Publications
What Do You Do When the Terminated Employee
Harasses and Defames You?
The internet has given terminated employees who seek vengeance on their former employer and/or the manager who fired them an audience, potentially in the tens of millions, to whom they can vent their spleens.
For instance, there are cases in which a terminated employee has given the email addresses of company executives to porn sites and other spam providers in an effort to embarrass them and flood their email accounts; posted the top management positions at his former company as job openings on internet job placement sites to cause confusion and embarrassment; and made false, defamatory postings on numerous websites (and to stock analysts, customers, etc.).
In a noteworthy California case, a fired employee and his girlfriend posted derogatory messages on internet bulletin boards, defaming their former employer, labeling the manager who did the firing and others as chronic liars, mentally ill, incompetent, on hallucinogenic drugs, and so on. The company sued, alleging, among other things, defamation and invasion of privacy, and it sought an injunction. That further emboldened the ex-employee, resulting in 13,000 additional messages email messages, the creation of a website dedicated to furthering the attacks, and a vow that he would keep it up until he died.
Ultimately, the case went to trial and, after six weeks in the courtroom, the company won substantial compensatory and punitive damages, as well as an injunction. But the ex-employee appealed, and the appeals court substantially modified the injunction – there are very significant First Amendment prohibitions on restraining free speech, even when it is defamatory.
The upshot was that the company obtained a money judgment it will most likely be unable to collect, a ton of adverse trial publicity – and the defamatory postings and harassment continued anyway.
Is there a solution to this kind of conduct? Candidly, there are few remedies other than seeking to minimize the emotion inherent in an employee termination at the outset.
In our experience, three factors provoke the most vengeful responses: surprise; perceived arbitrariness and unfairness; and employer inconsistency. You can often limit the emotional backlash through a progressive disciplinary system, tied to meaningful employee evaluations, which gives employees fair warning and a chance to improve, and a structured grievance process which provides disgruntled employees with a controlled forum for venting… another topic for a future issue of Avoiding Lawsuits.
As always, let us know if we can help.
Counsel Consulting Group LLC helps companies throughout the United States avoid employment and HR-related claims and liabilities. CCG assesses existing policies, procedures and problem areas; it provides customized liability-avoidance training to managers and executives; and it designs and implements business techniques that reduce employment liability risks on a long term basis. CCG also offers specialized workshops for managers and HR executives, customized consulting in focused employment-related areas, and CD-ROM and web-based training alternatives. For more information, contact us at info@powelltrachtman.com and visit our website at www.counselconsulting.com.
Powell, Trachtman, Logan, Carrle & Lombardo, P.C. is a full service law firm with offices in suburban Philadelphia, PA, Harrisburg, PA and Cherry Hill, NJ. Powell Trachtman represents a variety of commercial enterprises, entrepreneurs and business executives in respect to their litigation, litigation avoidance planning, business formation, business transactions, estate and tax planning, and other needs. We are also approved defense counsel for numerous insurance carriers in matters pertaining to professional malpractice, products liability, employment practices, directors and officers liability, and many other fields. For more information, contact us at info@powelltrachtman.com and visit our website at www.powelltrachtman.com.
