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Virginia workmans comp attorney Corey Pollard can help. He has guided hundreds of injured workers and accident victims through the workers comp process in Virginia.
It is also illegal for a Virginia employer to terminate an at-will employee for reasons that contravene public policy or would constitute an act of retaliation. Lastly, a Virginia employer can be sued for wrongful termination if they terminate an at-will employee in a manner that breaches the terms of the employee’s employment contract.
Jerry Lutkenhaus. Virginia Workers Compensation and Social Security Disability Attorney for over 35 years, rated "superb" by AVVO, and rated best workers compensation lawyer in Central Virginia in Richmond Magazine.
Under federal law, it is illegal for a Virginia employer to fire an employee for discriminatory reasons. Federal law prohibits employers from firing employees based on race, color, national origin, sex, pregnancy, religion, age, disability, or citizenship.
Usually administered at the state level, workers' compensation can include weekly wage payments, money for financial losses due to the injury, and paid medical expenses. If an employee is killed on the job, then his family can receive the workers' compensation.
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Most injuries sustained while working on land are governed by state workers compensation laws. Workers compensation was designed to protect the rights of injured workers. In theory, it works to protect and help both the injured employee and the employer. However, employees may feel intimidated and outgunned when they come up against their employers in a legal dispute. What’s more, the process – and especially the appeals procedure – is complex and difficult to navigate on your own.
It is not uncommon for an employer to dispute an employee’s claim, because the rates they pay into the system will be affected by the number of Workers’ Compensation claims paid on their behalf.
Even though Virginia does not have any state laws about overtime, it follows the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). Thus, any employee who works over 40 hours in one week has to be paid 1 and ½ times the normal pay rate. Virginia also does not have laws stopping mandatory overtime. This means that your employer can ask you to work however much overtime they want, and then fire you if you refuse to do so.
Virginia does not have state laws that require employer to provide health insurance to their employees. However, employers in the state do have to follow the Affordable Care Act (ACA).
In all 50 states, it is against the law to discriminate against an employee because of race, color, sex, religion, national origin, genetic information, citizenship status, disability, and age. The Virginia Human Rights Act adds to this list of protected classes by making it illegal to discriminate against employees based on marital status, pregnancy, or childbirth. It is also illegal for your employer to retaliate against you for complaining about discriminatory behavior towards you.
Wage & Hour Law. Federal employment law requires employers to pay their workers according to their mutual agreement. When an employer does not take this legal obligation seriously and tries to pay you less than you deserve, you have a right to take legal action.
Other laws that protect you from discrimination and harassment include: The Age Discrimination and Employment Act of 1967 (ADEA): Protects people ages 40 and above from being discriminated against based on their age. An employer must have 20+ employees for this law to apply.
Although certain types of employees (such as independent contractors) may be exempt from time-and-a-half overtime pay, many other non-exempt employees never receive the overtime pay they rightfully deserve, or never receive payment for off-the-clock hours.
As an employee, you have certain rights under the law that must be respected by your employer. Unfortunately, most workers are not aware of the full extent of their rights and do not even know they have legal grounds to fight back when they are unfairly treated by their employer. Knowing your rights is the first step in protecting them.
Workers’ Compensation. If you have been injured on-the-job, you are most likely eligible for benefits through workers’ compensation. However, this system can be notoriously difficult to navigate. Many workers have their claims denied, or their benefits minimized for unfair reasons.
Thus, the outcome to many wrongful termination lawsuits in Virginia will depend on the status of a worker, whether an employer’s conduct violated a federal labor law, state statute, or other policy. It may also depend on whether the firing breached the terms of an employment agreement or company termination procedure.
Once an employment contract is signed, it becomes binding on both the employee and the employer. This means that if either party breaches the terms of the employment contract, then they can be held liable for any actions that caused the breach. In cases involving wrongful termination, an at-will employee may be able to prove ...
Some examples of when an employer’s motives for firing an employee may be declared illegal under Virginia’s at-will employment and/or labor laws include when: The motive is regarded as discriminatory (e.g., it targets a protected class of people based on their religion, race, age, etc.);
There are a number of reasons that may constitute potential illegal motives in a case involving unlawful termination in Virginia. Specifically, Virginia at-will employment laws allow for some exceptions of when certain grounds for termination will be deemed to be illegal. Before diving into some of these illegal motives, ...
This means that unless a worker is hired as an independent contractor or has signed an employment agreement that contains provisions for “just cause” termination, an employer may terminate the employee for any reason and at any time during the course of their employment.
Attorney fees and other court-related costs. In addition, a Virginia employer may try to negotiate a settlement agreement with an at-will employee before trial or offer them a severance package in exchange to not bring a wrongful termination lawsuit against the employer in court.
A Virginia employer is prohibited from firing an at-will employee based on a discriminatory reason, such as because of their color, race, national origin, sex, disability, religion, genetic information, marital status, pregnancy, sexual orientation, gender identity, and/or veteran status. Most of these categories will overlap with ...