Legal Question in Employment Law in Maryland

Re: management misunderstanding caused termination

These type of situations are complicated, and there are no easy answers. You start with the proposition that you are an employee at will, meaning that you can quit or be fired at any time, with or without reason or notice, as long as you do not have a contract that says otherwise (personal or labor union).

So, many times an employer can fire someone for a "wrong" reason, such as what happened here, because the person is at will.

However, when there is arguably a contract (it can be oral as it was here), then sometimes you can overcome the at-will problem. Your lawsuit would be for wrongful discharge, based on the contract.

Here, you would claim your contract was that you could leave on a particular day at a particular time. A contract needs offer, acceptance and consideration to be valid, and all three arguably exist here. You made the request, which is the offer, it was accepted by the supervisor, and the consideration (which, legally, is where one or both parties gain or give up a right) was that the company gave up the right to have you work overtime. So you do have a legitimate contract argument.

The problem is that it appears the company withdrew the "contract", but you left anyway against their wishes and they fired you. That does not necessarily destroy your case, but it complicates it, especially because these types of contract arguments are very difficult in the workplace. Managers and employees make agreements all the time and courts do not want to be in the middle of every single management decision.

Bottom line, then, you have a legitimate argument, but it would take more facts and research to see what kind of chance you would stand in court. Even then, you never know what a judge would do.

If there is any potential discrimination (race, sex, age, national origin, etc.), then that might make your case much stronger. For example, are white people routinely allowed to "leave on time," but not African Americans?

If you have not already tried to explain the situation to upper management, maybe a VP in charge of your dept. or HR, it might be worth a phone call. Just explain that you had permission, made plans, and had to leave, but management unfairly withdrew the permission at the last minute. You can explain some of the above, but companies often get very defensive if you start talking about lawsuits and legalities. Just stick to the "unfairness" of the matter.

You should apply for unemployment as well if you have not already.

Good luck.

Jeff Sheldon

Jeffrey L. Sheldon, Esquire

The Sheldon Law Firm

6932 Mayfair Road

Laurel, MD 20707

301.604.2497

fax: 301.776.3954

[email protected]

http://www.SheldonLawFirm.com

Disclaimer: This posting does not and is not intended to constitute legal advice. It is not confidential, nor is it privileged, and it does not create an attorney-client relationship. Please consult with an attorney for advice specific to the facts of your case.