Legal Encounter 1:
Title VII of the Civil Rights Act covers every aspect of the employment process.
At Will Employment. Despite the legal doctrine, employers may not fire employees in anyway that discriminates, violates public policy or conflicts with written or implied promises they make regarding length of employment or grounds for termination. Discharging Pat with 30 days severance pay is not a viable solution. Upon employment to Newcorp Pat signed a document that stated that, if the job performance of an employee is unsatisfactory, the employee will be notified of the deficiency and placed on a Corrective Action Plan (CAP). If Newcorp wants to fire Pat they will need to place him on a CAP, at the end of the CAP if his performance is not satisfactory then he can be terminated. Newcorp through written promises guaranteed that Pat would be notified and placed on a CAP prior to being terminated from his employment.
Newcorp could have prevented the written contract by including in its policies and provisions a clear disclaimer stating that its policies and guidelines do not create a contractual right. If Newcorp had this provision written then they would be able to fire Pat “At Will” and he would not be able to file suit for wrongful termination.
Legal Encounter 2:
Sexual harassment is a form of sex discrimination that violates Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, and other verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature constitute sexual harassment. Sam clearly crossed the line with Paula. Paula continuously told Sam to stop, but Sam just suggested that her work might be suffering from her lack of interest. The fact the Sam stated that Paula’s work may be suffering, creates a stronger sexual harassment case for Paula. In the definition of sexual harassment it states that, the situation would unreasonably interfere with an individual's work performance. Sam is suggesting that Paula’s “current...