Wrongful Termination in Wisconsin (2026): Laws, Deadlines, How to File

Wisconsin employment is generally at will: the employer can end it without a reason, unless the firing breaks a specific law or a narrow court-made rule. The main law is the Wisconsin Fair Employment Act (WFEA), which makes it discrimination "to bar or terminate from employment" any individual because of a protected basis (Wis. Stat. 111.322(1)) and covers employers with as few as one employee. To compare other states, see our guide to wrongful termination laws by state.

Information last verified on October 10, 2026. This article has not been reviewed by a licensed lawyer.

Jurisdiction scope: This article covers Wisconsin law on firing employees: the Wisconsin Fair Employment Act (Wis. Stat. 111.31 to 111.395), the Wisconsin Family and Medical Leave Act (103.10), other Wisconsin statutes that bar particular firings, and Wisconsin court decisions on public policy, handbooks and good faith, with short notes on the federal laws that also apply. The federal rules in full are on our wrongful termination laws by state guide. It does not cover severance agreements; see Wisconsin severance pay laws.

Is Wisconsin an at-will state?

Yes for most private-sector jobs. Our research found no statutory just-cause rule for private employment in Wisconsin; state civil-service employees have separate protection under chapter 230, which this page does not cover. The Wisconsin Supreme Court built its wrongful-discharge rules as exceptions to at-will employment (see the public-policy and handbook sections below). For how the doctrine works day to day, see Wisconsin at-will employment laws.

Grounds for a wrongful termination claim in Wisconsin

Discrimination under the Wisconsin Fair Employment Act

Under Wis. Stat. 111.322(1), it is an act of employment discrimination to "bar or terminate from employment" any individual because of a basis listed in 111.321. That list reads: "age, race, creed, color, disability, marital status, sex, national origin, ancestry, arrest record, conviction record, military service, use or nonuse of lawful products off the employer's premises during nonworking hours, or declining to attend a meeting or to participate in any communication about religious matters or political matters." Age protection "applies only to discrimination against an individual who is age 40 or over" (111.33(1)).

Who is covered. Under 111.32(6)(a), "employer" means the state and each state agency and "any other person engaging in any activity, enterprise or business employing at least one individual." So the Act reaches employers far smaller than federal law does. The only exclusion in the definition is a social club or fraternal society for jobs advertised only to its members (111.32(6)(b)).

Sexual orientation. The 111.321 list does not contain the words "sexual orientation." Protection comes from a separate section, 111.36(1)(d)1, which makes it discrimination to "bar or terminate from employment" an individual "because of the individual's sexual orientation." Section 111.32(13m) defines sexual orientation as "having a preference for heterosexuality, homosexuality or bisexuality, having a history of such a preference or being identified with such a preference."

Gender identity. The WFEA does not list gender identity or expression, and a 2025 bill to add it (SB223) "Failed to pass pursuant to Senate Joint Resolution 1" on March 23, 2026. Federal Title VII covers it at employers with 15 or more employees: in Bostock v. Clayton County, 590 U.S. 644 (2020), the U.S. Supreme Court held that "An employer who fires an individual merely for being gay or transgender violates Title VII." The EEOC charge deadline for those claims in Wisconsin is 300 days (see below).

Other listed protections. The Department of Workforce Development's discrimination page also lists genetic testing, honesty testing and pregnancy or childbirth; honesty testing and genetic testing are separate prohibitions in 111.37 and 111.372. The lawful-products protection has exceptions in 111.35, which our research did not open.

Retaliation. Section 111.322(3) separately bars retaliation for opposing discrimination under the Act. Section 111.322(2m) bars discharging someone because they filed a complaint, attempted to enforce a right, or testified or assisted under a list of other labor laws, including the state family and medical leave law (103.10), the personnel-records law (103.13) and the health-care reporting law (146.997). It also applies if the employer merely believes the person did or may do so.

