I know there are a lot of emotions after the sad events of this weekend. There is the call to identify the participants in the marches and calls for their employers to take action. Although it is unfair to compare with the Google memo that was leaked a few weeks ago, the same considerations need to be kept in mind when analyzing the actions employers can take when an employee engages in conduct we can personally disagree with or find disgusting.
From a purely legal perspective the path of employment termination may be fraught and full of risks. Whether a person can be fired for his thoughts or views will depend on what the views are, the state where he resides and how they are articulated. A typical right to work state gives a lot of latitude to the employer and as long as the reason is not illegal the firing can be OK. In states with more protections for employees or unions the process can be more difficult. In those places a firing can only take place if the union contract has been violated or if there is good cause. Whether participating in a political rally is good cause may be the cause of action in a lawsuit in the part of the dismissed employee. Under typical regulations and laws, creating a hostile work environment may be good cause for workplace sanctions. The question will be then if a coworker spotted at a Nazi rally will amount to creating a hostile environment.
Although employers may be somewhat limited on the reasons for firing somebody, first amendment grounds is not one of them. First Amendment applies only to actions by the government over its citizens, not private enterprises. Companies on the other hand have been found to have grounds for dismissal if an employee engages in illegal actions or he is arrested and faces criminal charges.
A big question in the minds of most of us is not only why was the rally allowed in the first place? but also why was a march with lighted torches permitted in the UVA campus? Although a public university qualifies as a government agent and therefore it cannot restrict all types of speeches, walking through a public space with a torch with fire can be breaking a myriad of at least state and city laws and ordinances. As an example, when somebody burns a flag, the protesters are usually arrested not for burning the FLAG, but for the act of burning something in public.
At the end it may come down not only if a law was broken by the employee but also a company policy. In corporate, big company environments they may have more mainstream views. In small companies, the rules may reflect the personal beliefs of the owner or the local community. Most government regulations only apply to companies beyond certain size, so in a mom and pop shop, the owner could legally do almost anything to sanction or not her employees.
From a purely legal perspective the path of employment termination may be fraught and full of risks. Whether a person can be fired for his thoughts or views will depend on what the views are, the state where he resides and how they are articulated. A typical right to work state gives a lot of latitude to the employer and as long as the reason is not illegal the firing can be OK. In states with more protections for employees or unions the process can be more difficult. In those places a firing can only take place if the union contract has been violated or if there is good cause. Whether participating in a political rally is good cause may be the cause of action in a lawsuit in the part of the dismissed employee. Under typical regulations and laws, creating a hostile work environment may be good cause for workplace sanctions. The question will be then if a coworker spotted at a Nazi rally will amount to creating a hostile environment.
Although employers may be somewhat limited on the reasons for firing somebody, first amendment grounds is not one of them. First Amendment applies only to actions by the government over its citizens, not private enterprises. Companies on the other hand have been found to have grounds for dismissal if an employee engages in illegal actions or he is arrested and faces criminal charges.
A big question in the minds of most of us is not only why was the rally allowed in the first place? but also why was a march with lighted torches permitted in the UVA campus? Although a public university qualifies as a government agent and therefore it cannot restrict all types of speeches, walking through a public space with a torch with fire can be breaking a myriad of at least state and city laws and ordinances. As an example, when somebody burns a flag, the protesters are usually arrested not for burning the FLAG, but for the act of burning something in public.
At the end it may come down not only if a law was broken by the employee but also a company policy. In corporate, big company environments they may have more mainstream views. In small companies, the rules may reflect the personal beliefs of the owner or the local community. Most government regulations only apply to companies beyond certain size, so in a mom and pop shop, the owner could legally do almost anything to sanction or not her employees.