Employment Law Research Paper
In the recent past, employees of large, stable firms and workers with valuable skills had reason to believe their jobs were secure as long as they adhered to company policies and performed satisfactorily. Many retired from their positions with sizable pensions accrued over many years with an employer. As surely as 401(k) plans have replaced company pensions, longevity has been traded for high turnover by both firms determined to stay competitive and workers seeking greater opportunity. However, when the economy weakens, workers become less willing to job-hop; security is much more important than new challenges. Businesses often react to a downturn by trimming nonessential people from the payroll – employee cost is often the largest controllable company expense and the first place budget cuts are made. Companies that claim “our people are our greatest asset” can save substantially by reducing their “greatest asset” and splitting up the workload among those remaining.
Though the previous generation seems to have enjoyed greater job security than the present one1, in fact jobs in the United States have never been what many Americans would consider “secure.” Many believed then and many now think they cannot be fired except for a good reason, including poor performance and stealing, but in reality ours is an “at-will” country. Though the economic rationale for company terminations cited above would be unpleasant but acceptable to a large number of workers – after all, the firm has to make money to pay its employees – such a good reason for termination is not at all necessary in most situations. Read more…