In Korb v. Raytheon, a man sued the company for being fired, claiming that they violated his First Amendment rights. The court ruled that the man was free to speak out, and he had the right to disagree with Raytheon, but he did not have the right to do so at Raytheon’s expense. Because the man was an at-will employee, Raytheon had the right to terminate him with or without cause, so long as they did not violate public policy, which they did not. The same ruling would most likely apply here. Jeremy Fuller had the right to tweet what he did, but he didn’t have the right to do so at Red Bull Racing’s expense. By that I mean, he can’t do or say something that damages the reputation of his company and expect to keep his job. So, RBR was within their rights to terminate him as long as they did not violate public policy. In this case, they did not violate it.

He is free to think what he wants. But, when you post something on Twitter or say it in a public forum in which your affiliation with organizations is clearly stated, more times than not, you’ll find yourself fired if you share controversial opinions. I’m reminded of the employee with the Philadelphia Eagles who criticized the organization on Facebook for letting go of Brian Dawkins. He was fired. As an employee of an organization, if you criticize them publicly, you’ll most likely be fired, especially if you’re not essential. What the Eagles employee did was far less controversial than what the RBR employee did, so he should have known he would get fired.

Great article!