That protection has limits. Under Radtke v. LIRC, 2025 WI App 14, as summarized in the statute annotations, an employee does not "attempt to enforce a right" under 111.322(2m)(a) merely by asking the employer to pay unpaid overtime; "some resort to a governmental authority" is required.

Refusing to violate the law (public policy)

In Brockmeyer v. Dun & Bradstreet, 113 Wis. 2d 561, 335 N.W.2d 834 (1983), the Wisconsin Supreme Court held that "an employee has a cause of action for wrongful discharge when the discharge is contrary to a fundamental and well-defined public policy as evidenced by existing law." It explained: "The public policy must be evidenced by a constitutional or statutory provision. An employee cannot be fired for refusing to violate the constitution or a statute."

The court treated the claim as a contract action, with reinstatement and back pay as the appropriate remedies. Once the employee shows the conduct was consistent with a clear and compelling public policy, "the burden of proof then shifts to the defendant employer to prove that the dismissal was for just cause." Brockmeyer himself lost: a discharge that may have been in bad faith did not violate the policies he relied on.

Later cases kept the rule narrow. In Hausman v. St. Croix Care Center, 214 Wis. 2d 655, 571 N.W.2d 393 (1997), the court described Bushko v. Miller Brewing Co. (1986) as holding that the exception applies only "where the employee is terminated for refusing a command, instruction, or request of the employer to violate public policy." Hausman declined "to adopt a broad whistle-blower exception," but held the exception covers an employee fired for reporting nursing-home abuse where the law imposes an affirmative duty on the employee to report. It also said public policy may rest on "the spirit as well as the letter" of a constitutional or statutory provision.

Exclusivity of the WFEA remedy

A discrimination firing goes through the WFEA process, not a separate state lawsuit. The 111.375 annotation for Bachand v. Connecticut General Life Ins. Co., 101 Wis. 2d 617 (Ct. App. 1981), states: "Administrative remedies available under the Wisconsin Fair Employment Act... are the exclusive remedies for violations. The act does not provide a remedy for emotional distress resulting from discriminatory firing." Federal Title VII, ADA and ADEA claims are separate and go through the EEOC.

Handbooks and implied contracts

A handbook can change at-will status. In Ferraro v. Koelsch, 124 Wis. 2d 154, 368 N.W.2d 666 (1985), the Wisconsin Supreme Court held "that such a handbook may, and that in the present instance it did, convert the employment relationship into one that could only be terminated by adherence to contractual terms." The court added that it did "not hold that all personnel manuals or employee handbooks will have that effect." Ferraro lost because the employer followed the handbook's discharge procedure. Our research did not open a Wisconsin case on handbook disclaimers.

No good-faith claim

Brockmeyer also refused to read a good-faith duty into employment: "We refuse to impose a duty to terminate in good faith into employment contracts." The court said such a duty would "subject each discharge to judicial incursions into the amorphous concept of bad faith."

Whistleblowing

Our research found no general private-sector whistleblower statute in Wisconsin. Private health-care workers are protected by Wis. Stat. 146.997(3), which bars a health care facility or provider from disciplining a person for good-faith reporting, and 111.322(2m) lists 146.997 among the laws whose complaints are protected under the WFEA. State employees are covered by Wis. Stat. 230.80 to 230.89: a written retaliation complaint goes to the DWD Equal Rights Division "within 60 days after the retaliatory action allegedly occurred or was threatened or after the employee learned of the retaliatory action or threat thereof, whichever occurs last" (230.85(1)), and the division may order reinstatement "with or without back pay" (230.85(3)(a)1.). See Wisconsin whistleblower laws.

Other firing bans in Wisconsin law

The workers' compensation section does not create a private lawsuit; its routes are the 102.35(2) forfeiture and the 102.35(3) wage order in the table above. The 102.35 annotations note a federal district court decision, Brown v. Pick 'n Save Food Stores, 138 F. Supp. 2d 1133 (2001), stating that neither subsection (2) nor case law authorizes employees fired for filing claims to bring wrongful discharge claims. For benefits, see Wisconsin workers' compensation laws.

