SOLUTION MANUAL FOR m m
Employment mLaw mformHumanmResourcemPractice,m7thmEdition
Chapterm1-17
Chapterm1
Solution and Answer Guide m m m
DAVID WALSH, EMPLOYMENT LAW FOR HUMAN RESOURCE PRACTICE 2024, EDITION: 7, 97803
M M M M M M M M M M M
57717547; CHAPTER 1: OVERVIEW OF EMPLOYMENT LAW
M M M M M M
TABLE OF CONTENTS
M M
CasemQuestions..................................................................................................................................2
Warnermv.mUnited mNaturalmFoods,mInc...............................................................................................2
OTO,mL.L.C.mv.mKho .......................................................................................................................4
EEOCmv.mAUTOZONE, ..................................................................................................................7
JustmThemFacts ..................................................................................................................................8
PracticalmConsiderations ................................................................................................................ 10
ChaptermQuestions ......................................................................................................................... 11
©m2024 mCengage.mAll mRightsmReserved.mMaymnotmbemscanned,mcopiedmormduplicated,mormpostedmtomampublicly 1
m accessible
website,m inmwhole morminm part.
,CASE QUESTIONS
M
WARNER V. UNITED NATURAL FOODS, INC.
M M M M M
513 mF.mSuppm3dm477 m(M.D.mPa.,mJanuary m13,m2021)
Plaintiff mwasmanmemployeemofmUnitedmNaturalmFoods,mInc.m(―UNFI‖),mamRhodemIslandmcorporation mth
atmmaintainsmamwholesalemfoodmdistributionmoperationmin mYork,mPA.mOnmDecemberm16,m2019,mUNFImhi
red mPlaintiffmDennismWarnermasmamloadermatmthatmYork mlocation.mNeithermofmPlaintiff‘smtheoriesmofmliabi
lity mwasmplausiblymalleged m(Hemwasmwrongfullymterminatedmbased mon mhismcomplaintmtomthemDepartmen
tmof mHealth;mPlaintiffmclaimsmhemwasmfired mbecausemhemstayedmhomemfrommwork mwhilemhemawaitedmthem
resultsmof mhismCOVID-19 mtest),mthemcourtsmgranted mthemmotion mand mdismissalmof mthismcase.
1. Whatmwasmthemlegalmissuemin mthismcase? mWhatmdid mthemcourtmdecide?
Answer:
ThemlegalmissuesmweremwhethermthemPlaintiffmwasmwrongfully mterminated minmretaliation mf
ormhismcomplaintmto mthemDepartmentmofmHealth,mormbecausemhemmissedmworkmpendingmthe
mresultmof mhis mCOVID-
19 mtest.mFurthermore,mthemcasemquestionsmwhethermthemPlaintiffmcan mallegemthemterminati
on mviolatesmam―clearmmandate mof mpublicmpolicy.‖
2. Whatmargumentsmandmevidencemsupportmthemplaintiff‘sm(Warner)mclaimmthatmhemwasmwrongfu
llymterminated?
Answer:
ThemPlaintiffmarguesmthatmhemwasmwrongfullymterminated mbasedmon mhismcomplaintmtom
themDepartmentmofmHealth.mThismargumentmdoesmnotmholdmasmPlaintiffmwasmnotmunde
rmany maffirmativemormstatutory mduty mtomreportmallegedmviolationsmofmthemexecutivembr
anch‘smCOVID-19 mmitigation morders.
Plaintiff‘smsecond mtheorymalsomfails.mTo mreiterate,mPlaintiffmclaimsmhemwasmfiredmbecause mhemst
ayed mhome mfrommwork mwhilemhemawaited mthemresultsmof mhismCOVID-
19 mtest.mHemaversmthatmbecausemthemSecretarymofmHealth‘smAprilm15 morderminstructedmthatmsym
ptomatic memployees
―should mnotifymtheirmsupervisormandmstaymhome,‖mhemwasmfollowingmthemgovernmentmordersm(
Pennsylvania mDisease mPrevention mand mControlmLaw).
ThemPlaintiffmpleadsmthatmhemquarantinedmwhilemwaitingmformtestmresultsmatmthemdirection m
of mhismsupervisors.mItmismimplausiblemthatmDefendantminstructedmhimmtomstaymhomemfromm
work mwhilemwaitingmformhismtestmresults,mandmthenmfiredmhimmbecause mhemstayed mhomemw
hilemwaitingmformhismtestmresults.
3. Whymdoesmthemcourtmrulemformthemdefendant-employermdespitemexpressing msympathy mformthemplaintiff?
Answer:
©m2024 mCengage.mAll mRightsmReserved.mMaymnotmbemscanned,mcopiedmormduplicated,mormpostedmtomampublicly 2
m accessible
website,m inmwhole morminm part.
