If you were illegally fired from your job and you live in New York, you can file a wrongful termination claim against your former employer. New York has strong worker protections in place that work with Federal worker protections to make sure that employers cannot wrongfully fire employees or force them to quit. Of course, you will need evidence to back up your claim, however, you could be entitled to damages from your employer if your suit is successful. Your employer also may face both Federal and state penalties for violating employment laws that protect workers.
1. Understand Your Rights
Sometimes people are not aware of just how many laws there are that protect workers. Your employer cannot fire you for an illegal reason or in retaliation for you holding them accountable for illegal actions like discrimination. This is protected by state laws like the New York Human Rights Law as well as Federal laws like:
- Title VII of the Civil Rights Act
- The Family Medical Leave Act
- Age Discrimination in Employment Act
- Americans With Disabilities Act
Among many others protect workers from illegal firing or being forced to quit.
2. Determine If Your Firing Was Illegal
Was it illegal for your employer to fire you? Many states have at-will employment laws which state that employers can fire someone at any time for any reason. New York is an at-will employment state except it does have an Implied Contract Exception statute. The Implied Contract Exception means that if you had reason to believe your employment would be ongoing, your firing may be illegal.
3. Document Everything
Evidence is absolutely essential when it comes to making and building a case for wrongful termination. You will need to show a pattern of actions by your employer that were discriminatory or illegal in nature in order to show that your firing was retaliatory or illegal. For example, if you were fired because you couldn’t work certain shifts, you would have to be able to present correspondence between you and your supervisor revealing that your schedule was changed to include shifts that you were not available for after you had informed your supervisor you weren’t available for those shifts and that the supervisor refused to allow you to work any other shifts before firing you due to “a lack of availability.” Videos, emails, chats, texts, and other evidence can make or break your case.
4. File In a Timely Manner
If you have been wrongfully terminated, you have a limited about of time to file a claim to protest your firing. Both the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) as well as the New York Department of Labor require that a wrongful termination complaint is filed within 180 days of your firing.
5. Speak With an A New York Wrongful Termination Lawyer
If you were fired illegally, you should talk to a New York employment lawyer to find out what evidence you need as well as how to go about filing a claim against your previous employer. Fill out the Free Case Evaluation form on this page now to get connected to an experienced NY employment law attorney that can help you.
Additional Resources
- Where Do I Report Wrongful Termination in New York?
- Breaking News! New York Has a New AI Bias Law. Here's everything you need to know.
- How to Know If You Were Illegally Fired
- New York Wrongful Termination Lawyer
- Is My Firing Illegal?
- How Do You Prove Wrongful Termination
- What is an Implied Contract in Employment?
- What Are Grounds For Termination In New York?
- 6 Situations Where Being Fired Might Actually Be Wrongful Termination
