Q: Hostile work environment and wrongful termination concerns in Missouri
I am seeking legal advice regarding a hostile work environment and potential wrongful termination at my job in Missouri. I work in the vehicle warranty/service contracts industry for a medium-sized company with about 200 employees. Over the past several months, I have documented multiple instances of harassment and verbal abuse from my manager, including aggressive language and insults like asking if I was "special" after a misunderstanding. There's no HR department that I am aware of, which my manager jokingly confirmed. I also have a recorded phone call where my manager threatened my job if I continued with standard customer communication practices, which I believe to be an unfair policy. I have screenshots of these inappropriate messages and a timeline of the harassment. My coworker, Sam, is aware of these incidents as we discuss my experiences often.
A: You’ve not articulated a legally cognizable claim. It is not unlawful for an employer to be mean, insulting, rude, and unfair. The actions need to be on account of your race, religion, national origin, etc.
Robert Grant Pennell agrees with this answer
A:
Mr. Eisenberg is correct. "Hostile work environment" and "wrongful termination" are legal terms of art that don’t mean what most laypersons assume they mean. A boss can legally treat you badly, unfairly, and harass you without creating a "hostile work environment" from a legal standpoint UNLESS the boss is doing so BECAUSE of your race, sex, age (40+), religion, national origin, or disability - the protected classes. Similarly, I can discharge you for any reason, even if I’m wrong about the facts. For example, if I fire you because I think you stole, that is perfectly legal, even if the video reveals that someone else committed the theft or it turns out there was no theft at all. It is only a wrongful termination if the termination is based on one of the following:
• Illegal discrimination based on the employee being a member of a protected class (race, age (40+), sex, religion, national origin, or disability); or
• Retaliation for an employee either a) asserting a legal right (FMLA, ADA, FLSA, Worker’s Compensation, etc.), or b) whistleblowing by informing the legal authorities of illegal conduct by the employer.
Unless you are a union employee or a highly paid executive with a written employment contract, you are an at-will employee and, as such, can be discharged at any time and for any reason, or even no reason at all. The only thing that an employer may not do is make employment decisions based upon you being a member of a protected class. The protected classes are race, age (40+), sex, religion, national origin, or disability. Treating you differently than other employees isn't legally prohibited unless it is based on you being a protected class member. That is what is meant by illegal discrimination. To clarify, an employer can discriminate against its employees as much as it chooses on any basis EXCEPT the six (6) classes I already mentioned. I can legally discriminate against you because you are a Cubs fan, your taste in music, how you perform your job duties, etc. What I cannot do is discriminate against you because of your sex, race, age (40+), religion, national origin, or disability.
If you have reason to believe that you are being treated that way based on being a member of a protected class or that you were retaliated against for asserting a legal right or whistleblowing, then you should schedule an appointment with a local employment attorney who primarily represents employees to discuss your case fully. It is important to act promptly because these cases have very short, strictly enforced timeframes. Failure to meet those timeframes will preclude you from being able to proceed with your case. Some plaintiff employment attorneys take these cases on a contingent fee basis, meaning you will have no upfront out-of-pocket expenses.
Best of luck to you.
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