What Damages Can You Receive After Employer Retaliation?

When you begin a new job, there are certain expectations in place: show up on time, complete tasks quickly and effectively, and follow directions. In exchange for this, your employer provides you with a paycheck. Dallas workers in any industry should have the security of this mutual understanding.

If you work in Dallas and your company unfairly fired you, you may be wondering what damages you can receive after employer retaliation. The answer is complicated. While Dallas employment law holds that employers generally have the right to hire and fire at will, other statutes in state and local employment law protect employees from unjust termination practices. If you believe your termination was wrongful, you may be eligible to pursue legal action against your former employer.

Areas of Compensation for Wrongful Termination

If you want to know what damages you can receive after employer retaliation, it helps to know that you may be able to claim reparations in several ways. If you can prove that the termination by your employer was indeed wrongful or inappropriate in some way, you should hold those accountable for any form of loss and damage associated with losing your job. Some of these damages include:

• Loss of Wages: One of the first and most apparent areas of loss after inappropriate termination is the loss of your wages. While you are dealing with the external repercussions of losing your job and income, you may find that staying ahead of your financial situation becoming increasingly difficult, which can make finding a new job more stressful as well.
• Loss of Benefits: Paychecks are not the only form of loss in a case of wrongful termination. While the sudden lack of steady income affects your quality of life, so can the loss of medical or retirement benefits. Continuing to pay for these programs out of pocket and without a reliable paycheck can be challenging when you no longer have access to your company’s health insurance benefits package.
• Pain and Suffering: Pain and suffering can include mental anguish, reputational harm, and emotional harm. Putting a definitive number on the actual amount of pain and suffering damages can be difficult. When you do believe there is a case for compensation in these areas, the presence of an experienced lawyer can be crucial to the process.
• Other Punitive Damages: Punitive damages usually refer to charges intended to punish your employer for your losses. They can be relatively difficult to obtain and even more difficult to quantify. Because of their complex nature, seeking reparations for punitive damages usually requires the guidance of an attorney to help you determine what your former company might owe you.
• Attorney’s Fees: If your case requires legal attention, there will likely be fees associated with counsel and representation. If you do win your case, you can seek compensation from your employer for any legal costs accumulated during the legal process.

Sabine Pilot Exceptions

Sabine Pilot claims are a notable exception to Texas employers’ ability to terminate as they deem appropriate. The Sabine Pilot doctrine protects workers who lost their jobs because they refused to engage in illegal acts at the behest of their employer. These exceptions hold that you can only seek successful legal action for wrongful termination if you can prove that your refusal is the sole reason your employer fired you. If your former boss can show that there is any other reason for your firing, this exception will not apply.

Our Dallas Employment Lawyers Are Here for You

If you live in Dallas and you want to know what damages you can receive after employer retaliation, receiving full compensation might be as easy as seeking quality legal guidance. Our attorneys have more than two decades of experience fighting for the rights of not only Dallas residents but also all across Texas.

Our wrongful termination lawyers in Dallas offer all potential clients a free initial consultation to help you decide whether you want to work with us. We recommend that you use this time to ask our attorneys any questions about employer retaliation and wrongful termination.

Call the Dallas employment lawyers of Carabin Shaw toll-free, anytime, at 800-862-1260.

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