Right-to-Work Laws don't mean your employer can fire you at any time for any reason (US Law)

"I live in a right-to-work state, so my employer can shitcan me for any reason".

-Linus K. Lemming

Sorry friends, that's at-will employment, *and you still can't be terminated for any reasons that are protected by law, but we're not here to discuss that. Right-to-work laws mean one thing: that non-union employees cannot be required to contribute to the cost of union representation.

The Taft-Hartley Act of 1947 prohibits "closed shops", where union membership is a condition of employment; however, union represented positions can still be required to contribute to the cost of that representation. Right-to-work laws prohibit that requirement, allowing employees in union represented positions who choose not to join the union to also choose whether or not they contribute to the union's costs, i.e., if they pay dues or not.

I see this mistake frequently and thought folks might want to know the correct information so they don't unintentionally perpetuate it.

Edit: updated to include link to info about at-will employment.

EncryptKeeper ,

Before anyone gets excited, 49 out of 50 states are at-will. So the purpose of this post isn’t about being mistaken about their ability to be shitcanned, only that they’re mistaken about the type of law that allows it.

Kolanaki ,
@Kolanaki@yiffit.net avatar

Even At-will employment doesn't mean they can fire you for any reason.

The reasons in which they couldn't are for protected classes like race, religion, etc. Though they can always just, you know, lie.

aleph ,
@aleph@lemm.ee avatar

Aye, there's the rub. If you can't prove it was discriminatory then you're SOL.

meco03211 ,

The great thing about bigots is most tend to be fucking stupid. Plenty of stories of people being explicitly told in writing they were being fired over something with title IX protections.

dohpaz42 ,
@dohpaz42@lemmy.world avatar

Yes, which is why you as the employee need to always have a “paper trail”. Make sure everything is written down, either on paper or electronically. After any phone call or in person meeting, make sure you follow up with an email that recaps what you discussed. BCC your personal email to make sure you retain a copy of the communications. Do not trust your employers to keep your email intact.

And never, ever, sign anything when you’re fired. Refuse any “exit interviews”; remember that anything you say can and will be held against you. No matter what your employer says, they absolutely cannot withhold your paycheck because you refuse to sign or interview when you lose your job.

It might also be worth looking up your state’s laws on recording conversations. For example, in North Carolina, you only need one person’s consent to record conversations. And since you’re a part of that conversation, your consent is all you need. So if you have to, record your “one-on-one meetings/phone calls”. But absolutely do not reveal that to your employers.

victorz ,

Are you saying they can't fire a priest for being Muslim? More that is interesting. 😁

Fredselfish ,
@Fredselfish@lemmy.world avatar

They can fire you even in the protected parts as well. Because at will places DON'T HAVE TO STATE THE REASON YOU WERE FIRED. I know plenty of people including myself who was fired even though I was supposed to be protected. But since they never stated reason for firing you then good luck proving it. At will you can fired for looking funny or manger just feels like it.

I live in shit hole states that are at will there is zero protections for employees in these states.

QuarterSwede ,
@QuarterSwede@lemmy.world avatar

I live in an at will employment state and have been a manager for quite some time. I’ve never seen an employee actually terminated for their protected status race, religion, etc. It’s always been because they had poor performance and/or attendance issues and didn’t want to get better. If you aren’t a solid average then it’s develop up or out. This isn’t my POV, this is the reality of the performance conversations I’ve been involved with. Personal accountability is a major problem these days. If you have none then you won’t have a job for long. The good news is that if you’re solid in those areas then you will be valuable to your employer. This is why so many military applicants get picked up. They have a basis for attendance and completing the mission.

Having said that, I’m sure you’re correct and discrimination does happen because their employer lied. I just think that it doesn’t happen quite as often as believed. Many poor performers I’ve known have outright lied about why they were actually terminated.

jjjalljs ,

I don't think individual anecdotes are that useful here. For example, a dude I worked with reported his old boss was extremely racist and made all sorts of hiring decisions based on race and stereotypes. Is that common? You'd have to find or do some studies to find out.

That's not even touching implicit bias and friends. Perhaps when the white guy is late it's traffic, but when the black guy is late it's because he's irresponsible. That kind of thinking happens all the time, to all of us.

Kayday ,

This isn’t my POV, this is the reality of the performance conversations I’ve been involved with.

Pick one
I upvoted your comment for being insightful, not trying to dismiss what you're saying. I get where you're coming from, and I agree that what you're saying is likely true for most businesses, but there are other people who's reality of conversations they have been involved with resulted in being fired unfairly.

Anticorp ,

Though they can always just, you know, lie.

Which they do. Quite often even. Shitty employers also employ shitty behaviors like consistently giving poor performance reviews regardless of actual performance. This gives them a paper trail to fire you on a whim, and it gives them an excuse to not give raises. "Just find a better job then!". Unfortunately these types of companies prey on the disadvantaged who typically don't have many options or the luxury of finding something better.

Ep1cFac3pa1m ,
@Ep1cFac3pa1m@lemmy.world avatar

“Right to leech” is more accurate, but harder to sell

sunzu ,

Who is down voting this info?

If you believe this is incorrect, please state it lol

SoleInvictus OP ,

I'm on blahaj so I don't see downvotes. I'm guessing people who (incorrectly) think my statement of the details of the law is my support for it.

doingthestuff ,

I downvoted because it doesn't give a good description of right-to-work and/or at-will employment, or include differences or the way the law applies in different areas. It's too broad of a post without enough specific relevant application to local law scenarios. It's opening a can of worms and could be misunderstood.

