Kansas At-Will Employment Laws: Exceptions and Your Rights

Kansas is an at-will employment state, meaning an employer may terminate an employee at any time, for any reason, or for no reason at all, without legal liability, unless a specific exception applies. Kansas courts first recognized the wrongful-discharge tort in Murphy v. City of Topeka, 630 P.2d 186 (Kan. App. 1981). The Kansas Supreme Court later articulated the governing public-policy standard in Palmer v. Brown, 242 Kan. 893, 752 P.2d 685 (Kan. 1988), and addressed implied-contract and good-faith claims in Morriss v. Coleman Co., 738 P.2d 841 (Kan. 1987).

Is Kansas an at-will employment state?

Kansas follows the at-will employment doctrine. Under that default rule, either the employer or the employee may end the employment relationship at any time, with or without cause, and with or without notice. An employer has no legal obligation to give a reason for a termination, and a false or pretextual reason is not, by itself, actionable. This default can be modified, however, by a written contract, a collective-bargaining agreement, or one of the recognized common-law exceptions described below. The Kansas legislature has also enacted statutory protections that carve specific termination scenarios out of the at-will rule, and the federal floor applies to all Kansas employers regardless of size.

Exceptions to at-will employment in Kansas

Kansas recognizes two of the three major common-law exceptions to the at-will rule, and rejects the third.

Public-policy exception (tort). Kansas recognizes a tort claim for retaliatory or wrongful discharge in violation of public policy. The Kansas Court of Appeals first recognized this exception in Murphy v. City of Topeka, 630 P.2d 186 (Kan. App. 1981), holding that an employee fired for filing a workers' compensation claim had an actionable wrongful-discharge claim. The Kansas Supreme Court later articulated the governing standard in Palmer v. Brown, 242 Kan. 893, 752 P.2d 685 (Kan. 1988), which established that the public policy must be clearly defined, must benefit the public at large rather than the employee alone, and must be grounded in the Kansas Constitution, a state statute, or an established judicial precedent. Firing an employee for exercising a statutory right (such as filing a workers' comp claim), for refusing to commit an illegal act, or for reporting a legal violation to authorities can all support a public-policy tort claim in Kansas. Vague appeals to general fairness are insufficient.

Implied-contract exception. Kansas also recognizes an implied-contract exception. Kansas courts have held that employee handbooks, oral promises made during hiring, and established employer policies can collectively create an implied contract that modifies the at-will relationship. If an employer's handbook sets out progressive discipline steps or promises that employees will be discharged only for cause, and the employer then terminates an employee without following those procedures, the employee may have a breach-of-implied-contract claim. Whether an implied contract exists depends on the specific language of the handbook and any oral representations made, as well as whether the employer included a clear and conspicuous disclaimer reserving the right to modify or disregard the handbook's terms.

Covenant of good faith and fair dealing. Kansas does NOT recognize a standalone covenant of good faith and fair dealing in the at-will employment context. Some states permit employees to sue when a termination is made in bad faith, particularly to deprive an employee of earned compensation. Kansas courts have declined to import that doctrine into employment relationships, so bad faith alone, without a public-policy violation or an implied contract, does not support a wrongful-termination claim.

Is Kansas a right-to-work state?

Kansas IS a right-to-work state, and this is an important distinction from at-will employment. The right-to-work protection is enshrined in the Kansas Constitution at Article 15, Section 12, and implemented by statute at K.S.A. 44-831. Under right-to-work, no employee in Kansas may be required to join a labor union, pay union dues, or pay any other fee to a union as a condition of getting or keeping a job. This rule applies whether or not a collective-bargaining agreement is in place.

Right-to-work law and at-will employment law are entirely separate legal concepts. Right-to-work concerns only union membership and dues payment. At-will employment concerns whether and how an employer may terminate an employee. An employee in Kansas can be covered by a union contract (which may limit at-will termination) while still benefiting from the right-to-work rule that bars mandatory union membership. The two rules operate independently.

