Employers Need to Be Aware of Texas Laws Limiting the Employment At-Will Doctrine authored by Jerome A. Brown

The vast majority of employees in Texas are employees at-will. In other words, absent a contractual or statutory provision to the contrary, the employer or employee may terminate the employment relationship at any time, with or without cause.

Employers need to be aware of exceptions that limit the employment at-will doctrine. Following is a non-exhaustive list of Texas laws that limit such doctrine:

1. Texas Labor Code § 451.001: Prohibits retaliation for filing a workers' compensation claim in good faith.

2. Texas Labor Code § 101.052: Prohibits denial of employment based on union membership or non-membership.

3. Texas Government Code § 431.006: Prohibits discharge because of active duty in state military forces.

4. Texas Civil Practices and Remedy Code § 122.001: Prohibits discharge because of jury service.

5. Texas Labor Code § 21.051: Prohibits discrimination based on race, color, disability, religion, national origin, age or sex.

6. Texas Family Code § 158.209: Prohibits discrimination based on withholding order for child support.

7. Texas Health and Safety Code § 592.015: Mandates that mentally retarded individuals receive equal employment opportunities.

8. Texas Election Code § 276.004: Employers are criminally liable for prohibiting employees from voting.

9. Texas Election Code § 276.001: Felony offense for employers who retaliate against employees for voting a certain way.

10. Texas Election Code § 161.007: Criminal liability for employers who prohibit or retaliate against employees for attending a political convention as a delegate.

11. Texas Labor Code § 52.041: Subjects employers to fines for coercing employees to purchase certain merchandise.

12. Texas Health and Safety Code § 81.102: Limits an employer's ability to require employees to undergo test for AIDS virus.

13. Texas Revised Civil Statutes Annotated article 4512.7 § 3: Prohibits discrimination against health care employees for refusing to perform or participate in an abortion.

14. Texas Government Code § 554.002: Protects public employees from retaliation for reporting, in good faith, the employing governmental entity's or fellow employee's violations of law to an appropriate law enforcement agency.

15. Texas Government Code § 554.002: A physician cannot by retaliated against for reporting to the State Board of Medical Examiners the acts of another physician that pose a continuing treat to the public welfare.

16. Texas Revised Civil Statute Annotated article 4495b § 5.06(d), (q): Prohibits retaliation against nursing home employees who report abuse or neglect of a nursing home resident.

17. Texas Health and Safety Code § 242.133: Employers who use hazardous chemicals may not retaliate against employees for reporting a violation of the Hazardous Communication Act.

18. Texas Agriculture Code § 125.013(b): Prohibits retaliation against agricultural laborer for reporting a violation of the Agricultural Hazardous Communication Act. Nor can employers for opposing or reporting discriminatory practices in the workplace.

19. Texas Labor Code § 411.082: Prohibits employers from retaliating against employees for using the Workers' Compensation Commission's toll-free telephone service to report, in good faith, an alleged violation of an occupational health or safety law.

20. Texas Local Government Code § 160.006: Prevents county employees from being subject to retaliation for exercising a right to participating in a grievance procedure established under Chapter 160 of the Local Government Code.

21. Texas Revised Civil Statutes Annotated article 4525a, § 1: Nurses are required by law to report another Nurse who "has exposed or is likely to expose a patient or other person unnecessarily to a risk of harm" or who "is likely to be impaired by chemical dependency."

22. Texas Health and Safety Code § 161.134: Provides a specific cause of action against a hospital-employer who has retaliated against an employee for reporting a violation of the law to a supervisor .

Knowledge of these exceptions will, of course, assist employers in preventing employment law claims.