When can you terminate an employee?

• A. You must provide two weeks' notice for all terminations
• B. In California, termination can occur with no notice in most cases
• C. Termination is allowed only for cause
• D. Termination requires a formal hearing with a panel

Answer: (B)

In California, most employees are at-will, meaning an employer can terminate an employee at any time for any lawful reason, or for no reason at all, without requiring advance notice. This makes terminating without notice permissible in most situations. It’s important to remember that this freedom has limits: terminations cannot be for illegal reasons (like discrimination based on protected characteristics, retaliation, or firing someone for whistleblowing), and if there’s a written contract, an employee handbook with a clear promise of job security, or a collective bargaining agreement, those terms can restrict the ability to terminate. There are also potential implied contracts from company policies, but absent those, the default is at-will. Because of this, there is no legal requirement to provide two weeks’ notice, nor to hold a formal hearing with a panel.