Understanding New York State Discrimination and Retaliation Laws
New York is an "at-will" state. In other words, you can quit your job "at will," and your employer can fire you "at will." There is no law requiring you to give two-weeks notice, and there is no law requiring your employer to give you any notice before firing you. Employers can—and do—fire employees for bad reasons. So long as an employee isn't being fired for his/her membership in a protected class, or for his/her protected conduct, that employee can be fired at will.
What is a protected class?
You cannot be terminated because of your:
- age (if you are over 18),
- race,
- creed,
- color,
- national origin,
- sexual orientation,
- military status,
- sex (including pregnancy),
- disability,
- predisposing genetic characteristics,
- marital status,
- domestic violence victim status,
and in some cases:
- your credit record, or
- your criminal record.
In other words, you can be fired or treated differently at work if you are African-American, but you can't be fired because you are African-American. If you are arguing with your boss or not doing your job, you can be fired no matter what your age, race, creed, or color is; however, you cannot be fired because of your age, race, creed, or color.
What is protected conduct?
You cannot be terminated because you report discrimination. For example, if you are a woman who is being paid less than a man to perform the same job, you cannot be fired or demoted for reporting that discrimination. If your employer did fire or demote you, you would be entitled to back pay, damages, and attorney fees.
You are also protected from firing or demotion if you report an illegal activity that poses a substantial risk to the public. For example, if you work for a hospital and you report an unsafe work practice, you cannot be fired or demoted for making the report. (You could, however, be fired for being late to work even if you do report an unsafe practice.)
If you think that you are being discriminated against because of your membership in a protected class, or because you engaged in protected conduct, you probably need to speak with an attorney. Call Michalski | Militello at (585) 351-2500.
Does Michalski | Militello give free consultations?
For employment matters, we typically do not give free consultations. If you think you need to discuss your case with an attorney, you can schedule an initial meeting with us. During that meeting we will evaluate your case and give you an opinion on how to best proceed.
