Can I be fired for someone accussing me of threating to punch him in the face?

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Can I be fired for someone accussing me of threating to punch him in the face?

I was suspended from my job at a major retailer, which I have been employed at for 20 years. A co-worker went to management with a claim I told him that I would punch him in the face. I did not say that to him. We had a arguement, not a heated one in my opinion. This employee is trying to get me fired. There is video of the whole incident, and it shows with no sound, that i was not showing any signs of being confortational in the video. There were another employee, that is his friend, that also wrote a statement about the incident. Is this fair that someone can make a claim agaiinst me?

Asked on May 22, 2009 under Employment Labor Law, California

Answers:

BP, Member, Connecticut Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney

Answered 14 years ago | Contributor

While it seems unfair that your employer of 20 years would suspend you over the incident, it can if you are an employee at will – which means that you don’t have a specific employment contract.  If you feel as though your employer is discriminating against you due to a protected class (race, gender, etc.), then you might want to seek the counsel of an employment law attorney.  However, if you’ve only been suspended, it might make sense to have the company’s Human Resources manager document the incident in your file in case this employee does something else vindictive.


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