4 ms·

Curious what the legality of this sort of thing would be, can you really fire someone for political preference?

adrr 8y ago
Political preference isn't a protected class at the federal level. I don't know about the state level.
lwansbrough 8y ago
Canadian but I believe it comes down to whether or not your state has “at will” employment or not - which is basically: it’s my company so I can fire you for whatever I want. I don’t believe California is an at-will employement state.
- Cyclone_ 8y ago
  I think technically all states are "at will", some just have a few more protections than others do.
  - wnoise 8y ago
    Montana is the only exception.
- cperciva 8y ago
  “at will” employment [...] it’s my company so I can fire you for whatever I want I am not a lawyer, but my understanding is that "at will" employment allows an employer to fire a worker for no reason (just like an employee can decide to quit without providing a reason) but not for any reason. In particular, you can't fire someone for being black, for being pregnant, for refusing to do something illegal, etc. This is why there is common advice of "don't tell people why you're firing them" -- as soon as you give an explanation, there's a risk that your words could be twisted into implying that you fired them for a bad (i.e., illegal) reason rather than simply for no reason.
  - paulcole 8y ago
    No, it’s any reason as long as it’s discriminatory: “At-will employment is a term used in U.S. labor law for contractual relationships in which an employee can be dismissed by an employer for any reason (that is, without having to establish "just cause" for termination), and without warning” https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/At-will_employment https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/At-will_employment I can fire you for being a fan of the Raiders because I am a fan of the Chargers.
    - cperciva 8y ago
      Sure. Perhaps I should have said "for no reason, or for any non-illegal reason".
- dmh2000 8y ago
  officially it is at-will, but there are so many exceptions that it almost isn't.
- paulcole 8y ago
  American but I believe California is an at-will employment state. https://www.rocketlawyer.com/article/what-states-are-at-will-employment-states-ps.rl https://www.rocketlawyer.com/article/what-states-are-at-will...
deleted 8y ago
[deleted]
cronix 8y ago
As was I. Apparently it's not protected nationally, but it IS in California where FB is HQ'd. > Political Affiliation Discrimination occurs when an employee is treated adversely due to differing political membership or political views than his or her employers. Political Affiliation is not traditionally a protected class, but with politics so controversial, political affiliation discrimination is on the rise. > There are only three jurisdictions in the United States that explicitly bans political affiliation and activity discrimination, California, D.C., and New York. New York does not cover political affiliation discrimination, only political activity discrimination. Federal law discrimination law does not cover political affiliation or political activity. However, many states prohibit employers from influencing the votes of their employees. [1] [1] https://www.legalmatch.com/law-library/article/political-affiliation-discrimination.html https://www.legalmatch.com/law-library/article/political-aff...
tinus_hn 8y ago
If he was fired for expressing this preference on the platform he works for, is that the same as firing someone for having a political preference?
nkurz 8y ago
In California, where Luckey was employed by Facebook, it is generally illegal. I think this article is a reasonable summary of the California specific law: "Can I fire the Trump supporter who reports to me?" In California, the answer is clear — the law expressly prohibits employers from forbidding an employee from participating in politics, or controlling or directing an employee’s political activities or affiliations. Employers are also barred from firing or threatening to fire an employee in order to coerce him or her into any particular course of political activity. (California Labor Code Sections 1101 & 1102.) These provisions encompass and protect more than simply supporting a particular candidate or party. The California Supreme Court has decided the term “political activities” includes all activities that may indicate support for a particular candidate or a political cause. This broad definition of “political activities” protects California employees from discrimination based not only on which candidate the employee supports, but also on support for or involvement in the many social and political movements of today’s political landscape. Employees may not be fired or otherwise disciplined for participating in a climate march or attending an Ann Coulter speech; nor for going to a “Black Lives Matter” protest or supporting a border wall between the United States and Mexico; nor for countless opinions and activities in between. https://www.bizjournals.com/sanjose/news/2017/05/16/can-i-fire-the-trump-supporter-who-reports-to-me.html https://www.bizjournals.com/sanjose/news/2017/05/16/can-i-fi...

adrr 8y ago

Political preference isn't a protected class at the federal level. I don't know about the state level.

