§ 6.9.4.3.4 EXERCISE OF PROTECTED RIGHTS MUST BE REASONABLE.

• Jurisdiction: Arizona

§ 6.9.4.3.4 Exercise of Protected Rights Must Be Reasonable. An employee can lose protected status through abusive action. For example, in Dunham v. Brock, an employee engaged in using obscene expletives and defiantly asserted that he would not alter conduct for which he was being counseled.¹²⁰ The court found that the employee's termination was justified because his actions had been insubordinate and an abuse of his protected status.¹²¹

Further, an employer may require that an employee exercise his protected rights in a reasonable manner. In Lockert v....