being fired?

What is the name of your state? Georgia

I had a friend tell me yesterday that if an employer wants to fire someone, they don't need a valid excuse. He said that the employer could do it just because they want too. Is this true?

Yes, it is.

In 49 out of 50 states, in the absence of a binding contract that says otherwise, employment is at-will. That means that the employee can quit at any time and for any reason, and the employer can fire him at any time and for any reason not prohibited by law, including no reason.

The exception is Montana. And even in Montana, the presumption of at-will exists during the employee's probabtionary period or, in the absence of a probationary period, the first six months of employment.

However, the fact is, NO employer fires an employee for no reason. It may not be a good reason. It may not be a reason the employee agrees with. The employee may not know what the reason is. But there is ALWAYS a reason. It is expensive to hire and train new employees, and work generally slows down during the transition period. NO employer is going to do that to his business without SOME reason.

Then couldn't an employer be sued for wrongful termination if it occured? Why do companies get sued for firing people in the first place?

Welcome to the world of the "protected class"

If you are a member of a "protected class" then you have more rights that other people. If you can prove that you were fired because of your race, religion, (possibly) sexual orientation, handicap, family status, pregnancy status, etc, then you have a chance of winning. See you state laws for more details.

There are also limited protections for whistleblowers against retaliatory firings.

That being said, if your employer is smart, they can fire you and win a wrongful termination lawsuit.

Did you see where I said an employer can fire you for any reason EXCEPT one prohibited by law?

It's when an employer fires you for a legally prohibited reason, that a wrongful term comes into play.

If the employer fires you because of your race, religion, national origin, gender, disability, pregnancy, or because you are over 40, that's a prohibited reason; you could file a wrongful termination suit.

If you were fired because you applied for or used a benefit or right that is protected by law, such as FMLA, workers comp, joining a union, reporting unsafe activity to OSHA or illegal activity to the appropriate outside agency, etc., that's a prohibited reason and you could file a wrongful term suit.

But if you are fired because your boss is a Yankees fan and you cheer for the Red Sox, that's NOT a prohibited reason and you could NOT sue for wrongful termination. If your boss fires you because you had a banana on your desk (yes, that's an honest to goodness, bona fide question I once answered) that's NOT a prohibited reason and you can't file a wrongful term suit.

And if your boss fires you and you can't figure out what the reason is, UNLESS you can make a good enough case for one of the reasons above that are prohibited, you STILL can't file a wrongful term suit. (Well, you can, but you won't win.)

Well that is just pretty sucky! I thought my friend was bs-ing me. I guess I was the one that got fooled. Not that i have been fired or anything, or even expecting it. Thanks!

Don't forget to read the last paragraph of my first post. While an employer can legally fire you for no reason, NO employer ever does it.

Agreed. Employers don't fire people on a whim or just for the fun of it. There's absolutely nothing fun about firing an employee, even one who has engaged in gross misconduct. There's always a reason, even if on occasion it's a poor reason.

stepped in it, the flip side of this situation is you have the right to walk away from a job anytime you feel like it, for any reason you wish or for no reason at all.