to take that step of a possible law suit, then try the Oregon division that enforces workplace “fairness,” Oregon’s BOLI… http://www.workplace fairness.org/agencies_OR.
 


  • The Problem: Oregon Is An At-Will Employment State

 
An employer in an at-will state (that’s 49 of 50 states) does not usually have to give specific reasons for firing someone. Oregon’s common law rule is that employment at-will can be terminated, by either party, at any time, and for any reason. 12 ALR4th 544 (1982). For your case to qualify as an exception to at-will rules, Oregon courts have said the facts “must be exceptional.” Your being discharged must be against a clear mandate of public policy, such as anti-discrimination laws. Courts have also noted that society may favor “honesty in business,” BUT this is not enough to prevent employment at-will.
 
Here’s an Oregon case, describing the law about wrongful discharge. The case is interesting since the employee actually won in the trial, but lost on appeal: http://www.leagle.com/xmlResult.aspx?page =4&xmldoc =1983888670 P2d218_1867.xml&docbase=CSLWAR1-1950-1985&SizeDisp=7. The appeals court there found the employee had not proven an exception to the general rule allowing at-will termination should apply. The case also has something important in common with your situation, since there were serious allegations about the manager’s honesty regarding the reason for the employee’s discharge.
 

  • Exceptions In Oregon’s At-Will Rule

 
So it is hard to get over the at-will employment rule. Having said that, there might be specific facts, setting your situation outside the at-will rules. The four major common law exceptions in Oregon are: (1) a public policy, (2) an implied or express contract, (3) a law or statute and (4) an implied covenant of good faith. Here’s a useful chart showing Oregon’s rules: http://www.ncsl.org/issues-research/labor/at-will-employment-overview.aspx.
 
Here are two examples of things to look for in your Employee Handbook (I assume you had one): they are common examples of language used to allow at-will discharge.
 
Example 1: “We reserve the right to employ at will. This means that employment can be terminated, with or without cause, and with or without notice, at any time, at the option of the company or at the option of the employee.”
Example 2: “These policies are not to be construed as a contract of employment. We expressly reserve the right to change, add to, or delete policies at any time. Changes will be effective on dates determined by the company, and you may not rely on policies that have been superseded. No supervisor or manager other than our CEO has authority to alter the policies, and all such changes must be in writing.”
 
Not having these terms in your Handbook can help your case for wrongful discharge.
 

  • …And, About Taking Unemployment

 
Your boss had said they “wouldn’t oppose” your filing for unemployment. Actually, this kind of promise should always raise a red flag for a fired employee. The reason this seemingly “kind” offer is suspicious is because the odds are that you would have gotten unemployment even if they tried to fight it.
 
Instead of being a good thing, being encouraged by an ex-employer to accept unemployment compensation can have the result of undercutting your ability to file a private law suit against the employer. Look at page 9 of this document for some insights: http://www.filinginoregon.com/pages/forms/business/guides/employer_guide.pdf.

All Comments

DakotaLegal's picture

Luckily for you, Oregon

Luckily for you, Oregon actually has some the of the country’s most progressive rules and laws for protecting employees from wrongful discharge. Oregon also has a “common law” rule against wrongful discharge. Having said that, it’s not easy to prove wrongful discharge without three things: (1) a fairly detailed history of discrimination or unlawful acts that is against a law, public policy, or contract, (2) specific evidence of a hostile work place, or (3) direct witness testimony.
 
To some extent, this means getting a lawyer who knows the in’s and out’s of Oregon’s laws. You should try to get a free consultation, with an attorney who specializes in wrongful worker discharge cases. Try the Oregon Bar Association’s referral system… http://www.osbar.org/public/ris/ris.html. To a great extent, your ability to find a lawyer who is willing to take the case strictly on a contingency basis (you only pay if they win) will measure whether you have the facts supporting a claim of wrongful discharge. You may also be eligible for sliding-fee legal help: http://www.law help.org /program/694/index.cfm. If you don’t want to take that step of a possible law suit, then try the Oregon division that enforces workplace “fairness,” Oregon’s BOLI… http://www.workplace fairness.org/agencies_OR.
 


  • The Problem: Oregon Is An At-Will Employment State

 
An employer in an at-will state (that’s 49 of 50 states) does not usually have to give specific reasons for firing someone. Oregon’s common law rule is that employment at-will can be terminated, by either party, at any time, and for any reason. 12 ALR4th 544 (1982). For your case to qualify as an exception to at-will rules, Oregon courts have said the facts “must be exceptional.” Your being discharged must be against a clear mandate of public policy, such as anti-discrimination laws. Courts have also noted that society may favor “honesty in business,” BUT this is not enough to prevent employment at-will.
 
Here’s an Oregon case, describing the law about wrongful discharge. The case is interesting since the employee actually won in the trial, but lost on appeal: http://www.leagle.com/xmlResult.aspx?page =4&xmldoc =1983888670 P2d218_1867.xml&docbase=CSLWAR1-1950-1985&SizeDisp=7. The appeals court there found the employee had not proven an exception to the general rule allowing at-will termination should apply. The case also has something important in common with your situation, since there were serious allegations about the manager’s honesty regarding the reason for the employee’s discharge.
 

  • Exceptions In Oregon’s At-Will Rule

 
So it is hard to get over the at-will employment rule. Having said that, there might be specific facts, setting your situation outside the at-will rules. The four major common law exceptions in Oregon are: (1) a public policy, (2) an implied or express contract, (3) a law or statute and (4) an implied covenant of good faith. Here’s a useful chart showing Oregon’s rules: http://www.ncsl.org/issues-research/labor/at-will-employment-overview.aspx.
 
Here are two examples of things to look for in your Employee Handbook (I assume you had one): they are common examples of language used to allow at-will discharge.
 
Example 1: “We reserve the right to employ at will. This means that employment can be terminated, with or without cause, and with or without notice, at any time, at the option of the company or at the option of the employee.”
Example 2: “These policies are not to be construed as a contract of employment. We expressly reserve the right to change, add to, or delete policies at any time. Changes will be effective on dates determined by the company, and you may not rely on policies that have been superseded. No supervisor or manager other than our CEO has authority to alter the policies, and all such changes must be in writing.”
 
Not having these terms in your Handbook can help your case for wrongful discharge.
 

  • …And, About Taking Unemployment

 
Your boss had said they “wouldn’t oppose” your filing for unemployment. Actually, this kind of promise should always raise a red flag for a fired employee. The reason this seemingly “kind” offer is suspicious is because the odds are that you would have gotten unemployment even if they tried to fight it.
 
Instead of being a good thing, being encouraged by an ex-employer to accept unemployment compensation can have the result of undercutting your ability to file a private law suit against the employer. Look at page 9 of this document for some insights: http://www.filinginoregon.com/pages/forms/business/guides/employer_guide.pdf.