Valerie M. Roach
Joe’s boss became increasingly irritated after Joe injured himself on the job and began to take time off for physical therapy, but the boss didn’t want to fire him. After all, he would have to pay unemployment and maybe face a lawsuit on top of it. So, in an effort to get Joe to quit, he scheduled daily meetings at 7 a.m., told Joe he would have to cancel his planned vacation and reassigned him to a position where he had to work every other Saturday even though the boss knew Joe coached Little League.
Joe said, “I quit!” when he left the office for the last time, but filed a lawsuit for wrongful termination in violation of public policy anyway. He claimed that the employer had acted in ways to harass him and to cause him to quit, and that he had not resigned, but was actually fired. Legally, this claim is known as a “constructive discharge.”
Constructive discharge occurs when the employer’s conduct effectively forces an employee to resign. Although the employee may say, “I quit,” the employment relationship is actually severed involuntarily by the employer’s acts, against the employee’s will. As a result, a constructive discharge is legally regarded as a firing rather than a resignation.
Not every employee who feels harassed or pressured at work will have a case for constructive discharge. To give grounds for constructive discharge, the employee must show three things.
First, the employee must prove that the conditions of employment were intolerable and aggravated. Usually the employee must show a continuous pattern of harassment or abuse, although a single instance of employer misconduct may be enough if it is really out of line.
Second, the employee must prove that a reasonable person faced with the situation of the complaining employee would have no reasonable alternative but to quit the job.
Finally, the employee must prove that the employer either intentionally created or knowingly permitted the intolerable working conditions that caused the resignation.
Depending on the facts, an employee who shows these three things may be able to transform “I quit!” into “You’re fired!” for a wrongful termination claim. The employment lawyers at Walsh & Roach LLP have experience in bringing and defending lawsuits based on claims of constructive discharge. Call 831-728-3500 for advice.