Litigation

Retaliatory firing does not support a wrongful termination claim, Oregon Court of Appeals holds

By Matt Hedberg

Earlier this week, the Oregon Court of Appeals affirmed that a plaintiff alleging retaliatory termination may not maintain a common law claim if an adequate remedy is available under either a federal or state statute.

In Deatherage v. Johnson, the plaintiff appealed the dismissal of her common law claim for wrongful discharge.  Plaintiff claimed that her employer fired her in retaliation for contacting the Oregon Occupational Safety and Health Division to report health and safety violations at the employer's place of business.  The trial court granted the employer's motion to dismiss on the ground that plaintiff had an adequate statutory remedy.

The Court of Appeals observed that in Walsh v. Consolidated Freightways, 278 Or 347, 563 P2d 1205 (1977), the Oregon Supreme Court held that a plaintiff alleging retaliatory termination has an adequate remedy under federal and state laws for workplace health and safety violations.  See, e.g., 29 U.S.C. 660, ORS 654.062(5) and (6).  Accordingly, the Court of Appeals held that an employee has no common law claim of retaliatory termination for reporting employer violations of workplace health and safety laws.

Full post as published by Northwest Business Litigation Blog on August 21, 2009 (boomark / email).