To Terminate at Will

“Employees-at-will,” the professor said, “What does that term really mean?”

The class sat silently. The question was rhetorical, I assumed. “We are going to watch a video,” he said. He pressed play.

The video gave examples of employees-at-will principles. Can an employer really terminate you at will? “For any reason, or for no reason at all,” I thought.

“Discrimination,” the video explained, “is the act of--” My cell phone vibrated. It was my sister-in-law. The subject line was, “Hey.” The text read: “15 year old shot twice in the head on his way to school this morning. Dudley and Adams Street.”

My body’s temperature changed. Suddenly, I had a fever.

The employee at-will class discussion didn’t matter anymore. All I wanted to know was, “who was the kid and do I know him.” And the phrase, “to terminate at will” haunted my heart.