QUESTION
I was terminated for a minor infraction w/out warning. I believe it is because I have a hig risk pregnancy. do I have a case?
Asked on May 04th, 2013 on Wrongful Termination - North Carolina
More details to this question:
I was manager and told I could not terminate employee who constantly violated company policy with giving a verbal warning and written warning first. However, I was terminated without wanrning over failure to clock out on time clock. I was salaried and was never told I had to clock out. I was not originbally hired for management, nor was I ever trained when they gave me the job. I clocked in and out because I was hired hourly until they offered me management and became salary. My evaluations were always great and now they terminated me due to a minor infraction. I am confident they fired me because of my high risk pregnancy. Now I cannot collect unemployment and will have difficulty finding employment due to my condition. This is so unjust. Had I not been pregnant they would have overlooked. How can I be terminated without any notification of a violation, yet I could not terminate an employee for may violations?
1 ANSWER
4 Awards
North Carolina is an employment-at-will state. Your employer can terminate you at any time for any reason. Employers are not required to follow progressive discipline policies. The bottom line is that there is nothing that can be done to stop an employer from firing you. The issue, though, is whether you can file a legal claim against the employer.
If your employer fired you because you are pregnant, then you would have a legal claim against the employer for pregnancy discrimination. You have a very short period of time to file a legal claim for pregnancy discrimination so you should consult with an experienced employment attorney as soon as possible.
I am a little confused by your statement that you cannot collect unemployment. Is that because you filed and the claim was denied by the unemployment adjudicator? If so, you should appeal it quickly and you will be given a hearing. Unless there is information about the situation that is not included in your statement, I do not see any reason that the Division of Employment Security would deny you unemployment.
Answered on May 04th, 2013 at 5:17 PM
I am an experienced attorney focusing on employment law in North Carolina and Tennessee. This post/response is not meant to constitute legal advice.