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  • At-will Employment

    My offer letter says that since this employment is not for a specific term it constitutes at-will employment. I can resign any time with out any reason and so can they conclude employment anytime without any cause.

    I read up a little bit about at-will employment and found it little strange.

    Below are the few questions that I have in mind

    1) Is at-will employment a norm in USA?
    2) How is it different than contract jobs?
    3) Why are contract jobs paid way more than at-will?
    4) I am being hired for a specific client, if client says no more work I might get laid off. Will I get any layoff benefits?
    5) If above question is no, then what type of employment gets layoff benefits?
    6) What are the other type of employments?
    7) Should I accept this offer? They are giving me almost 40% hike.

    Regards

  • #2
    Originally posted by pathusa View Post
    1) Is at-will employment a norm in USA?
    2) How is it different than contract jobs?
    3) Why are contract jobs paid way more than at-will?
    4) I am being hired for a specific client, if client says no more work I might get laid off. Will I get any layoff benefits?
    5) If above question is no, then what type of employment gets layoff benefits?
    6) What are the other type of employments?
    7) Should I accept this offer? They are giving me almost 40% hike.
    1) Yes, most full time positions in the US are at-will employment. It protects the employers from frivolous wrongful termination suits. Since, it is at-will employers do not need to give a reason for firing people.
    2) Contract jobs usually come with a penalty clause i.e. if the employer terminates the contract before the period ends they have to pay some indemnity, on the same hand if the employee terminates the contract he liable to pay the employer.
    3) I am not sure about this generalization.
    4) The indemnity for early termination of the contract will be mentioned on the contract agreement. The exact amount and kind of indemnity has to be negotiated before signing the agreement.
    5) As above the employer is liable to pay lay-off benefits only if it mentioned in the contract otherwise they have no legal obligation to pay anything. Even though there is no legal obligation most at-will employers do pay some kind of severance package, in return they ask you to sign a non-disclosure agreement and a waiver. Once you sign these you cannot disclose the employer's trade secrets to anyone also you cannot sue them for wrongful termination and/or sexual harassment.
    6) These are the major kinds. There is no universal categorizations every employment is specific to the employment agreement signed between the employee and the employer. It means your colleague working at the same position and salary may have one additional clause in their contract which may give them different freedoms than you.
    7) If you are suspicious about the employment agreement it is better to show it to an attorney and consult him/her. You should know what you are getting into. You may also search the internet for usual clauses in at-will employments and see if yours is different. I still suggest that you consult an attorney, there might be a one tiny little clause snuck somewhere in it which you might not notice like non-compete.
    This is my opinion and not legal advice. Please consult an attorney before making any decisions.

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    • #3
      Thanks a lot snowy for detailed reply. Really appreciated.

      My future manager said they will apply for my green card after one year. But the same is not mentioned in my offer letter. Do companies here mention in offer letter that they will apply for green card?

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