Does the employment-at-will doctrine apply to all employees?
No. There are three broad categories of employees who are not governed by employment at-will: Government employees: Federal, state and local government workers are protected by the Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments, which prohibit the government from depriving any person of “life, liberty or property” without due process of law. These employees are considered to have a property interest in their jobs, and the right to due process places significant restrictions on arbitrary dismissals unrelated to job performance. Some additional protection is provided by federal, state and local civil service laws. Union members: Virtually all collective bargaining agreements between labor unions and employers stipulate that unionized employees can be fired only for just cause, and only after a hearing before a neutral arbitrator. However, less than 20 percent of American workers belong to unions today, since union membership has been declining for years. Contract employees: Senior executives, performer
