Carrying a Gun at Work

Can your employer fire you for carrying a gun at work? What about concaved carry? Do they need a written policy before they can discipline or terminate you for your firearm? Do we all potentially lose our 2A rights when we clock in? The Armed Attorneys break down the gun law that applies to carrying at work in at-will employment states and how it impacts the Second Amendment.

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PARTIAL AUTO-TRANSCRIPT
Today we're talking about whether your employer can restrict your right to effectively carry a firearm at work or in company vehicles ... we have to start with some assumptions we've got a legal carrier somebody carrying under the authority of constitutional carry or maybe a license or permit they're carrying a legal weapon they're not a prohibited person all things being equal and whether they can carry that firearm into the premises of their work or in their company vehicle and what do we say you know when it comes to at will employment states emily yeah so and that's our second assumption here right is and this is the assumption that's going to apply to 90 plus percent of people who are watching this is that you're in an employment at will state meaning you can be fired for anything at any time right so i mean i don't like richard's white shirt i do but if i didn't i could fire him for that um and also that you're not a union employee you don't have a collective bargaining agreement basically you don't have procedural rights of between you and being terminated which is again most of us so all of that assumption in place the courts have said yes your boss can infringe on the second amendment he can infringe on your right to carry and the consequence is if you don't obey you can be fired and the reason for that is there really are just a couple classes we call them protected classes there are a couple classes people can fall into that stop them from being fired these are the reasons you can't be fired they are your race your gender your national origin any disability your religion your genetic information and being over 40 years old being pregnant or any medical conditions that develop from pregnancy and also you can't be fired in retaliation for asserting any anti-discrimination rights under state and federal law you can't be fired for refusing to do something illegal or unethical and you can't be fired for complaining about osha violations and there are a couple others but those are our biggies so i mean what's not on that list richard yes unfortunately being somebody who exercises the second amendment somebody who keeps and bears arms somebody a lawful carrier they are not considered or part of a protected class ... they're not allowed to carry at work or in company vehicles that that would be considered a lawful termination under most states law now that kind of brings us to our attorney pro tip of the day of do you lose your right to self-defense just because your work has a no firearms policy emily yeah so let's say that you've chosen to disregard that policy or maybe it wasn't clear it was in the handbook you didn't know but either way you've carried into your office place when you're not supposed to maybe you've got a firearm in your company vehicle and you're not supposed to have one in the company vehicle you can still defend yourself you know the castle doctrine in most states protects you in the vehicle in some states it protects you in your place of work you still get those castle doctrine benefits and you can still exercise self-defense however just because it's not a crime to defend yourself and just because the law you know probably castle doctrine covers you in a lot of these situations it still doesn't mean you can't get fired it doesn't trump the employment law it doesn't trump your employer's ability to discipline or fire you so i mean you can be cleared by the courts but you might still be walking out with a box of your stuff

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[gonzaleg]

“And as I lay there realizing I was a victim of a crazed disgruntled employee, I took solace and comfort in knowing that, though I was unable to defend myself and my coworkers, at least I would die being in full compliance with that company no-firearms policy, ” said NO ONE EVER.

[AdL]

If I ever need my firearm, my last thought will be, "do I get to keep my job after this."

[tiredoldman]

I have a great employer who not only allows me to carry but also supports and encourages all of us to carry.

[frostriver]

Our employee handbook doesn’t mention firearms or weapons. Talked with the big boss about carrying on the job. He said if it wasn’t in the handbook, not a problem. I told him that he nor anyone else would ever know if I decided to carry. Started the next day. Been doing so for almost 5 years now 👍🏼 I’m happy with my work and this is just more incentive to stay

[georgevue]

Excellent video - Retired & worked at Lowes part-time. Lowes has a very strict anti-2A policy. Employees cannot carry on their person nor keep a firearm in their vehicle. Here in far left Massachusetts I made the mistake of complaining about MA’s LTC permitting process & the Coworker ran to management fearful that I was carrying. I was immediately brought into HR & forced to prove I did not have a firearm in my possession. From that day on I parked in the neighboring businesses parking lot & never said another word about firearms. Now that I don’t work there I conceal carry every time I shop there.

