Most people understand that employment in Oregon, as in most states, is at will, meaning that either the employer or the employee can end the relationship at any time for any reason or no reason at all, absent a contractual, statutory, or constitutional requirement to the contrary.  Of course, that last clause provides that there are limits on at-will employment.  An employer can’t end the relationship because the employee becomes disabled, needs to fulfill duty obligations in the armed forces reserves, files a complaint against the employer, or a myriad of other unlawful reasons.  Some plaintiff’s lawyers would argue that the at-will employment doctrine is so riddled with exceptions that it doesn’t really exist.  And good employer defense attorneys will advise their clients that, while the doctrine still exists, every termination should be supported by clear, legitimate business reasons – and ideally with good documentation.  But it is clear that no employee can have a reasonable expectation of continued employment, since he or she could be fired at any time.  But what about an applicant?

Suppose an applicant meets with a hiring manager and, after the interview, the manager shakes the applicant’s hand and says “You’re hired!  Come in tomorrow to sign the paperwork.”  The applicant has another offer and the hiring manager encourages him to turn it down.  The applicant does so and, the next day, shows up at his new employer’s offices.  There he is told that they have changed their minds and don’t need him after all.  The applicant is devastated because not only does he not have this job, but the other offer he turned down has already been filled.  The employer, on the other hand, reasons that it could have fired the applicant anyway on his first day on the job under the at-will doctrine, so where is the harm?  The employer argues that if the applicant has a claim, how long does an employer have to employ new hires?   Continue Reading Oregon Supreme Court Takes Another Big Bite Out of the At-Will Employment Doctrine in Cocchiara v. Lithia Motors