Employee termination
in USA.

SALARY PAYMENT IN United States Dollar (USD, $)

CONTRACT LANGUAGES English

PAYROLL TAX Varies per state

PAYROLL CYCLE Bi-weekly or weekly

TIME TO HIRE 12 hours

Get Started

Horizons-owned entity with local country experts in Seoul.

We offer fair, scalable, and transparent pricing on South Korea PEO service. Contact us for a cost breakdown

End service in South Korea with no additional penalties or fees.

Including vision, dental, death & disability, travel, and more.

Hire and pay talents
with Horizons in
180+ countries

Get started

United States

Valid reasons to terminate employment in USA

The US varies from most countries in its laws around terminations and severance rights. Most states adhere to the concept of ‘at-will employment’. This legal concept means employers can terminate employment agreements at any time, with or without cause or grounds, provided it is not for an illegal reason, e.g. discriminating against a category protected by law or in retaliation against protected “whistleblowing” activity.

The employment agreements of senior or highly-skilled employees will often include a “just cause termination” clause. Employees may only be terminated for “cause” and listed “permissible grounds”. The grounds for a “just cause” termination are a matter of agreement between employer and employee.

Unfair reasons to terminate employment in USA

There is no one law that governs the issue of wrongful termination. Instead, there are relevant laws at the federal, state and local levels on issues such as hostile work environments and anti-retaliation/whistleblowing.

Title VII of The Civil Rights Act (1964) makes it illegal for employers to terminate employment contracts for reasons related to protected classes, such as; race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy, sexual orientation, or gender identity), ethnic origin, age (40+), disability and genetic information (including family medical history).

Dismissal procedure in USA

Unless provided for in an employment agreement or collective bargaining agreement, no law requires US employers to follow a formal dismissal procedure.

Again, unless provided for in an employment contract or collective bargaining agreement, employers are not obliged to make severance payments to terminated employees. However, severance payments are commonly made on termination to waive any potential claims arising out of the employment relationship.

Resignation procedure in USA

The concept of at will employment works both ways: just as an employer can terminate an employment agreement without cause or notice, an employee can resign for any reason without giving notice. However, most employers will include a notice clause in their employment agreements or encourage employees to adhere to a resignation procedure set out in an employee handbook.

These types of provisions are used in the employment agreements of senior and highly-skilled employees.

Hiring in USA, Made Easy

Your business can easily hire employees in USA without opening a local entity. We handle local employment law, complex tax regulations, and international payroll in 180+ countries worldwide. All you need to do is focus on your business.

FAQs

Is it difficult to terminate employment in USA?

In comparison to other countries, employers in the US have much more flexibility when it comes to terminating employment agreements.

What are the risks of terminating employment in USA, and how do I mitigate them?

The risks revolve around breach of contract and statutory breaches, e.g. unfair dismissal based on racial discrimination or retaliation to whistleblowing. To mitigate risks, employers should create strong employment agreements that are compliant with federal, state and local legislation.

By partnering with Horizons as your USA PEO you gain access to a comprehensive set of outsourcing services specifically designed to help organizations expand and hire in the USA.

Success stories from businesses we’ve helped enter and grow in new markets.

Client Testimonials

"As a seed-stage, London-based startup, we were initially hesitant to expand internationally due to the administrative workload involved. Horizons took the headache out of the process, allowing us to hire a team of software engineers in Germany."

Gabor SzedlakCo-founder & COO at MindLabs (UK)

"I truly appreciated the thoroughness and the professionalism of Horizons personnel while we hired internationally with them. They were knowledgable on all subject matters pertaining to international employment."

Gary PaskyVP Software Development, PICS ITech (USA)

"On deciding to begin commercial activities in Asia Pacific, we needed a provider to handle the employment and remuneration of our workforce. With Horizons the result was fast, efficient, and fit-for-purpose. We recommend Horizons as an EOR provider.”

Chris MorrellManaging Director, Schaeffler Group (Germany)

"The collaboration with the Horizons team is excellent. Both our local employee as well as our HQ in Germany are more than pleased with the support provided and the simplicity of the service. We can highly recommend the Horizons solution to anyone."

Christoph EngelbertCo-Founder & CTO, Clevabit (Germany)

"We needed an EOR that could provide expert support for payroll in APAC. We are pleased with Horizons’ expertise and the fact that they are flexible, responsive, and easily accessible from Belgium. They were able to provide services within the short timeline we required."

Katia FlamandHuman Resources, Devian Chemicals (Belgium)