, Asmmentionedmin mquestionm2,mthemcourtmsaidmthatmitmcould mnotmsustain mamclaimmpled minmthi
smmanner.mBecausemneithermofmPlaintiff‘smtheoriesmofmliability mismplausiblymalleged,mthemco
urtmthusmgranted mthemdismissalmof mthismcase.
ThemPublicmPolicy mexception mcouldmbemusedmifmlegislationmwasmdisobeyed,mbutmthatmismnot
mthe mcase mhere.mWhatmconstitutesm―public mpolicy‖minmthe mCommonwealthmismdetermined m
by mreferencemto mjudicialmdecisionsmofmPennsylvania mcourts,mthemPennsylvaniamconstitution
,mand mstatutesmpromulgated mbymthemPennsylvania mlegislature.mThemcourtmismsympatheticmto
mPlaintiff‘s margumentmthatmDefendant‘s mconductmpotentiallymunderminedmthe mCommonwe
alth‘smability mto mmitigatemthemspread mof mCOVID-
19.mItmismalso mtruemthatmthemGovernor‘smandmSecretary mofmHealth‘smpowersmto mmandatemcer
tain mpandemicmmitigation mstandardsmdomderivemfrommstatute,mnamelymthemEmergencymCod
e.mThemcourtmismhesitantmto mpronouncemthatmanmemploymentmdecisionmpotentially minconsist
entmwith man mexecutive mbranch‘smCOVID-
19 mmitigation meffortmclearlymviolatesmpublicmpolicy mwheremtheremismnomaffirmativemindicati
on mthatmthemlegislaturemwould magree.
Furthermore, mPennsylvaniamcourtsmhavemrecognizedmthempublicmpolicy mexceptionmwheremt
hememployer:m(1)mcompelsmthememployeemto mengageminmcriminalmactivity;m(2)mpreventsmthe
memployeemfrom mcomplyingmwithma mduty mimposedmbymstatute;morm(3)mdischarges mthe mempl
oyeemwhen mamstatutemexpresslymprohibitsmsuchmtermination.mThemcourtmsaid mthatmitmwasmsk
epticalmaboutmPlaintiff‘smargumentmthatmtheremwasmanmarticulablemand mrecognizable mpublic
mpolicy, mwhich mwouldmbema mpremise mforma mwrongfulmtermination mclaimmundermeithermtheor
y.
4. Do myou magree mwith mthemdecision min mthismcase? mWhymormwhymnot?
Answer:
Students‘manswersmwillmdiffer,mbutmmostmmaymconcludemthatmthemPublicmPolicymexemption
mdoes mnotmapply mhere. mThe mwrongfulmtermination mevidencemalsomdoes mnotmhold, masmEmpl
oymentmin mPennsylvania mismtypically mat-will.m―[T]hempresumption mof mallmnon-
mcontractualmemploymentmrelations mismthatmitmismat-
willmand m…mthismpresumption misman mextremely mstrongmone.‖
5. What,mifmany,mimplicationsmdoesmthismdecisionmhold mformthemeffortsmofmpublicmhealthmofficialsmtomd
ealmwith mthemCOVID-19 mpandemic?
Answer:
Themspread mof mCOVID-
19 mwasmcontainedmwithmdifferentmexecutivemorders,mwhichmweremeffectivemin mpublicmhealt
h mobjectives.mThemgovernormprohibited mallmnon-life-
sustainingmbusinessesmfrommoperatingmon mMarchm19,m2020.mAprilm15,m2020,mthemSecretar
y mof mHealthmorderedmessentialmbusinessesmto mimplementmcertain msocialmdistancing,mmitiga
tion,mand mcleaningmprotocolsmto mhelp mcontain mthemspread mof mCOVID-
19.mThemSecretary mofmHealth malsominstructedmthatmemployeesmofmessentialmbusinessesmwh
o mdevelop mCOVID-19 msymptoms
―should mnotify mtheirmsuperiormand mstaymhome.‖mSoonmafter,mthemDepartmentmofmHealth
©m2024 mCengage.mAll mRightsmReserved.mMaymnotmbemscanned,mcopiedmormduplicated,mormpostedmtomampublicly 3
m accessible
website,m inmwhole morminm part.
, mcreated man monlinemCOVID-
19 mcomplaintmformmformbusinessmpatronsmand memployeesmto mreportmanymrelevantmissues
mormconcerns.
©m2024 mCengage.mAll mRightsmReserved.mMaymnotmbemscanned,mcopiedmormduplicated,mormpostedmtomampublicly 4
m accessible
website,m inmwhole morminm part.
