Wyoming — Termination

Wyoming follows the at-will employment doctrine: unless there is an express or implied contract specifying otherwise, employment for an indefinite term may be terminated by either party at any time, for any or no reason. Wilder v. Cody Country Chamber of Commerce, 868 P.2d 211, 216 (Wyo. 1994).

Implied contract exception (employee handbooks or employer conduct): Wyoming recognizes that an implied-in-fact contract may limit at-will termination, especially where employer handbooks, policies, or consistent practices objectively show an intent to provide job security or for-cause termination. However, a clear and conspicuous disclaimer in the handbook or materials generally preserves at-will status and defeats an implied contract claim. See Wilder, 868 P.2d at 216–18; see also Trabing v. Kinko’s Inc., 57 P.3d 1248, 1254 (Wyo. 2002).

Public policy exception (extremely narrow): The Wyoming Supreme Court recognizes a very limited public policy exception to the at-will doctrine. Specifically, an employer may not terminate an employee for filing a workers' compensation claim—this is considered a violation of clear public policy. See Griess v. Consolidated Freightways Corp., 776 P.2d 752, 754–57 (Wyo. 1989). The Court has repeatedly emphasized that this exception is narrow and generally not extended to other contexts. See McLean v. Hyland Enterprises, Inc., 2001 WY 111, ¶¶ 22–23, 34 P.3d 1262, 1268 (Wyo. 2001).

No general covenant of good faith and fair dealing exception: Wyoming has not recognized a general covenant of good faith and fair dealing as an exception to terminate for-will employment. The Supreme Court has expressly declined to extend the implied covenant doctrine to general at-will employment relationships. Hatfield v. Rochelle Coal Co., 813 P.2d 1308, 1311–13 (Wyo. 1991).

Source: Wilder v. Cody Country Chamber of Commerce, 868 P.2d 211 (Wyo. 1994) Source: Trabing v. Kinko’s Inc., 57 P.3d 1248 (Wyo. 2002) Source: Griess v. Consolidated Freightways Corp., 776 P.2d 752 (Wyo. 1989) Source: McLean v. Hyland Enterprises, Inc., 34 P.3d 1262 (Wyo. 2001) Source: Hatfield v. Rochelle Coal Co., 813 P.2d 1308 (Wyo. 1991)

Wyoming requires employers to pay terminated or resigning employees all wages due no later than the employer's usual practice on regularly scheduled payroll dates. This rule applies to both involuntary terminations (discharge, layoff) and voluntary resignations with no distinction in timing. Wyo. Stat. § 27-4-104(a) does not impose an immediate-payment obligation or a fixed number of days; instead, the statute keys the deadline to the employer's established payroll schedule. An employer that pays weekly must issue the final paycheck on the next weekly payday after separation; an employer on a biweekly or semimonthly schedule follows that same cadence.

If a collective bargaining agreement between the employer and employee specifies a different final-paycheck timing rule, the CBA's timing governs under § 27-4-104(a). The statute expressly contemplates timing "specified under the terms of a collective bargaining agreement."

Commission-based sales agents — exception. Section 27-4-104(a) excludes earnings of a sales agent employed on a commission basis who has custody of accounts, money, or goods of the principal, where the net amount due the agent "may not be determinable except after an audit or verification of sales, accounts, funds or stocks." For these positions, the employer may delay final payment until the necessary audit or verification is complete.

Employer offsets. The employer may offset from any monies due the employee as wages "any sums due the employer from the employee which have been incurred by the employee during his employment." Wyo. Stat. § 27-4-104(a). The statute does not define "incurred during employment" or specify procedures for documenting the offset, but the plain language permits employers to deduct bona fide debts that arose in the course of the employment relationship.

Penalties for late payment. Every person, firm, or corporation that willfully violates § 27-4-104 is guilty of a misdemeanor and faces a fine between $500 and $750 per offense. Wyo. Stat. § 27-4-105. An employee who prevails in a suit for unpaid wages may also recover 18 percent interest on the unpaid amount, together with attorney fees and costs. The Wyoming Department of Workforce Services may investigate and determine claims for unpaid wages up to $500 or two months' wages (whichever is greater) per employee. Wyo. Stat. § 27-4-503(a).

Wyoming law amended § 27-4-104(a) in 2017 (effective February 13, 2017) to replace the prior "five working days" deadline with the "next regular payday" standard. Employers relying on secondary-source summaries published before 2017 should verify the current text.

Source: Wyo. Stat. § 27-4-104 Source: Wyo. Stat. § 27-4-105 Source: Wyo. Stat. § 27-4-503 Source: 2017 Wyo. Sess. Laws, H.B. 92