Even at-will employees could be the victims of a wrongful termination. Just because they do not have an employment contract does not mean that they can be fired for any reason. This is a common misconception.
It is true that at-will employees can be terminated at any time. In that sense, a working relationship is rather fragile. They do not necessarily have to be fired for cause, and some employees are let go without even being told the reason why. This does not necessarily violate their rights because they do not have an employment contract stipulating that they must be given advance notice or fired for cause.
An illegal reason
With this said, a key stipulation of at-will employment is that a termination can happen for any reason that is not itself illegal. This means it can still be a wrongful termination if an illegal reason is cited. An example could be an employee who is fired over changing their religious affiliation, for instance, or an employee who loses her job after she becomes pregnant. Another example could be if an employer fires all employees in a certain protected class, such as all female workers or all members of a certain racial or ethnic background.
When there are clear instances of discrimination, it means that a wrongful termination lawsuit may still be possible. At-will employment in no way prevents this, even though there is no employment contract in place. It is very important for employees to know exactly what legal rights they have and what steps to take if they believe they have been wrongfully terminated. Seeking legal guidance can help.