2019 -- S 0169

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LC000604

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     STATE OF RHODE ISLAND

IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY

JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2019

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A N   A C T

RELATING TO LABOR AND LABOR RELATIONS -- WRONGFUL DISCHARGE FROM

EMPLOYMENT

     

     Introduced By: Senators Quezada, Euer, Bell, Metts, and Crowley

     Date Introduced: January 24, 2019

     Referred To: Senate Judiciary

     It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:

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     SECTION 1. Title 28 of the General Laws entitled "LABOR AND LABOR

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RELATIONS" is hereby amended by adding thereto the following chapter:

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CHAPTER 6.15

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WRONGFUL DISCHARGE FROM EMPLOYMENT ACT

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     28-6.15-1. Short title.

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     This chapter shall be known and may be cited as the "Wrongful Discharge from

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Employment Act."

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     28-6.15-2. Purpose.

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     The purpose of this chapter is to change the state labor laws and provide reasonable

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employment protection to most workers that:

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     (1) Provides job security to workers who perform satisfactorily;

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     (2) Provides for discharge from employment for just cause only;

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     (3) Abolishes the application of the "employment-at-will" doctrine in the state; and

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     (4) Creates specific remedies for wrongful discharge from employment.

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     28-6.15-3. Definitions.

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     (1) "Constructive discharge" means the voluntary termination of employment by an

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employee because of a situation created by an act or omission of the employer which an

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objective, reasonable person would find so intolerable that voluntary termination is the only

 

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reasonable alternative. Constructive discharge does not mean voluntary termination because of an

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employer's refusal to promote the employee or improve wages, responsibilities, or other terms

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and conditions of employment.

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     (2) "Discharge" includes a constructive discharge as defined in this section and any other

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termination of employment, including resignation, elimination of the job, layoff for lack of work,

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failure to recall or rehire, and any other cutback in the number of employees for a legitimate

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business reason.

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     (3) "Employee" means a person who works for another for hire. The term does not

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include a person who is an independent contractor.

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     (4) "Fringe benefits" means the value of any employer-paid vacation leave, sick leave,

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medical insurance plan, disability insurance plan, life insurance plan, and pension benefit plan in

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force on the date of the termination.

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     (5) "Good cause" means reasonable job-related grounds for dismissal based on a failure

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to satisfactorily perform job duties, disruption of the employer's operation, or other legitimate

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business reason.

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     (6) "Lost wages" means the gross amount of wages that would have been reported to the

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Internal Revenue Service as gross income on form W-2 and includes additional compensation

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deferred at the option of the employee.

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     (7) "Public policy" means a policy in effect at the time of the discharge concerning the

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public health, safety, or welfare established by constitutional provision, statute, or administrative

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rule.

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     28-6.15-4. Elements of wrongful discharge – Presumptive probationary period.

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     (a) A discharge is wrongful only if:

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     (1) It was in retaliation for the employee's refusal to violate public policy or for reporting

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a violation of public policy;

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     (2) The discharge was not for good cause and the employee had completed the

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employer's probationary period of employment; or

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     (3) The employer violated the express provisions of its own written personnel policy.

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     (b)(1) During a probationary period of employment, the employment may be terminated

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at the will of either the employer or the employee on notice to the other for any reason or for no

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reason.

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     (2) If an employer does not establish a specific probationary period or provide that there

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is no probationary period prior to or at the time of hire, there is a probationary period of ninety

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(90) days from the date of hire.

 

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     28-6.15-5. Remedies.

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     (a) If an employer has committed a wrongful discharge, the employee may be awarded

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lost wages and fringe benefits for a period not to exceed four (4) years from the date of discharge,

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together with interest on the lost wages and fringe benefits. Interim earnings, including amounts

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the employee could have earned with reasonable diligence, must be deducted from the amount

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awarded for lost wages. Before interim earnings are deducted from lost wages, there must be

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deducted from the interim earnings any reasonable amounts expended by the employee in

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searching for, obtaining, or relocating to new employment.

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     (b) The employee may recover punitive damages otherwise allowed by law if it is

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established by clear and convincing evidence that the employer engaged in actual fraud or actual

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malice in the discharge of the employee in violation of § 28-6.15-4.

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     (c) There is no right under any legal theory to damages for wrongful discharge under this

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chapter for pain and suffering, emotional distress, compensatory damages, punitive damages, or

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any other form of damages, except as provided for in subsections (a) and (b) of this section.

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     28-6.15-6. Limitation of actions.

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     (a) An action under this chapter must be filed within one year after the date of discharge.

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     (b) If an employer maintains written internal procedures, other than those specified in §

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28-6.15-7, under which an employee may appeal a discharge within the organizational structure

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of the employer, the employee shall first exhaust those procedures prior to filing an action under

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this chapter. The employee's failure to initiate or exhaust available internal procedures is a

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defense to an action brought under this chapter. If the employer's internal procedures are not

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completed within ninety (90) days from the date the employee initiates the internal procedures,

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the employee may file an action under this chapter and for purposes of this subsection the

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employer's internal procedures are considered exhausted. The limitation period in subsection (a)

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of this section is tolled until the procedures are exhausted. In no case may the provisions of the

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employer's internal procedures extend the limitation period in subsection (a) of this section more

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than one hundred twenty (120) days.

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     (c) If the employer maintains written internal procedures under which an employee may

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appeal a discharge within the organizational structure of the employer, the employer shall, within

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seven (7) days of the date of the discharge, notify the discharged employee of the existence of

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such procedures and shall supply the discharged employee with a copy of them. If the employer

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fails to comply with this subsection, the discharged employee need not comply with subsection

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(b) of this section.

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     28-6.15-7. Exemptions.

 

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     This chapter does not apply to a discharge:

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     (1) That is subject to any other state or federal law that provides a procedure or remedy

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for contesting the dispute. These laws include those that prohibit discharge for filing complaints,

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charges, or claims with administrative bodies or that prohibit unlawful discrimination based on

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race, national origin, sex, age, disability, creed, religion, political belief, color, marital status, and

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other similar grounds.

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     (2) Of an employee covered by a written collective bargaining agreement or a written

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contract of employment for a specific term.

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     28-6.15-8. Preemption of common-law remedies.

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     Except as provided in this chapter, no claim for discharge may arise from tort or express

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or implied contract.

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     SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon passage.

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EXPLANATION

BY THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL

OF

A N   A C T

RELATING TO LABOR AND LABOR RELATIONS -- WRONGFUL DISCHARGE FROM

EMPLOYMENT

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     This act would end Rhode Island's "employment-at-will" legal doctrine, and would

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provide job protection for employees that satisfactorily perform their duties. The act would also

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provide specific remedies for wrongful discharge.

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     This act would take effect upon passage.

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