George's, Fred's, and Sue's employer was a chain pizza parlor located in a shopping mall near their university, the State University of New York at Albany.

The local manager decided that rumors of sexual harassment of customers were so concerning that he decided to look at what each were posting on their social media accounts to see if they had a pattern of this sort of behavior. (None of the three employees had privacy settings that prevented the manager from viewing their social media behavior.)

On looking into their posts, the manager found nothing in any social media accounts indicating sexual harassment was a concern. However, George had shared several jokes that were clearly racist. Fred had told friends the pizza was over-priced at the restaurant and the manager was a "jerk." Sue was trying to get a better paid job at a local competitor.

The manager fired all three employees. Was that fair in your opinion? Was that legal? If so, should it be legal? If your answer to any of these questions differs for the three employees, please explain why.

Answer rating: 100% (QA)

Determining the fairness and legality of the managers decision to fire George Fred and Sue requires an analysis of relevant factors Lets consider each ... View the full answer