Human Resource Blog

After hours

Can an employer fire an employee for actions which occur outside of the workplace?

The short answer to this question is: Usually, yes. There are a variety of circumstances where it is legal and even a good idea for an employer to terminate a worker for actions that occurred away from work.

First of all, most US states are employment at will states. That simply means that an employer can fire any employee, at any time, with or without notice. The employer can fire the worker for any reason or without any reason — with a few notable limits. Federal law prohibits discrimination against workers based on race, religion, color, national origin, sex, age (over 40), disability or pregnancy. So an employer could not fire a worker for attending Catholic church services (or any church services, for that matter.) But the employer could fire the worker for almost any reason not specifically prohibited.

Many companies have written policies that they can fire any employee whose conduct reflects negatively on the company. So an employee convicted (not arrested) for DUI, possession of marijuana, rape or domestic violence can be terminated.

Unfortunately, in many states it is still legal to discriminate against individuals who are gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgendered. Some but not all states have laws prohibiting this. An executive order prohibits firing employees of the federal government for such behavior on their own time. It also applies to companies with large federal contracts. But it does not apply to the majority of employers.

Employers have the obligation to prohibit sexual harassment. So, for example, a male employee who groped female coworkers at a company-sponsored event would be subject to discipline and termination. Not only would the employer be permitted to discipline the male employee, they would be required to take action under the anti-discrimination laws.