How can a library employee prove that termination was an act of retaliation by the employer? There are three basic step involves proving retaliation for wrongful discharge in court. The first step involved in the presentation of evidence that retaliation has occurred. A prima facie case must be raised. For example, Employee A filed a workers' compensation claim and shortly thereafter was fired. The second step gives the employer the opportunity to explain why the personnel action was taken. The employer explains that Employee A was terminated for misconduct, a legitimate reason unrelated to the workers' compensation claim. In the third step, Employee A is then given the opportunity to present evidence that demonstrates that termination was in retaliation for filing a workers' compensation claim-for example, evidence that two other employees who filed claims were fired, that all performance evaluations were positive, and that the employer used the pretext of misconduct for retaliation. The court then hears evidence from both parties relating to the action.