Legal Question in Constitutional Law in Washington

Re: Free Seech

Washington is an �at will� employment state. Generally, an employer can terminate an employee without need for giving a reason so long as the firing does not violate public policy. Examples of public policy violations can include firings based solely on one�s age (if over 40 years old), race, or religious practices. If this termination was really based on the person asking for a raise, then I will tell you that it was probably legal. The state and federal constitutions do not come into play in such a situation.

Re: Free Seech

The First Amendment's guarantee of free speech is really just a restriction on the power of the government. Private entities are not banned from retaliating for speech they do not like. This is why employees can be fired for publicly disparaging their employer or revealing confidential information. Firing someone merely for seeking a raise seems awfully harsh, but the Constitution does not forbid it.