Our research found no Wisconsin paid-sick-leave statute in the chapters it searched, and 103.12(3) bars cities, villages, towns and counties from requiring employers to provide employment benefits, which 103.12(2) defines to include leave. Wisconsin's business closing law requires an employer with 50 or more persons in the state to give written notice no later than 60 days before a business closing or mass layoff, and an employee who was not timely notified may file a claim with the department no later than 300 days after the closing or layoff (109.07(1m)(a), (4)(a)). It did not research crime-victim or false-claims firing protections. An employer also may not prohibit a concealed-carry licensee, "as a condition of employment," from carrying or storing a weapon or ammunition in "the licensee's or out-of-state licensee's own motor vehicle" (175.60(15m)(b)); our research did not find a remedy stated in that subsection. Federal law adds the FMLA (employers with 50 or more employees, 29 U.S.C. 2611(4)), USERRA's bar on denying "retention in employment" for military service (38 U.S.C. 4311(a)), and OSHA safety-retaliation complaints within 30 days (29 U.S.C. 660(c)(2)).

Deadlines for Wisconsin wrongful termination claims

Under the statute annotations, the 300-day period is "a statute of limitations" and an affirmative defense that may be waived (County of Milwaukee v. LIRC, 113 Wis. 2d 199 (Ct. App. 1983)). A complaint is filed when the department receives it, and in a termination case the discrimination occurred on the date of notice of termination (Hilmes v. DILHR, 147 Wis. 2d 48 (Ct. App. 1988)).

Because 111.322(2m) lists the family-leave law, a firing for a family-leave complaint may also fall under the WFEA's 300-day period; the 30-day leave-law deadline is much shorter, so act on it first. The EEOC says "the deadline usually applies to each event," so a demotion and a later firing can carry separate deadlines. Get legal advice promptly rather than relying on the outer edge of any period.

Where to file a discrimination complaint in Wisconsin

The state agency. Complaints go to the Department of Workforce Development, Equal Rights Division, Civil Rights Bureau. Its discrimination page says: "The statute of limitations for filling a complaint is 300 days from the date the action was taken or when you became aware the action was taken." You can file online with the Civil Rights Complaint Form linked from the ERD's complaints page.

The EEOC. The EEOC's Milwaukee Area Office and Chicago District Office both list Wisconsin. Both say an individual has 300 days from the date of alleged harm to file a charge against an employer with 15 or more employees (race, color, national origin, sex, religion or disability) and against an employer with 20 or more employees for age. For smaller employers, both pages say charges must be filed with the appropriate state or local agency within the limits of state or local law; Wisconsin's is 300 days under 111.39(1). The same pages name the City of Madison as a local agency; our research did not read Madison's ordinance, so this page states no Madison deadline. Federal charges start through the EEOC Public Portal.

Our research did not find a DWD or EEOC statement confirming a worksharing agreement for Wisconsin, so do not assume a state complaint automatically files a federal charge. Ask both agencies, or file with each, before the earlier deadline.

From complaint to court

You cannot sue in court under the WFEA. The process runs from a complaint to the ERD, to a hearing before an ERD examiner (111.39(4)), to review by the Labor and Industry Review Commission on a petition filed within 21 days (111.39(5)(b)), and then to judicial review under chapter 227 (111.395). Unless a rehearing is requested, a petition for judicial review must be served and filed within 30 days after LIRC's decision is served, counting from the day after personal service or mailing (227.53(1)(a)2.).

A federal Title VII or ADA suit requires an EEOC charge first, then suit within 90 days of the Notice of Right to Sue (42 U.S.C. 2000e-5(f)(1)). Age claims under the ADEA can go to court 60 days after the charge is filed, without a right-to-sue notice (EEOC).