As of 2026, Kansas is one of 26 right-to-work states nationally. Michigan repealed its right-to-work law, effective February 13, 2024 (2023 PA 8), reducing the national count from 27 to 26. Kansas has maintained its constitutional right-to-work protection since 1958.

What at-will employment does not allow in Kansas

At-will status never gives an employer permission to fire a worker for an unlawful reason. Federal law establishes a floor that applies to all Kansas employers.

Under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, an employer may not discharge an employee because of race, color, religion, sex, or national origin. The Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA) prohibits termination based on age for workers 40 and older. The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) protects qualified individuals with disabilities from discriminatory discharge. The Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act (GINA) bars termination based on genetic information. The Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (PWFA), effective 2023, protects employees needing reasonable accommodations related to pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions. The Equal Pay Act prohibits wage-based sex discrimination.

Federal law also bars retaliation for protected activity. An employer cannot lawfully fire an employee for taking leave under the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), for reporting wage-and-hour violations under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), for engaging in concerted activity protected by the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA), for reporting workplace safety hazards under OSHA, or for military service or deployment under USERRA.

Kansas adds its own layer through the Kansas Acts Against Discrimination (KAAD), K.S.A. 44-1001 et seq. The KAAD prohibits employment discrimination, including termination, based on race, religion, color, sex, disability, national origin, ancestry, and age. The KAAD applies to employers with four or more employees within the state. Kansas also has specific statutory protections for employees who file workers' compensation claims, protecting the right that was at the core of the Murphy decision.

If you were fired in Kansas

The at-will rule means your employer was not required to provide a reason for your termination. However, the absence of a stated reason does not make the termination legal. An unlawful motive remains unlawful even when left unstated.

If you have been fired in Kansas, document everything while details are fresh: the date and circumstances of the termination, any written or verbal communications from your employer, any performance reviews or written warnings, and any protected activity you engaged in before the firing (such as filing a workers' comp claim, reporting a safety issue, or complaining about discrimination). If you received a severance agreement, do not sign it immediately. Severance agreements typically release legal claims in exchange for payment, and you generally have at least 21 days to review the offer.

Next, consider whether any exception applies. Did your employer's handbook describe progressive discipline or a for-cause termination standard that was not followed? Were you fired close in time to filing a workers' compensation claim, taking FMLA leave, or reporting a legal violation? Was there any indication your employer's real motive involved race, sex, age, disability, or another protected characteristic?

Employment law deadlines in Kansas are short. A charge with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) or the Kansas Human Rights Commission (KHRC) must typically be filed within 300 days of the adverse action. Consulting a licensed employment attorney in Kansas promptly is important, because missing a filing deadline can forfeit a valid claim.

This article is general legal information, not legal advice. Employment law varies by state and changes frequently, and it is not a substitute for advice about a specific termination. For guidance on your situation, consult a licensed employment attorney in Kansas.

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Sources

• Kansas Statutes Annotated, Right-to-Work (K.S.A. 44-831): https://www.ksrevisor.org/statutes/
• Kansas Constitution, Art. 15, sec. 12 (right-to-work): https://www.ksrevisor.org/kscst.html
• Murphy v. City of Topeka, 630 P.2d 186 (Kan. App. 1981) (public-policy wrongful-discharge exception)
• Palmer v. Brown, 242 Kan. 893, 752 P.2d 685 (Kan. 1988) (public-policy exception standard: clearly defined, benefits public, grounded in constitution/statute/precedent)
• Morriss v. Coleman Co., 738 P.2d 841 (Kan. 1987) (implied-contract exception and rejection of good-faith covenant in at-will employment)
• Kansas Acts Against Discrimination, K.S.A. 44-1001 et seq.: https://www.ksrevisor.org/statutes/
• Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, "Laws Enforced by EEOC": https://www.eeoc.gov/statutes/laws-enforced-eeoc
• Kansas Human Rights Commission: https://khrc.net/

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Related: At-Will Employment by State | Whistleblower Protections