UCF Employment Law in Practice Worksheet

Employment Law in PracticeCourse Project
Instructions:
The purpose of this course is to help you develop the skills to assess the scope of employment law, including the concept
of at-will employment and its exceptions, that affect your workplace and its practices. This project provides the opportunity
to demonstrate these skills.
To complete this project, you will draw on your experience in a current or previous workplace.
In Part One, you will distinguish among the different types of workers at your organization and determine who is covered
by employment law.
In Part Two, you will determine where at-will employment contracts apply at your organization and where there are
exceptions.
In Part Three, you will read through a scenario and assess whether the employee involved might have a wrongful
termination claim.
Except as indicated, use this document to record all your project work and responses to any questions. At a minimum, you
will need to turn in a digital copy of this document to your instructor as part of your project completion. You may also have
additional supporting documents that you will need to submit. Your instructor will provide feedback to help you work through
your findings.
Note: Though your work will only be seen by those grading the course and will not be used or shared outside the course,
you should take care to obscure any information you feel might be of a sensitive or confidential nature.
Complete each project part as you progress through the course. Wait to submit the project until all parts are complete. Begin
your course project by completing Part One below. A Submit Assignment button can be found on the final course project
assignment page online. Information about the grading rubric is available on any of the course project assignment pages
online. Do not hesitate to contact your instructor if you have any questions about the project.
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PART ONE
Distinguishing the Employees in Your Organization
___________________________________________________________________
In this part of the course project, you will distinguish among the different types of workers at or interacting with your
organization and determine who is covered by employment law.
To complete Part One of the project, you will list some of the workers at your organization and ascertain their employment
status. If you are not currently working in an organization, think of one you are familiar with from previous experience.
In order to complete this part of the project, you will need to use the Checklists for employment status to determine
whether or not each worker is an employee.
Who are employees?
1. Let’s start at the top: Is the leader of the business/CEO an employee? Why or why not?
2. Is your supervisor an employee? Why or why not?
3. Are you an employee? Why or why not?
4. In the table below, identify four workers at your workplace who would fall under the category of other
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employment.
For these workers who are not employees:
● List the job titles or duties
● Indicate their employment status: independent contractor, intern, volunteer, partner, other/unsure
● Explain your rationale
Hint: These people may appear infrequently and may not be employed by your organization.
Job Title
or Duties
Employment Status
(independent contractor,
intern, volunteer, partner,
other/unsure)
Covered by
Employment Law?
(Yes or No)
Rationale
Worker #1
Answer…
Answer…
Answer…
Answer…
Worker #2
Answer…
Answer…
Answer…
Answer…
Worker #3
Answer…
Answer…
Answer…
Answer…
Worker #4
Answer…
Answer…
Answer…
Answer…
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PART TWO
Identifying Exceptions to
At-Will Employment in Your Workplace
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In this section, you explored at-will employment, the unique contract that governs most U.S. employment. You also
investigated some exceptions to these contracts.
In Part Two of the course project, you will determine where at-will employment contracts apply at your organization and
where there are exceptions. Based on the work you did in Part One, you will identify the basis upon which some of the
workers in your organization may be terminated.
A. Return to the list of workers you identified in Part One. In the table below, indicate whether each is an at-will employee
or whether they are protected by contract exemptions. Then, explain your rationale.
Job Title
or Duties
Business
Leader/CEO
Your Immediate
Supervisor
You
Employment Status
Answer…
Answer…
Answer…
Answer…
Answer…
Answer…
Worker #1
Answer…
Worker #2
Answer…
Worker #3
Answer…
Worker #4
Rationale
(at will, just cause contract,
term contract, implied-in-fact contract)
Answer…
Answer…
Answer…
Answer…
Answer…
B. Were all the workers in the previous table at will or were there exceptions? If all of the workers listed above are at will,
think of one worker in your environment who might be covered under each of the exceptions listed in the table below.
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If you don’t have such workers, you might instead describe the circumstances under which your organization might
hire someone under these other types of employment contracts.
Job Title
or Duties
Exception to At-Will Employment
●
Rationale
Answer…
Term Contract
Answer…
●
Just Cause Contract
Answer…
●
Implied-in-Fact Contracts
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PART THREE
Assessing a Termination Claim
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___
In this section, you explored how to determine when terminations violate at-will employment contracts and whether
employees have a claim.
In Part Three of the course project, you will read through a scenario and assess whether the employee involved might
have a wrongful termination claim.
1. Read through the following scenario.
2. Determine whether the employee might have a wrongful termination claim and briefly explain your rationale.
Scenario
George Geary was employed by Acme Company for 14 years as a salesperson of tubular products to the
oil and gas industry. His employment was at will. Geary was assigned to sell Product X, a tubular casing
designed for use under high pressure. Geary believed the product had not been adequately tested and
constituted a serious danger to anyone who used it. He voiced his misgivings to his superiors and was
ordered to “follow directions.” He nevertheless continued to express his reservations, taking his case to a
vice president in charge of sales of Product X. The vice president asked Geary whether he thought
Product X violated any safety regulation. Geary said he was not aware of any safety regulation but
thought that Product X needed stabilizers to be adequately safe. The vice president rejected that
suggestion. Shortly afterwards, Geary was fired for not being a team player. [This fact pattern is based
upon Geary v. United States Steel Corp., 319 A.2d 174 (Pennsylvania Supreme Court 1974).]
Do you think George Geary has a claim in this case? Put an X next to your choice.
Yes
No
Explain your rationale:
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To submit this assignment, please refer to the instructions in the course.
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