HR Specialist: North Carolina Employment Law

Complex state and local laws in the Tar Heel State can give employers the blues. Aggressive attorneys don’t stop with federal laws like FMLA, ADA and FLSA: they use state and local living-wage statutes, rural codes, plus discrimination and other laws to sue employers for sky’s-the-limit damages. This North Carolina-specific newsletter arrives monthly to help sue-proof every aspect of HR. Written in plain English, it’s your insurance policy for staying in step with current interpretations of state and local laws – and staying out of court. Learn more about HR Specialist: North Carolina Employment Law and the free report you’ll get when you subscribe...

Employees who sue under the FMLA for alleged interference with the right to take covered leave can’t throw in an additional claim for wrongful termination under state common law.

That’s because North Carolina allows wrongful termination claims only in very limited circumstances, such as an employee’s refusal to engage in illegal activity.

Recent case: Tamara Belton claimed she was fired days after asking for 12 weeks of FMLA leave. She sued for interference with her federal FMLA leave rights, plus for wrongful discharge under North Carolina’s public policy exception to at-will employment.

The court allowed her FMLA claim to proceed but dismissed the second claim. It said extending protection to her situation would mean every claim of discrimination under federal law could be used as a state claim, too. It refused to open that floodgate. (Belton v. Dodson Brothers, No. 1:09-CV-106, MD NC, 2009)