Pandantic ,
@Pandantic@midwest.social avatar

What if you contribute instead of or in addition to downvoting? That way, people understand the downvote and/or get more information and clarity.

StupidBrotherInLaw ,

GTFO of here, this is Reddit Lemmy. Anyone providing anything useful for free must be subjected to intensely unfair scrutiny or the whole system falls apart.

/s

But really, this place is increasingly turning into Reddit and it's depressing.

StupidBrotherInLaw ,

You're got to be kidding. The post is about right to work laws. It includes a summary of what that means, plus links for more information. So you downvoted because OP didn't compare and contrast two unrelated laws or write a dissertation on how right to work laws vary by state/county/city. Laws that by definition literally only do one thing. This shit is why people don't post more.

To highlight how ridiculous your comment is, I'll help OP out and provide what you found to be so lacking. I know this is going to make OP look pretty bad, so I'm sure they'll provide at least a partial refund of what you paid for their post.

At-will employment: you can be fired for anything not protected by law.

Right to work laws: employees in unionized workplaces cannot negotiate employment contracts which require that non union employees must pay union dues.

Compare: they are applied to employees
Contrast: neither does anything similar

For my next trick, I'll provide specific relevant application for local law scenarios by state.

Alabama: employees in unionized workplaces cannot negotiate employment contracts which require that non union employees must pay union dues

Arkansas: employees in unionized workplaces cannot negotiate employment contracts which require that non union employees must pay union dues

Georgia: employees in unionized workplaces cannot negotiate employment contracts which require that non union employees must pay union dues

Idaho: employees in unionized workplaces cannot negotiate employment contracts which require that non union employees must pay union dues

Indiana: employees in unionized workplaces cannot negotiate employment contracts which require that non union employees must pay union dues

Iowa: employees in unionized workplaces cannot negotiate employment contracts which require that non union employees must pay union dues

Kansas: employees in unionized workplaces cannot negotiate employment contracts which require that non union employees must pay union dues

Kentucky: employees in unionized workplaces cannot negotiate employment contracts which require that non union employees must pay union dues

Louisiana: employees in unionized workplaces cannot negotiate employment contracts which require that non union employees must pay union dues

Michigan: employees in unionized workplaces cannot negotiate employment contracts which require that non union employees must pay union dues

Mississippi: employees in unionized workplaces cannot negotiate employment contracts which require that non union employees must pay union dues

Nebraska: employees in unionized workplaces cannot negotiate employment contracts which require that non union employees must pay union dues

North Carolina: employees in unionized workplaces cannot negotiate employment contracts which require that non union employees must pay union dues

North Dakota: employees in unionized workplaces cannot negotiate employment contracts which require that non union employees must pay union dues

Oklahoma: employees in unionized workplaces cannot negotiate employment contracts which require that non union employees must pay union dues

South Carolina: employees in unionized workplaces cannot negotiate employment contracts which require that non union employees must pay union dues

South Dakota: employees in unionized workplaces cannot negotiate employment contracts which require that non union employees must pay union dues

Tennessee: employees in unionized workplaces cannot negotiate employment contracts which require that non union employees must pay union dues

Texas: employees in unionized workplaces cannot negotiate employment contracts which require that non union employees must pay union dues

Utah: employees in unionized workplaces cannot negotiate employment contracts which require that non union employees must pay union dues

Virginia: employees in unionized workplaces cannot negotiate employment contracts which require that non union employees must pay union dues

Washington: employees in unionized workplaces cannot negotiate employment contracts which require that non union employees must pay union dues

West Virginia: employees in unionized workplaces cannot negotiate employment contracts which require that non union employees must pay union dues

Wisconsin: employees in unionized workplaces cannot negotiate employment contracts which require that non union employees must pay union dues

Wyoming: employees in unionized workplaces cannot negotiate employment contracts which require that non union employees must pay union dues

sunzu ,

Thank you for your service.

So far we have yet to ID what is wrong with OP beyond that tdownvoters did not like the message or how it was delivered.

Modern_medicine_isnt ,

Why worry about the downvoters. This isn't reddit yet.

sunzu ,

on reddit you don't get to see the ratio and spytube removed downvote all together, i think you need an extension to view?

wonder why?

Seeing the ratio can be useful

SoleInvictus OP ,

I appreciate the intent but this is just what happens when you put yourself out on the Internet. Hell, on an old account I made a post about how to use a waffle sandwich maker with cheddar biscuit mix and it was 10% downvoted. I think it's some combination of valid (if unstated) criticism, accidental downvotes, and some people just being assholes.

I don't care, I'm just trying to provide what I think is useful information. If people have a problem but don't speak up about it, I can't do anything so I'm not going to worry about it. As another poster mentioned below, they're welcome to a full refund. I'll even triple it. Triple refund!

sunzu ,

All fair points, i like the vibe.

I look at down vote ratio for sentiment and to ID who else is commenting. With bot nets, paid shills and shit nowadays, got to keep an eye on what is going beyond what people are saying was more of my point about it.

Tinfoil on: for example anti labor positioned actor would down voted factually correct post like this merely because it benefits some wage slave. They act like this when they can't engage on the topic honestly.

tankie litmus test: Did Mao and Stalin do anything wrong... watch them work that one 🤣

SpikesOtherDog ,

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/At-will_employment

People are confusing it with at will employment.

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