Can an employer threaten to not give a good recommendation if you don’t resign?
Get Legal Help Today
Compare Quotes From Top Companies and Save
Secured with SHA-256 Encryption
Can an employer threaten to not give a good recommendation if you don’t resign?
I’ve worked as steward for 3 local restaurants for about 2 1/2 years; 1 of the restaurants recently just went under. With money being tight, they are trying to downsize and that includes my job. My boss has personally told me that I work well and he has no issue with how I do my job. They gave me the option of being fired or resigning and getting a good reference. I personally think this is a ploy for them to not have to pay me unemployment. Is this legal? What actions should I take?
Asked on January 5, 2016 under Employment Labor Law, North Carolina
Answers:
SJZ, Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 8 years ago | Contributor
It is legal: the law does not require a good recommendation (or any recommendation), so an employer can predicate getting a good recommendation on doing something for it, such as resigning; it can require you to leave voluntarily if you want a good recommendation.
The above said, the employer may *not* lie about you--doing so is defamation. So while it does not have to give a positive recommendation, and is free to not give any recommendation at all, it cannot give an untrue bad recommendation about you, either--though it is free to simply not say anything at all about you, or to give what is often called a "neutral recommendation," which is essentially simply verifying or confirming that you worked there and when.
IMPORTANT NOTICE: The Answer(s) provided above are for general information only. The attorney providing the answer was not serving as the attorney for the person submitting the question or in any attorney-client relationship with such person. Laws may vary from state to state, and sometimes change. Tiny variations in the facts, or a fact not set forth in a question, often can change a legal outcome or an attorney's conclusion. Although AttorneyPages.com has verified the attorney was admitted to practice law in at least one jurisdiction, he or she may not be authorized to practice law in the jurisdiction referred to in the question, nor is he or she necessarily experienced in the area of the law involved. Unlike the information in the Answer(s) above, upon which you should NOT rely, for personal advice you can rely upon we suggest you retain an attorney to represent you.