Under the law, it is illegal for employers to fire, demote, harass, or otherwise “retaliate” against employees or applicants for filing or participating in a discrimination complaint, exercising their rights (ex. asking for reasonable accommodation for a disability), or for engaging in a protected activity relating to workplace safety and health.

There are several laws that prohibit retaliation against these brave employees or applicants who are generally referred to as whistleblowers. Despite the presence of these laws, there are still employers who willfully and maliciously retaliate against whistleblowers.

Take for example, a recent lawsuit filed by the former manager of Southern California Edison, who claimed he was fired for reporting safety concerns at the San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station to the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) inspector.

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Charlie Sheen is obviously a very troubled celebrity – with a reputation for drugs and alcohol abuse as well as domestic violence allegations – but it didn’t keep him from being television’s highest paid actor for his hit TV show, Two and a Half Men. Or at least it didn’t, until he was recently fired by CBS and Warner Brothers from his role.

Sheen, who’s earning $1.8 million per episode, has filed a $100 million lawsuit against Warner Bros. and the show’s creator/producer Chuck Lorre for wrongful termination. In his lawsuit, Sheen claims that he was terminated in violation of his contract and that he is seeking to recover unpaid wages as well as compensatory damages. In his complaint, he alleged that Lorre and Warner Bros. unilaterally decided not to pay him as well as the cast and crew for the remainder of the season. That further, Sheen not only sought to pursue payment for his compensation but as well as for the entire cast and crew who are supposed to be paid for 24 episodes.

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The Queen of Talk, Oprah Winfrey who incidentally also has a reputation for being a philanthropist, is being sued by a former employee who allegedly suffered in a “hostile work environment” and was wrongfully terminated.

Catherine Dunn, who has been working as an assistant in Oprah’s OWN Network since August 2008, claimed that her Multiple Sclerosis was aggravated because of the stress she experienced at work.

Allegedly, when she was forced to take a leave of absence because of stress, she came back to find out that her position has been given to a younger and non-disabled employee.

Dunn is suing OWN for wrongful termination and discrimination and is asking for an unspecified amount of damages.

A hostile work environment is usually based on discrimination. This occurs when an employee’s work performance is affected because of derogatory or unwelcome comments or conduct based on sex, race, disability or other legally protected characteristics. Aside from the victim, other employees can also suffer from an intimidating, hostile or offensive work environment.

Further, if Dunn’s allegations about getting fired because of her medical condition were correct, Oprah is clearly in violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Under this federal law, qualified individuals with disabilities are protected from employment discrimination – whether in hiring, giving of pay and firing.

Occasionally, because of their disability, some employees would ask for reasonable accommodation or take certain leaves which may be necessary in their condition. The ADA also mandates that employers provide reasonable accommodation to known physical or mental limitations of a qualified individual with a disability. However, if the accommodation would impose significant difficulty or expense on the part of the employer, such is not necessary.

Failure of the company or the employer to provide reasonable accommodation and to protect their disabled employee from discrimination, hostile work environment, and terminate a disabled employee is against the law. An aggrieved employee who was wrongfully terminated and/or discrimination may recover not just lost wages but also damages against the employee.

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Blonde bombshell and Desperate Housewife Nicolette Sheridan has dropped a huge bomb of her own. The actress has recently filed a lawsuit against the creator of the show, Marc Cherry and is suing him for assault and battery, gender violence as well as wrongful termination.

Sheridan alleged that Cherry was abusive towards the people working on the show and created a hostile working environment. She claimed that on September 24, 2008, she was physically assaulted by Cherry when she asked him something about the script.

The lawsuit described the attack as Sheridan getting hit by Cherry with his hand across her face and head. Although Cherry allegedly went to Sheridan after to ask for forgiveness, the actress reported the incident to ABC but no action was taken and the abuse only continued.

Teri Hatcher also allegedly complained about him and Cherry also said bad things about the actress. Aside from the physical assault charges, Sheridan claims that her character in the show was killed off unfairly hence her wrongful termination charges.

Sheridan is asking for damages worth more than $29 million.

While physical assault and gender violence is easier to identify, wrongful termination on the other hand, can be misunderstood by a lot of people. It is important to remember that while termination can be unfair but it doesn’t necessarily mean it is unlawful.

Often people would automatically label getting fired unfairly as wrongful termination but that is not always the case. Losing your job will always seem unfair but there are certain legal grounds that should be complied with before it is qualified as wrongful termination.

Under the law, the following are the grounds which would constitute wrongful termination:

• Terminating employee on the basis of discrimination such as nationality, religion, age, disability, gender and other protected characteristic

• Termination of employment as a form of sexual harassment

• Breach of oral and written employment agreements

• Firing an employee in retaliation for the employee’s having filed a complaint or claim against the employer, or participated in an investigation

In case they said grounds are present and wrongful termination is later on proven by the complainant, the fired employee may be awarded damages including lost wages and punitive wages. Also, the employee may also request to be reinstated to her former position.

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A wrongful termination case filed by a former aide against the co-founder of Broadcom Corporation billionaire Henry T. Nicholas III was recently dismissed by the Orange County Superior Court jury.

The suit, which was filed last February 2009, alleged the Katherine Nichols was fired from her job after she testified in a federal investigation involving Nicholas. She previously worked at The Management Co., which is partially owned by Nicholas from
June 2007 to June 2008. Subsequently, the charges against Nicholas for federal securities fraud and drug distribution were dropped.

The jury however, in a vote of nine to three, decided against Nichols’ wrongful termination claim. Neither will the ex-aide receive any damages for her lawsuit as the termination of her employment appeared not to be based on her involvement and testimony in the federal investigation but on her failure to show up for work for at least two months.

Oftentimes, when an employee is fired from his job, the employee would often feel that it’s unfair or that his rights have been abused. While bitterness is a natural reaction to termination, there are certain instances when an employee can be considered to be illegally dismissed.

An employee can rightfully file a wrongful termination claim against his employer if he was fired because of discrimination based on his/her sex, race, color, religion, and disability; in violation or breach of his employment contract; or in violation of public policy (i.e. availing of FMLA benefits).

While most employers would anchor their defenses on “at-will employment” thus terminating an employee can be done at will and for any reason, the above-mentioned reasons are illegal and would constitute wrongful termination.

Also, aside from discrimination, breach of contract, and violation of public policy, an employee can also be considered illegally dismissed if he/she was fired because of retaliation, in contravention of implied contract and breach of covenant of good faith and fair dealings.

But just like Nichols’ case, wrongful termination can be difficult to prove and oftentimes, it’s the employee’s word against the employer. Thus, it is very important to hire an expert employment attorney to assess your claim and handle your case. They would be able to determine, through documents and interviews in preparing your case, whether or not your claim would prosper. Otherwise, if there was too little groundwork later on in a trial, your whole case can collapse because of any evidence that might defeat your claim.

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