[danielweston]

I have seen both, one was prohibited by Insurance (exposive gasses in the facility could not have lighters etc also) but when someone complained about leaving weapons in the parking lot they provided locked boxes in the HR office. Best to have conversations and work out a balanced approach.

[AshGreen]

If your employer forbids your legal means of self defense and doesn't provide adequate security, an employee should sue said employee if attacked while on the job

[nickabel]

Thumbs up for the last couple seconds.
If ur employer has a policy the only way they should know is if u think you're about to die or be very injured. In which case job ain't the first thing on my mind

[zivendine]

I’ve had employers that had a no firearms policy for liability reasons but turned a blind eye to outside sales people carrying guns in their car.

[coreymac]

In TN if they don't have the correct signage posted it isn't illegal to carry there, though they can still fire you. It's technically against my company policy but they not only don't have any signage posted prohibiting the carry of firearms on the property, they even offer a discount to customers with carry permits. So I concealed carry anyway, if they find out and I get fired so be it.

[gregorymaupin]

We had a threat where I worked at one point and my boss actually bought every single employee a gun and provided training this was years ago in Lubbock and it was shortly after I had been discharged out of the navy. I was happy to help them out with everything I enjoyed working there for several years until moving to Oklahoma.

[patrickdaly]

I met a guy who at one time was an ambulance driver (I don’t remember if he was also an EMT or paramedic), and he said the owner of the company told them if they carried he didn’t want to know. Those folks can encounter some dangerous situations and go into bad neighborhoods, so he had no problem with them protecting themselves if needed. Of course he also didn’t want the liability that came with officially endorsing it policy-wise.

[ronniethompson]

For anyone to find out that I have a firearm I would have to defend myself and in that case I would just be glad I was alive to be fired

[scottroberts]

Thats why I tell no one show no one and if I lose my job, I'll be working someplace else in the morning.

[drakestucy]

Some interesting stuff right here . I work for Kroger and I currently am suspended pending and under investigation just because I chose to conceal and carry . I’ve worked there for years and it just goes to show no matter how hard you work and reliable you are to the company, you can be replaced as easy as a lightbulb .

[LOVES-A]

Florida is a right to work state, however that doesn't stop employer's from having a no firearm at work policy, at the end of the day I can get another job but I can't get another life.

[lancersbowchuckle]

I am interested in a conversation about employment terminations resulting from someone using a firearm for self defense outside of their workplace/work vehicle on their own time. Over the last few years we have seen many instances where a person has used a firearm defensively to protect themselves in a public space outside of work, and they were terminated simply for PR reasons. Specifically when the individual’s private information was maliciously released to make political noise including where they were employed. Even spouses of those individuals were fired for refusing to denounce their spouse’s actions. I think this is wrong, and should be disallowed.

[petesheppard]

Years ago, I let a speedloader of ammo fall out of my pocket in the shop of my employer. I was given a warning, and told I would be fired if another firearms-related incident occurred at work. I didn't like the policy, but recognized that the company has the right to set its policy. This was long ago, and I left the company on good terms. Thankfully, I am now self-employed--you can guess what my business' firearm policy is...😎 I'm also a one-man operation.

[rucerius]

Businesses can have a no firearms policy preventing you from carrying while on the premises, this includes your employer.
I prefer to be able to carry, but if my employer has a no firearms policy I either follow it or work for someone else.

[larrysfarris]

My old employer (retired now), first said no firearms allowed on the property, to include the controlled access parking lot. That was apparently challenged in Texas and the employer had to change to posting a 30.06 sign at the building entrance. This allowed employees to lock a handgun in their cars during their work shift. [pre-30.07 days]