Canadian but I believe it comes down to whether or not your state has “at will” employment or not - which is basically: it’s my company so I can fire you for whatever I want. I don’t believe California is an at-will employement state.

Cyclone_ 8y ago
I think technically all states are "at will", some just have a few more protections than others do.
- wnoise 8y ago
  Montana is the only exception.
cperciva 8y ago
“at will” employment [...] it’s my company so I can fire you for whatever I want I am not a lawyer, but my understanding is that "at will" employment allows an employer to fire a worker for no reason (just like an employee can decide to quit without providing a reason) but not for any reason. In particular, you can't fire someone for being black, for being pregnant, for refusing to do something illegal, etc. This is why there is common advice of "don't tell people why you're firing them" -- as soon as you give an explanation, there's a risk that your words could be twisted into implying that you fired them for a bad (i.e., illegal) reason rather than simply for no reason.
- paulcole 8y ago
  No, it’s any reason as long as it’s discriminatory: “At-will employment is a term used in U.S. labor law for contractual relationships in which an employee can be dismissed by an employer for any reason (that is, without having to establish "just cause" for termination), and without warning” https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/At-will_employment https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/At-will_employment I can fire you for being a fan of the Raiders because I am a fan of the Chargers.
  - cperciva 8y ago
    Sure. Perhaps I should have said "for no reason, or for any non-illegal reason".
dmh2000 8y ago
officially it is at-will, but there are so many exceptions that it almost isn't.
paulcole 8y ago
American but I believe California is an at-will employment state. https://www.rocketlawyer.com/article/what-states-are-at-will-employment-states-ps.rl https://www.rocketlawyer.com/article/what-states-are-at-will...

deleted 8y ago

[deleted]

cronix 8y ago

As was I. Apparently it's not protected nationally, but it IS in California where FB is HQ'd. > Political Affiliation Discrimination occurs when an employee is treated adversely due to differing political membership or political views than his or her employers. Political Affiliation is not traditionally a protected class, but with politics so controversial, political affiliation discrimination is on the rise. > There are only three jurisdictions in the United States that explicitly bans political affiliation and activity discrimination, California, D.C., and New York. New York does not cover political affiliation discrimination, only political activity discrimination. Federal law discrimination law does not cover political affiliation or political activity. However, many states prohibit employers from influencing the votes of their employees. [1] [1] https://www.legalmatch.com/law-library/article/political-affiliation-discrimination.html https://www.legalmatch.com/law-library/article/political-aff...

tinus_hn 8y ago

If he was fired for expressing this preference on the platform he works for, is that the same as firing someone for having a political preference?

nkurz 8y ago

In California, where Luckey was employed by Facebook, it is generally illegal. I think this article is a reasonable summary of the California specific law: "Can I fire the Trump supporter who reports to me?" In California, the answer is clear — the law expressly prohibits employers from forbidding an employee from participating in politics, or controlling or directing an employee’s political activities or affiliations. Employers are also barred from firing or threatening to fire an employee in order to coerce him or her into any particular course of political activity. (California Labor Code Sections 1101 & 1102.) These provisions encompass and protect more than simply supporting a particular candidate or party. The California Supreme Court has decided the term “political activities” includes all activities that may indicate support for a particular candidate or a political cause. This broad definition of “political activities” protects California employees from discrimination based not only on which candidate the employee supports, but also on support for or involvement in the many social and political movements of today’s political landscape. Employees may not be fired or otherwise disciplined for participating in a climate march or attending an Ann Coulter speech; nor for going to a “Black Lives Matter” protest or supporting a border wall between the United States and Mexico; nor for countless opinions and activities in between. https://www.bizjournals.com/sanjose/news/2017/05/16/can-i-fire-the-trump-supporter-who-reports-to-me.html https://www.bizjournals.com/sanjose/news/2017/05/16/can-i-fi...