At Will Employment – Don’t Screw it Up

The concept of “at will employment” is probably the most important feature – the seminal arrow in the quiver – of employer/employee relationships. Simply stated, it means that an employee works for the dental practice at the will or discretion of the dentist – and that employee can be terminated at any time provided the dentist does not discriminate. As long as this concept is clearly and explicitly stated in the office policy manual in the proper “legaleze,” the dentist should be protected from an unlawful termination lawsuit.

I commonly see two flagrant “no-no’s” showing up in office policy manuals which unwittingly contradict the at will employment concept. The first is a description of a ninety day trial period of employment. This infers that if a new employee gets by the probationary  period of time and is still working at the practice, that future employment is somehow guaranteed. You passed the test, and you now are a real employee.

The second example is when the manual states that if an employee decides to leave the practice, it is expected that he or she give two weeks notice. If the employee must give two weeks notice, wouldn’t the employer then be expected to do the same? This clearly would contradict at will employment.

A poorly written office policy manual can sometimes do more damage than no office policy manual. Review your manual – and if you have anything resembling the above mentioned inconsistencies – remove them immediately.