At-Will Employment: Just Let It Go

In the United States, at-will employment is the bulwark of employment relationship. One estimate is that 60 percent of American workers are employed on an at-will basis [1], which according to common law, means that either the employer or the employee may terminate the employment relationship at any time, with or without cause. While this employment relationship has been recognized for over a century, it has deteriorated markedly in the past decades. The argument of this article is that, in actuality, employers have far less leeway in at-will situations than they believe. In addition, explicit at-will statements, which are meant to strengthen the employers’ situation, actually increase the likelihood that employees will feel unfairly treated. Based on these two arguments, this article suggests that employers should abandon the at-will doctrine and substitute a good faith dealing with employees. At-will employment has been the default employment relationship within the United States since the late 1800s. Under this doctrine, without a written employment contract or with an indefinite term of employment, either the employer or the employee may terminate the relationship for “good cause, bad cause, or no cause at all” [2]. While at first glance this appears to be an equal relationship, in actuality many people recognize that it is not a level playing field [3]. Being dismissed from employment has a far greater impact on an individual than a single individual’s resignation has on a company. Hence, several exceptions to the at-will employment doctrine have become widely recognized. These exceptions can be classified