EMPLOYMENT AT WILL VERSUS JUST CAUSE DISMISSAL: APPLYING THE DUE PROCESS MODEL OF PROCEDURAL JUSTICE.

EMPLOYMENT at will; PERSONNEL management; DISMISSAL of employees; LABOR laws; PROCEDURAL justice; DUE process of law; LEGAL procedure

This paper critically examines the procedural justice characteristics of dismissal under the American employment-at-will (EAW) system and the New Zealand just-cause system, with regard to poor performance, misconduct, and redundancy (downsizing) situations, using a due process framework of three dimensions: adequate notice, fair hearing, and judgment based on evidence. Without any explicit proactive procedural protocol required for dismissals, EAW was found to offer limited protection to employees. Contrarily, employees in New Zealand have better protections in statute and common law, requiring employers to provide substantive justifications for dismissal and to follow procedures similar to due process. If employees are to be treated fairly and respectfully, changes to the EAW are needed, and the New Zealand system, despite some limitations identified, may be a good reference model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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