What the ERD can award

Reinstatement and back pay. Under 111.39(4)(c), the examiner orders "such action by the respondent as will effectuate the purpose of this subchapter, with or without back pay." Back pay "may not accrue from a date more than 2 years prior to the filing of a complaint with the department." Interim earnings, or amounts you could have earned with reasonable diligence, reduce it. Unemployment benefits do not reduce it but are withheld and repaid to the unemployment reserve fund.

The statute annotations add that a valid offer of reinstatement stops back pay from accruing and that prejudgment interest is included (Anderson v. LIRC, 111 Wis. 2d 245 (1983)), and that the employer bears the burden of proving a failure to mitigate (Wingra Redi-Mix Inc. v. LIRC, 2023 WI App 34).

Labor-law retaliation. For a 111.322(2m) violation, compensation in lieu of reinstatement "may not be less than 500 times nor more than 1,000 times the hourly wage of the person discriminated against when the violation occurred."

Attorney fees. Section 111.39(4)(c) does not itself mention fees, but the annotations state that "A prevailing complainant is entitled to reasonable attorney fees under this subchapter" (Rice Lake Harley Davidson v. LIRC, 2014 WI App 104; see also Watkins v. LIRC, 117 Wis. 2d 753 (1984)).

No damages for emotional distress or punishment. The WFEA provides no compensatory or punitive damages, so there is no state cap. 2025 bills that would have allowed circuit-court actions for compensatory and punitive damages for employment discrimination, unfair honesty testing and unfair genetic testing (AB513 and SB541) failed on March 23, 2026. Federal Title VII and ADA claims carry combined compensatory and punitive caps of $50,000 to $300,000 by employer size (42 U.S.C. 1981a(b)(3)); the hub explains them.

Constructive discharge

The 111.39 annotations state, citing Marten Transport, Ltd. v. DILHR, 176 Wis. 2d 1012 (1993): "Victims of discrimination in the work place who voluntarily quit a position must show constructive discharge to recover back pay and reinstatement." Our research did not open that opinion or read Wisconsin's test. If you are thinking of resigning because of how you are being treated, get legal advice first.

Personnel files, references and final pay

Wisconsin gives employees, including former employees, a right to see their personnel records (Wis. Stat. 103.13). On request, which the employer may require in writing, the employer must allow inspection "within 7 working days after the employee makes the request," and "shall grant at least 2 requests by an employee in a calendar year." The right covers documents used for decisions on termination or other discipline, with exceptions such as criminal investigation records, reference letters and test documents (103.13(6)). You may attach a statement disputing a record (103.13(4)).

Our research found no statute requiring an employer to state the reason for a firing (a search by section heading, not a full code search). Wis. Stat. 134.02 is a blacklisting law, with a fine of $100 to $500 against employers who combine to blacklist a discharged employee. For when your last check is due, see Wisconsin final paycheck laws.

Recent changes to Wisconsin law

Our research found no 2025-26 act amending the WFEA's coverage, filing deadline or remedies (111.32, 111.321, 111.322, 111.39).

• 2025 Wis. Act 88 (enacted March 6, 2026, published March 7, 2026) created the crime of grooming a child at s. 948.072 and added it to the offense lists in 111.335(1m), which feed the WFEA's licensing-related arrest and conviction-record provisions.
• Vetoed: 2025 SB431, on arrest-record discrimination and pending criminal charges, passed both houses, was vetoed on March 27, 2026, and "Failed to pass notwithstanding the objections of the Governor" on May 13, 2026. It is not law.
• Failed: SB223 (gender identity) and AB513 and SB541 (circuit-court damages actions for employment discrimination, honesty testing and genetic testing) failed on March 23, 2026.
• Court decision: Radtke v. LIRC, 2025 WI App 14, narrowed 111.322(2m)(a) retaliation (see above).

