At-Will Employment Rule

by David McCarthy

A young man walked in off the street the other day and provided living proof that for all its simplicity, the at-will employment rule is tough to grasp.

An employer to whom he had given three weeks' notice of his intention to quit told him to leave at once.

"Can they do that?" he asked.

Of course.

The point of giving prior notice is to allow the employer to adapt to the change. It does not alter the at-will nature of the relationship.