Employment mLaw mformHumanmResourcemPractice,m7thmEdition
Chapterm1-17
Chapterm1
Solution and Answer Guide m m m
DAVID WALSH, EMPLOYMENT LAW FOR HUMAN RESOURCE PRACTICE 2024, EDITION: 7, 97803
M M M M M M M M M M M
57717547; CHAPTER 1: OVERVIEW OF EMPLOYMENT LAW
M M M M M M
TABLE OF CONTENTS
M M
CasemQuestions..................................................................................................................................2
Warnermv.mUnited mNaturalmFoods,mInc...............................................................................................2
OTO,mL.L.C.mv.mKho .......................................................................................................................4
EEOCmv.mAUTOZONE, ..................................................................................................................7
JustmThemFacts ..................................................................................................................................8
PracticalmConsiderations ................................................................................................................ 10
ChaptermQuestions ......................................................................................................................... 11
©m2024 mCengage.mAll mRightsmReserved.mMaymnotmbemscanned,mcopiedmormduplicated,mormpostedmtomampublicly 1
m accessible
website,m inmwhole morminm part.
,CASE QUESTIONS
M
WARNER V. UNITED NATURAL FOODS, INC.
M M M M M
513 mF.mSuppm3dm477 m(M.D.mPa.,mJanuary m13,m2021)
Plaintiff mwasmanmemployeemofmUnitedmNaturalmFoods,mInc.m(―UNFI‖),mamRhodemIslandmcorporation mth
atmmaintainsmamwholesalemfoodmdistributionmoperationmin mYork,mPA.mOnmDecemberm16,m2019,mUNFImhi
red mPlaintiffmDennismWarnermasmamloadermatmthatmYork mlocation.mNeithermofmPlaintiff‘smtheoriesmofmliabi
lity mwasmplausiblymalleged m(Hemwasmwrongfullymterminatedmbased mon mhismcomplaintmtomthemDepartmen
tmof mHealth;mPlaintiffmclaimsmhemwasmfired mbecausemhemstayedmhomemfrommwork mwhilemhemawaitedmthem
resultsmof mhismCOVID-19 mtest),mthemcourtsmgranted mthemmotion mand mdismissalmof mthismcase.
1. Whatmwasmthemlegalmissuemin mthismcase? mWhatmdid mthemcourtmdecide?
Answer:
ThemlegalmissuesmweremwhethermthemPlaintiffmwasmwrongfully mterminated minmretaliation mf
ormhismcomplaintmto mthemDepartmentmofmHealth,mormbecausemhemmissedmworkmpendingmthe
mresultmof mhis mCOVID-
19 mtest.mFurthermore,mthemcasemquestionsmwhethermthemPlaintiffmcan mallegemthemterminati
on mviolatesmam―clearmmandate mof mpublicmpolicy.‖
2. Whatmargumentsmandmevidencemsupportmthemplaintiff‘sm(Warner)mclaimmthatmhemwasmwrongfu
llymterminated?
Answer:
ThemPlaintiffmarguesmthatmhemwasmwrongfullymterminated mbasedmon mhismcomplaintmtom
themDepartmentmofmHealth.mThismargumentmdoesmnotmholdmasmPlaintiffmwasmnotmunde
rmany maffirmativemormstatutory mduty mtomreportmallegedmviolationsmofmthemexecutivembr
anch‘smCOVID-19 mmitigation morders.
Plaintiff‘smsecond mtheorymalsomfails.mTo mreiterate,mPlaintiffmclaimsmhemwasmfiredmbecause mhemst
ayed mhome mfrommwork mwhilemhemawaited mthemresultsmof mhismCOVID-
19 mtest.mHemaversmthatmbecausemthemSecretarymofmHealth‘smAprilm15 morderminstructedmthatmsym
ptomatic memployees
―should mnotifymtheirmsupervisormandmstaymhome,‖mhemwasmfollowingmthemgovernmentmordersm(
Pennsylvania mDisease mPrevention mand mControlmLaw).
ThemPlaintiffmpleadsmthatmhemquarantinedmwhilemwaitingmformtestmresultsmatmthemdirection m
of mhismsupervisors.mItmismimplausiblemthatmDefendantminstructedmhimmtomstaymhomemfromm
work mwhilemwaitingmformhismtestmresults,mandmthenmfiredmhimmbecause mhemstayed mhomemw
hilemwaitingmformhismtestmresults.
3. Whymdoesmthemcourtmrulemformthemdefendant-employermdespitemexpressing msympathy mformthemplaintiff?
Answer:
©m2024 mCengage.mAll mRightsmReserved.mMaymnotmbemscanned,mcopiedmormduplicated,mormpostedmtomampublicly 2
m accessible
website,m inmwhole morminm part.
