At-Will Employment

An employer does not need "good cause" to fire an at-will employee. In fact, the employee has very limited rights to fight their termination. Unless you have a policy that says you will only fire employees for "good cause" then the law automatically assumes all your employees are at-will. However, it is a good idea to have an employee sign an Employment Agreement that specifically states that their employment is “at-will.” You can find employment agreement forms for this purpose at RocketLawyer.com. Here are some of the illegal reasons that you CANNOT use to fire an employee (even if they are an at-will employee). You cannot fire an employee:

• Based on race, religious or gender discrimination.
• Based on the fact they complained about illegal activity, discrimination, harassment or safety violations on the job.
• For taking family or medical leave.
• For taking leave to serve in the military.
• For taking off work to vote or attend jury duty.