What should I do if my employer terminates my employment?
Unfortunately the great majority of the time you have no recourse for being terminated. In California an employer is allowed to discipline, refuse to rehire, and even terminate employees for any reason, even stupid or erroneous ones. Employers can act on bad information without investigating the accuracy of it. They can make rash, unprofessional decisions. They can be rude and uncaring. They can even act contrary to their own practices and procedures for the most part. There is rarely a legal right to sue an employer for engaging in any of this kind of conduct. However, if you have been terminated wrongfully — meaning because you are a member of a protected class, or in retaliation for engaging in a protected activity — you should engage competent counsel immediately.
There are time limits involved in employment litigation that are unique to that area of law. Some of those limits include the requirement to file documents with governmental agencies within a defined period of time after the termination. While you can file those documents yourself, it is far better to have an attorney assist you with that process, as a failure to name persons or include facts or claims can be used later on to limit your possible recovery.
