Legal Question in Employment Law in Pennsylvania
i was terminated from my job
i worked for weis markets for 9 months deli department, loved my job, i was terminated because of conviction 15 years ago, can they do this. new deli manager disliked me for unknown reasons, she had me investigated, and i was called into the office, and i was told i was terminated because of conviction in 1992. can they do this, i would like my job back, can you help me please?
2 Answers from Attorneys
Re: i was terminated from my job
Yes.
Re: i was terminated from my job
You asked about employment termination because of prior conviction.
While my colleagues answer is correct, it does not provide you an answer. Employers are free to discriminate against at-will employees for any reason or no reason as long as there is no unlawful discriminatory intent or effect.
Generally ex-convicts are not a protected class. Protected classes are those that have been afforded protection at law, such as disability, ethnicity,gender, race, religion, marital status, age, and so on. If you are a member of a protected class and that was the reason that the investigation was begun then you may have a claim. But damages would be limited because the actual reason for termination is legitimate.
If you were represented by a union you also may have arguments for improper termination.
You should call the employer's compliance department and file a formal complaint. You may also wish to speak with an attorney. There is a very, very small chance you may be successful on a claim but you would need to pay for the prosecution of such a claim beforehand.
It may be more cost effective to hire an attorney to either have the conviction sealed or expunged if this is appropriate.
Regards,
Roger