Employment law covers topics like hours, wages, overtime, hiring practices, workplace discrimination, and retaliation. Labor law is a subset of employment law that includes union membership, union dues, and collective bargaining agreements.
Employment laws apply only to the employer-employee relationship. Agency relationships only exist between employers and employees. Independent contractors have no control over the details of their work performance. The relationship between a principal and an independent contractor cannot involve an agency relationship.
A company can only legally enforce rules that it enforces uniformly for everyone. Selective rule enforcement is often a sign of discrimination or mistreatment of the employee(s) singled out for discipline.
Each state sets laws related to fair employment and workplace safety. In most cases, state laws offer more protections than the federal ones. Contact your state department of labor to learn about the labor laws in your state.
Article 6 of the U.S. Constitution dictates that federal laws supersede state laws; the exception is when state laws offer more rights and protections, which is often the case with labor laws. “Labor laws are enacted to protect the rights, health and financial remuneration of workers,” explains Andrew Latham at Chron.
New York State is an “Employment-at-Will” state. That means that an Employer may terminate an Employee at any time and for any legal reason or no reason at all. Likewise, an Employee may terminate his or her employment at any time.
In Tennessee, wrongful termination occurs when an employee is fired for reasons that violate state or federal laws. Tennessee is an “at-will” employment state, meaning employers can terminate employees for any lawful reason or no reason at all.
The employer/employee relationship in Tennessee is governed by the at-will employment doctrine. This means that either party may terminate the relationship at any time, with or without cause, and with or without notice.