Legal Question in Employment Law in Texas

I requested an emergency leave of absence due to a family emergency (my mother in-law had a heart attic and died shortly after my arrival) out of the country. I had a meeting with my Manager and HR and we agreed on the following�..

I requested to be out of the office from January 15, 2010 through February 5, 2010 and to return to work on the following Monday February 8, 2010

It was agreed that I would deplete all 80 hrs of my 2010 vacation during my leave of absence. It was also agreed that I did not have any sick time and my Boss is allowing me to use the six days of sick leave pre-accrual for this leave of absence.

While I was away from the company, I have spoken to a friend of mine who also work for the same company who informed me that I had been replaced and I would not have a job when I return. When I returned on Monday February 8, 2010 I was given a notice of termination of employment effective the close of business Friday, February 5, 2010 with no reason given to me�..in fact, my replacement started work on February 1, 2010

Please let me know you thoughts and is this legal for the company to do what they did????


Asked on 4/03/10, 10:03 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys
Mark Dunn Mark D. Dunn

Your employer treated you unfairly, and fired you for no reason.

"Wrongful termination" cases in Texas are very, very tough. The law in Texas (generally) is that your employer can fire you for any reason or for no reason.

Exceptions are: where you are fired for racial or religious reasons ("Jeff, I just don't like working with Catholics"), or if you are fired because you are a woman. Or if you�re fired because of your national origin.

By the same token, if you QUIT your job and cause loss to the company (a lost sale, for instance), THEY can't sue YOU for damages. The �freedom to fire an employee� and the �freedom of the employee to quit� benefit both parties.

Think of a contract of employment as one that renews every day: I came to work today, so you have to pay me; if I don�t come to work tomorrow, you can�t sue me for breach of contract; and if I come to work tomorrow and you tell me I don�t have a job, I can�t file a lawsuit for breach of contract.

And a lawsuit for wrongful termination will NEVER settle. You'll be in court for years (if you can even find a lawyer to take your case).

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Answered on 4/09/10, 9:23 am


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