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Yes, but relying solely upon at-will employment to support a termination decision does not offer protection against most types of wrongful termination lawsuits or charges of discrimination, harassment or retaliation filed with state and federal agencies.
All employment in California is employment at-will, unless the employer and employee have agreed otherwise. California's Labor Code provides that "an employment, having no specified term, may be terminated at the will of either party on notice to the other."
In the absence of an employment agreement (oral or written), either the employee or the employer may terminate the employment relationship at any time, and with or without notice. If there is a contract of employment, the terms of that contract will govern termination.
At-will employment protects employers against "breach of contract" claims where an employee claims they may be fired only for cause or that the employee was guaranteed a certain term of employment. It is important to preserve the at-will employment relationship since breach of contract claims are common in the employment context.
The preservation of at-will status is only the beginning, however, not the end of the steps an employer should take to protect itself.
At-will employment does not protect an employer from an employee who claims that they were unlawfully discriminated against, illegally harassed or fired in retaliation for exercising a protected right. In order to protect against these types of claims, employers should base termination decisions on objective standards (performance, attendance, job duties, etc.).
Although not required to do so, most employers use verbal and written warnings, suspensions and other forms of disciplinary action before termination. If you have a policy providing for this progressive discipline approach, be sure your policy also says that you have the right to ignore progressive discipline and terminate immediately at your discretion.
It is critical to document problems with employees as they occur to substantiate the reasons for a subsequent termination. If an employer makes employment decisions based on objective standards and documents the reasons for its decisions, it will be in a good position to defend itself.
To preserve at-will status, employers should adopt a clear at-will policy in their employee handbook. Employment applications and offer-letters also should include a reference to at-will employment. In addition, employers should be careful in job advertisements and interviews not to use terms that suggest other than at-will employment.
Note: The use of an employment agreement alters the at-will relationship. Most employment agreements cover a specified period and set forth the grounds under which the contract may be terminated. It is critical that employers carefully review and understand how these contracts may be terminated and upon what grounds.