By Jack Tuckner, Esq.
This is Jack Tuckner, the employment lawyer.
Do you have a valid claim for wrongful discharge? Well, ask yourself these three questions for a start. Do you believe you were terminated because something about you that the law protects such as your race, color, ethnicity, national origin, age, disability, sex, which embodies and include sexual harassment, unequal pay and pregnancy discrimination. Is any of those reasons responsible for your termination? That’s number one.
Number two – did you complain? Did you oppose the discrimination? Did you have the opportunity to give your employer the chance to rectify it? And three, when were you fired in relation to the complaint? Was it three weeks later or was it two years later? If all of those boxes are checked, you feel you were discriminated against and treated differently based on a protected status, you complained about discrimination to your employer and they failed to take corrective action.
And three, the firing occurred pretty close in time, you know, within days, weeks, or months to your protected complaint or protected activity, such as taking a disability or maternity leave.
Now that doesn’t mean that you won’t have a claim or valid claim for wrongful discharge, if you don’t check all those boxes. If you’re fired during your maternity leave, if you’re 65 years old and are fired and replaced by a 29 year old, you may have a valid claim for wrongful discharge anyway, but it’s usually a complicated brew. So if you’re uncertain, whether you have a valid claim for wrongful dismissal or discharge, which typically means discrimination or retaliation for your protected civil rights complaint, give us a call – Tuckner, Sipser, Weinstock and Sipser – this is our business advancing employee civil rights, and we’ll consult with you at no charge. And in total confidence.
Shout!