Can they fire me over a drug issue without a drug test?
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Can they fire me over a drug issue without a drug test?
My employer said that he found a pipe in the company truck which I, as foreman, drove. He claims to have found it on a Wednesday but waited until the following Sunday to terminate me. He never said anything about it to me nor did he drug test me. There are 2 other employees who rode with me everyday as we tracked together, yet he never asked them about the pipe or drug tested them. There is no proof of said pipe and no proof that it was mine. When I asked to take a drug test, he didn’t give that option. New Link Destination
make matters worse, his wife has now gone to social media posting about how I used drugs. I don’t use drugs and there is no proof they even found a pipe.
Asked on April 28, 2018 under Employment Labor Law, Florida
Answers:
M.D., Member, California and New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 5 years ago | Contributor
Unless a drug test is mandated prior to termination by either the terms of an employment contract or union agreement, you have no claim here. The fact is that most work arrangements are "at will". This means that a company can set the conditions of employment much as it sees fit. This includes when and why to terminate a worker. Acctually, an employee can be discharged for any reason or no reason at all. Accordingly, unless your treatment consitituted some form of actionable discrimination (i.e. is due to your age (over 40), disability, gender, nationality, race or rleigion) you have no claim here against your ex-employer. As to your boss's wife, you may have a claim for defamation; you should consult directly with a local personal injury attorney as to this.
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