, Asmmentionedmin mquestionm2,mthemcourtmsaidmthatmitmcould mnotmsustain mamclaimmpled minmthi
smmanner.mBecausemneithermofmPlaintiff‘smtheoriesmofmliability mismplausiblymalleged,mthemco
urtmthusmgranted mthemdismissalmof mthismcase.
ThemPublicmPolicy mexception mcouldmbemusedmifmlegislationmwasmdisobeyed,mbutmthatmismnot
mthe mcase mhere.mWhatmconstitutesm―public mpolicy‖minmthe mCommonwealthmismdetermined m
by mreferencemto mjudicialmdecisionsmofmPennsylvania mcourts,mthemPennsylvaniamconstitution
,mand mstatutesmpromulgated mbymthemPennsylvania mlegislature.mThemcourtmismsympatheticmto
mPlaintiff‘s margumentmthatmDefendant‘s mconductmpotentiallymunderminedmthe mCommonwe
alth‘smability mto mmitigatemthemspread mof mCOVID-
19.mItmismalso mtruemthatmthemGovernor‘smandmSecretary mofmHealth‘smpowersmto mmandatemcer
tain mpandemicmmitigation mstandardsmdomderivemfrommstatute,mnamelymthemEmergencymCod
e.mThemcourtmismhesitantmto mpronouncemthatmanmemploymentmdecisionmpotentially minconsist
entmwith man mexecutive mbranch‘smCOVID-
19 mmitigation meffortmclearlymviolatesmpublicmpolicy mwheremtheremismnomaffirmativemindicati
on mthatmthemlegislaturemwould magree.
Furthermore, mPennsylvaniamcourtsmhavemrecognizedmthempublicmpolicy mexceptionmwheremt
hememployer:m(1)mcompelsmthememployeemto mengageminmcriminalmactivity;m(2)mpreventsmthe
memployeemfrom mcomplyingmwithma mduty mimposedmbymstatute;morm(3)mdischarges mthe mempl
oyeemwhen mamstatutemexpresslymprohibitsmsuchmtermination.mThemcourtmsaid mthatmitmwasmsk
epticalmaboutmPlaintiff‘smargumentmthatmtheremwasmanmarticulablemand mrecognizable mpublic
mpolicy, mwhich mwouldmbema mpremise mforma mwrongfulmtermination mclaimmundermeithermtheor
y.
4. Do myou magree mwith mthemdecision min mthismcase? mWhymormwhymnot?
Answer:
Students‘manswersmwillmdiffer,mbutmmostmmaymconcludemthatmthemPublicmPolicymexemption
mdoes mnotmapply mhere. mThe mwrongfulmtermination mevidencemalsomdoes mnotmhold, masmEmpl
oymentmin mPennsylvania mismtypically mat-will.m―[T]hempresumption mof mallmnon-
mcontractualmemploymentmrelations mismthatmitmismat-
willmand m…mthismpresumption misman mextremely mstrongmone.‖
5. What,mifmany,mimplicationsmdoesmthismdecisionmhold mformthemeffortsmofmpublicmhealthmofficialsmtomd
ealmwith mthemCOVID-19 mpandemic?
Answer:
Themspread mof mCOVID-
19 mwasmcontainedmwithmdifferentmexecutivemorders,mwhichmweremeffectivemin mpublicmhealt
h mobjectives.mThemgovernormprohibited mallmnon-life-
sustainingmbusinessesmfrommoperatingmon mMarchm19,m2020.mAprilm15,m2020,mthemSecretar
y mof mHealthmorderedmessentialmbusinessesmto mimplementmcertain msocialmdistancing,mmitiga
tion,mand mcleaningmprotocolsmto mhelp mcontain mthemspread mof mCOVID-
19.mThemSecretary mofmHealth malsominstructedmthatmemployeesmofmessentialmbusinessesmwh
o mdevelop mCOVID-19 msymptoms
―should mnotify mtheirmsuperiormand mstaymhome.‖mSoonmafter,mthemDepartmentmofmHealth
©m2024 mCengage.mAll mRightsmReserved.mMaymnotmbemscanned,mcopiedmormduplicated,mormpostedmtomampublicly 3
m accessible
website,m inmwhole morminm part.
, mcreated man monlinemCOVID-
19 mcomplaintmformmformbusinessmpatronsmand memployeesmto mreportmanymrelevantmissues
mormconcerns.
©m2024 mCengage.mAll mRightsmReserved.mMaymnotmbemscanned,mcopiedmormduplicated,mormpostedmtomampublicly 4
m accessible
website,m inmwhole morminm part.
