Pushing Back Against A Wrongful Termination
You may have heard that Illinois is an “at will” employment state. But that doesn’t allow your employer to fire you for an unlawful reason.
At the Law Office of Van-Lear P. Eckert, PC, we can advise you on your legal options after being let go unfairly and help you take action accordingly.
Give us a call today to discuss your specific situation with a skilled attorney. We serve clients throughout the Belleville area and offer a free consultation.
I’ve been wrongfully terminated — what can I do about it now?
In the state of Illinois, it’s true that most employees are considered at-will employees. In practice, this means you can be terminated at any time — as long as it was not for an unlawful reason.
There are several scenarios in which firing may be unlawful. For one thing, you may have had an employment contract that created some specific protections. Or you may have been subjected to improper discrimination based on race, age, sex, national origin or other impermissible factors.
How can a wrongful termination lawyer help my case?
When you pursue a claim against an employer with the help of our wrongful termination attorneys, you gain the experience and support of a skilled labor law advocate. Successfully pursuing a wrongful termination claim can ensure that you retain your rights as an employee and, should the state rule in your favor, can entitle you to be remedied for an employer’s bad actions.
While any compensation for damages is highly dependent on the particular circumstances of your case and can be affected by local employment laws (in particular, laws applying to Belleville IL and the area of jurisdiction in Illinois that your employer operates from), successful claimants can be compensated for a number of economic factors, including, but not necessarily limited to:
- Wages lost after you were unfairly terminated at work
- Back payments for any work that you may have missed as a result of an employer’s wrongful actions related to your termination and events that led up to termination
- Costs related to the claimant’s need to find new employment as a result of wrongful action on an employer’s behalf
- Benefits lost as a result of wrongful termination
- The costs of proceeding with a wrongful termination claim or labor law dispute (including court costs, the cost of hiring an attorney, and any fees resulting from the legal pursuit of the claim)
While compensation for some of the factors listed as not as commonly-awarded as others on this list, it’s worth mentioning that an experienced wrongful termination and labor law attorney will fight employers tooth and nail to get you compensation if they are relevant to your claim against an employer.
Our Belleville IL wrongful termination lawyers fight for your rights.
In addition to pursuing monetary awards for unlawful termination actions by an employer, our qualified attorneys work also work with you to make things right.
A skilled labor law advocate can help you get your job back, can work within the legal system to prevent the employer from abusing your coworkers through their unlawful actions, and in certain cases can even ensure that the employer complies with federal, state, and local employment regulations after your claim.
Retaliation For Filing A Complaint Or Blowing The Whistle On Illegal Actions
Wrongful termination can also occur when an employer retaliates against you for exercising your legal rights. For example, if you tried to take leave under the Family and Medical Leave Act, your employer cannot hold that against you and fire you.
It is also unlawful for employers to retaliate against whistleblowers. If you reported a violation of law by your employer to either your supervisors at work or government authorities, it is not permissible for your employer to fire you for that reason. Reporting violations of law even internally can generally qualify someone as a whistleblower.
And if the violation you reported as a whistleblower involved fraud concerning government contracts, you have rights under the federal False Claims Act. This includes actions for back pay and other damages in legal actions that are sometimes called “qui tam” actions.
Even if you quit your job, you may still have a claim. When you are forced to leave, the law considers that to be “constructive” firing, which gives rise to certain rights.
Contact a wrongful termination lawyer in Illinois to understand all your options.
Discuss Your Options In A Free Consultation
To arrange a confidential, no-cost consultation with an experienced lawyer, call 618-233-8800. Or, if you prefer, complete the online form.