Heath v. Highland Park School District

# Heath v. Highland Park School District (1992) ## What Happened Heath, a non-tenured employee at Highland Park Community College, was fired and sued the school district. Heath claimed the termination was wrongful, violated a contract, and was retaliatory. Heath also argued that the college violated his constitutional rights by not following proper procedures before firing him. ## What the Court Decided The court sided with the school district. The judge ruled that because Heath was hired for a fixed term without permanent employment status, he had no constitutional right to a hearing before being dismissed. In other words, the court found no federal constitutional violation occurred. ## Why This Matters for Workers This case highlights an important distinction in employment law: workers without permanent status have fewer legal protections than tenured employees. Non-tenured employees with short-term contracts generally cannot claim constitutional due process rights when fired. However, workers may still have other legal protections under contract law or employment discrimination statutes, depending on the circumstances and state laws.