Practical steps after a firing in Wisconsin

Write down the dates, who said what, and the reason you were given, and keep copies of reviews, messages and pay records. Request your personnel file under 103.13. Note the 300-day ERD deadline, and the 30-day deadline if family or medical leave is involved.

If the employer offers money for a release, read it before signing: a release can give up the claims described here. Our Wisconsin severance pay laws page covers those agreements, and the wrongful termination guide has more on preparing a claim.

Related

• Wrongful termination laws by state
• Wisconsin at-will employment laws
• Wisconsin whistleblower laws
• Wisconsin workers' compensation laws
• Wisconsin severance pay laws

Disclaimer: This article provides general legal information about Wisconsin wrongful termination law (the Wisconsin Fair Employment Act, Wis. Stat. 111.31 to 111.395; the Wisconsin Family and Medical Leave Act, 103.10; Wis. Stat. 102.35, 103.13, 756.255 and related statutes; and Wisconsin court decisions) and the federal laws that apply in Wisconsin. It is not legal advice. The information was verified on October 10, 2026. For advice about your situation, contact the Wisconsin Equal Rights Division, the EEOC, a legal aid office or a lawyer licensed in Wisconsin.

Last updated: October 10, 2026.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I sue for wrongful termination in Wisconsin?

Only when the firing broke a specific law or the Brockmeyer public-policy rule, which covers firings for refusing to violate a constitutional or statutory provision. Discrimination claims under the Wisconsin Fair Employment Act go to the Equal Rights Division, not to court (Bachand v. Connecticut General, 1981).

How long do I have to file a discrimination complaint in Wisconsin?

The Equal Rights Division must receive the complaint no more than 300 days after the discrimination (Wis. Stat. 111.39(1)). In a firing case, the clock runs from the date you were given notice of the termination (Hilmes v. DILHR, 1988).

Does Wisconsin's discrimination law cover small employers?

Yes. Wis. Stat. 111.32(6)(a) defines an employer as any person employing at least one individual, plus the state and its agencies. Federal Title VII and the ADA start at 15 employees, and the ADEA at 20.

Is it illegal to fire someone for an arrest or conviction record in Wisconsin?

Arrest record and conviction record are both protected bases under Wis. Stat. 111.321. The statute has exceptions in 111.335, which this page does not detail; a 2026 bill on pending charges (SB431) was vetoed and is not law.

Is gender identity protected from firing in Wisconsin?

Not under the WFEA; a 2025 bill to add it (SB223) failed in March 2026. Federal Title VII covers gender identity and sexual orientation at employers with 15 or more employees (Bostock v. Clayton County, 2020), with a 300-day EEOC charge deadline.

Can I get emotional distress or punitive damages for a discriminatory firing in Wisconsin?

Not under the WFEA. Its remedies are reinstatement, back pay and related orders (111.39(4)(c)), and Bachand (1981) held the Act gives no remedy for emotional distress. Federal Title VII allows capped compensatory and punitive damages (42 U.S.C. 1981a(b)(3)).

Is it illegal to fire someone for filing workers' comp in Wisconsin?

Wis. Stat. 102.35(2) bars discrimination for claiming benefits, but it is enforced by a state forfeiture of $50 to $500 brought only at the department's request. Under 102.35(3), an employer that unreasonably refuses to rehire an injured worker can owe up to one year's lost wages, and the statute annotations treat a firing during the healing period because of the work injury as such a refusal (L&H Wrecking Co. v. LIRC, 1983).

Can my employer fire me for jury duty in Wisconsin?

No. Wis. Stat. 756.255 bars using jury-service absence as a basis for discharge; a violating employer may be fined up to $200 and ordered to make full restitution, including reinstatement and back pay.

Can I see my personnel file after being fired in Wisconsin?

Yes. Wis. Stat. 103.13 covers former employees and requires the employer to allow inspection within 7 working days of a request, at least twice a calendar year, with listed exceptions.