We meet with potential clients who feel that they have been wrongfully terminated from their employment. A recent example is an employee who had been fired from an eight year long job due to some things that she had said that were misconstrued by her employer. We were unable to help her due to the employment-at-will doctrine.

Missouri is an at-will employment state. That means that an employer can fire an employee for any reason, as long as the reason is not illegal, and cannot be held liable for a wrongful termination. The employment-at-will doctrine allows an employer to fire an employee at any time even if the employee has been exemplary and has not received any prior warnings. Further, the employer is not required to give any notice before firing an employee. Likewise, an at-will employee may quit employment at any time, without notice. There are several exceptions to the employment-at-will doctrine. An employer cannot fire an employee for such activities as reporting illegal conduct by the employer, refusing to perform an illegal act, filing a workers’ compensation claim, or serving on a jury, to name a few.

Social media and employment-at-will is becoming a hot button issue for employers and employees alike. Recently, we have seen news stories regarding bus drivers and school teachers who have been fired for the content of their Facebook posts. Increasingly, employers are looking at social media to help in making hiring and firing decisions. Here are some tips to help you when posting to social media sites:

1. Consider the risks and rewards of what you are about to post. Content and online conduct that shows an existing or prospective employer that you are abusive toward co-workers or lack discretion in what you post online may negatively impact your job situation.

2. Be respectful of your co-workers and employer online. If you decide to post complaints or criticism, do so in a way that avoids using statements, pictures or video that could be reasonable understood to be malicious, obscene, threatening or offensive. Avoid making comments about customers or clients.

3. Don’t intentionally seek to harm someone’s reputation or post content that is discriminatory on the basis of race, sex, disability, religion or other status protected by law or company policy.

4. Be honest and accurate when posting and if you have made a mistake, correct it quickly.

5. Don’t post content that is inappropriate for your position, especially if you work with minor children.

Common sense goes a long way in this area. If you think it might be embarrassing or cause you problems down the road, don’t post it. If you have concerns about a job loss, please feel free to contact us to discuss your situation.

(Photo courtesy of Flickr user Jason A. Howie)