Generally,
negligence occurs when somebody
does not exercise the amount of care that a reasonably
careful person would use while at work, or somebody
does something that a reasonably careful person would
not do under the circumstances.
If certain situations occur that amount to negligence
on the part of the employer, the employer can be held
responsible and sued for damages.
Negligent hiring – Employers
may be held responsible for their employees’
acts. In certain cases, the acts may have been outside
the scope of their employment. Generally, it happens
that the employer is held responsible only for the
conduct of the employee within the scope of employment.
However, if it turns out that an employee who commits
some type of harassment or discrimination
has committed similar acts in the past, perhaps even
while employed by a different company, and the petitioner
employee learns of this information, he/she may assert
a claim for negligent hiring or supervision.
Negligent Referral – If an
ex-employer gives a good reference (maybe under pressure)
to one of his/her employees with a poor performance
record or a record of unstable behavior, the exemployer
may be liable for negligent referral. The reference
given by the ex-employer should not misrepresent facts
that would present a substantial, foreseeable risk
of physical injury to a prospective employer or third
parties.
Negligent supervision – This
can occur when, In spite of knowing about (or should
have known about) an employee’s unstable history,
the employer posts him/her in a certain position,
which might have resulted in violent or derogatory
acts against a coworker.
Negligent retention- In this case,
the employer knew or should have known that a particular
employee was unfit, but failed to take any action
against that employee before he/she causes an injury
to someone.
Even negligent infliction of emotional
stress and negligent failure
to provide a safe workplace (which
may/may not have resulted in serious injury or health
problems) can amount to a lawsuit.
In some cases the employee has the right to sue independent
contractors for negligent performance of their duty,
which might have resulted in wrongful diagnosis or
wrong results; for example: doctors, drug testing
agencies, polygraph examiners, or detectives.
The employer can terminate the services of the employee
if there has been serious negligence
on his/her part and without any explanation given.
However, if the employee believes that he/she has
been wrongfully charged with negligence and terminated
or disciplined, he/she can take possible legal actions
or file a complaint with the relevant employment agency.
If the employee is fired for negligence, he/she may
be disqualified from receiving unemployment benefits.
However, negligence is not enough to cause disqualification
unless its frequency amounts to willful misconduct.
It is advisable to consult an attorney, if the employee
is denied unemployment benefits because of negligence.
