No Loyalty from Suspended MSNBC Anchor?

MSNBC has given an indefinite suspension to one of its most visible anchors, David Shuster. Why? He participated in a test of a new show for CNN. Does MSNBC have the right to suspend him? Well, I would certainly think so.

It’s unclear what Shuster’s contract says, other than it expires at the end of this year. It’s likely that it has a provision prohibiting him from working for or doing anything in connection with a competing network — without MSNBC’s permission. That’s pretty much a standard provision in a contract for someone at Shuster’s level.

Even without a contract, however, there’s often a “common law” (one established by court cases) duty of loyalty owed by an employee to his employer. In other words, while an employee is working for and getting paid by a company or organization, he can’t get in bed with a competitor.

A lot of folks aren’t familiar with the common law duty of loyalty and think that if there’s not an applicable contract, they’re free to do whatever they want — including make plans to go to work for a competitor while still working for his present employer. Fine lines can be drawn between what’s allowed and what’s prohibited, but even though employment loyalty has fallen on hard times, both employers and employees need to be aware of this legal duty of loyalty.