Houston Retaliatory Termination Lawyers

Employment law attempts to balance the freedom of employers to conduct their business as they see fit and the protection of employees from various forms of mistreatment and institutional abuse. Two of the mechanisms that exist for the purpose of securing the rights of workers are the workmen's compensation system and the various laws in place to protect the victims of discrimination and harassment. It is illegal for an employer to unjustly terminate an employee for filing a claim under these schemes.

If your rights have been violated by an employer's wrongful termination of your employment in response to a complaint or claim you properly filed, contact the Houston retaliatory discharge lawyers of the Ross Law Group at 713-482-6910.

The Proof is in the Pudding

The key issue that must be settled in a successful retaliatory discharge lawsuit has to do with the establishment of a connection between the filing of a protected complaint (such as a workers' compensation claim) and subsequent act of dismissal. The victim must prove that his or her firing was a direct result of the protected action. Two relevant points of law to consider are:

• “The Texas Labor Code prohibits an employer from discharging an employee for filing a workers' compensation claim in good faith. Tex. Lab. Code § 451.001(1).”
• “To prove a ‘retaliatory discharge' claim, the employee must show that the employer's action would not have occurred when it did had the employee's protected conduct – filing a workers' compensation claim – not occurred.” Haggar Clothing Co. v. Hernandez, 164 S.W.3d 386, 388 (Tex. 2005)

Contact Us

It takes an employment attorney with experience and integrity to help ensure that your legal rights are protected. If a protected action that you have undertaken led to dismissal from your job, contact the Houston retaliatory termination attorneys of the Ross Law Group at 713-482-6910.