eConsultant - Sanjeev Narang wrote:

>[snip]
>
>Employees in the USA are divided into two classes:
>
>1. at-will employees
>2. just-cause employees
>
>An at-will employee in the USA can be terminated at
>any time, and for any reason - or no reason at all -
>and the courts will generally not intervene to protect
>the ex-employee from allegedly unfair treatment by the
>employer.
>
>Just cause employees can be dismissed from employment
>only for a good reason, such as poor job performance
>by the employee.
>
[snip]

In the real world, the distinction is not always crisp. Employers often
declare that they have an at-will workplace, but then engage in various
practices that can be argued to imply otherwise. That gives traction for
lawsuits. I am aware of at least one case involving Microsoft, in which
Microsoft argued it was strictly an at-will employer, yet the discharged
employee prevailed at trial. (I do not know if Microsoft appealed.)

-
Jane Hadley
Seattle, WA
jhadle at drizzle.com