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Can I terminate employees without violating employment laws in Arkansas? What are the requirements?

Terminating Employees in Arkansas

To terminate employees without violating employment laws in Arkansas, you must ensure that the termination is not discriminatory or retaliatory. Additionally, you must comply with any contractual obligations or company policies related to termination.

Under Arkansas law, any person who is employed by the State of Arkansas and who falsified the employment application by alleging to have earned a college degree which in fact was not earned shall be terminated from employment with the state [1.1].

If you are terminating an employee for reasons related to wages, you must ensure that you are not paying the employee less than the minimum wages, including overtime compensation or compensatory time off as provided by the Arkansas Minimum Wage Act [3.1]. If you pay an employee less than the minimum wages, you may be liable to the employee affected for the full amount of the wages, less any amount actually paid to the employee by the employer, and costs and such reasonable attorney’s fees as may be allowed by the court. The employee may also be awarded an additional amount up to, but not greater than, the amount under subdivision (a)(1)(B)(i) of this section to be paid as liquidated damages if the employee proves the violation was willful [3.1].

If you are a public employer, you cannot take adverse action against a public employee because the public employee or a person authorized to act on behalf of the public employee communicates in good faith to an appropriate authority the existence of waste of public funds, property, or manpower, including federal funds, property, or manpower administered or controlled by a public employer, or a violation or suspected violation of a law, rule, or regulation adopted under the law of this state or a political subdivision of the state [4.1].

It is important to note that nothing in the Arkansas Minimum Wage Act, including the provisions of § 11-4-218(b), shall be deemed to interfere with, impede, or in any way diminish the right of employers and employees to bargain collectively through representatives of their own choosing in order to establish wages or other conditions of work [3.2].

If you are terminating a constitutional officer, there are restrictions on other employment. A constitutional officer who was employed by a state agency, a public school district of this state in a licensed or nonlicensed position, a state-supported vocational education school, an education service cooperative, or a state-supported college or university and who receives the prior approval of the Joint Budget Committee during a legislative session or the Legislative Council between legislative sessions, and the Governor, may transfer employment to or become reemployed by another state agency, public school district of this state, state-supported vocational education school, an educational service cooperative, or a state-supported college or university; change positions under his or her current employer; or upon retirement from a state agency, public school district of this state, state-supported vocational education school, an education service cooperative, or a state-supported college or university, enter into part-time or temporary employment with a state agency, public school district of this state, state-supported vocational education school, an educational service cooperative, or a state-supported college or university. Employment under this subdivision shall not be approved if the employment will violate §§ 19-11-701 — 19-11-709 [2.1].

In summary, to terminate employees without violating employment laws in Arkansas, you must ensure that the termination is not discriminatory or retaliatory, comply with any contractual obligations or company policies related to termination, and comply with the Arkansas Minimum Wage Act and the Public Employer Conduct Prohibited Act. If you are terminating a constitutional officer, you must also comply with the restrictions on other employment.

Source(s):
Jurisdiction

Arkansas