As described in detail at this page, Mississippi law restrains employers, both public and private, from establishing, maintaining, or enforcing “any policy or rule that has the effect of prohibiting a person from transporting or storing a firearm in a locked vehicle in any parking lot, parking garage, or other designated parking area.”
On Thursday, July 28, 2016, the Mississippi Supreme Court denied rehearing of its earlier 9-0 decision that employees terminated in violation of Miss. Code Ann. section 45-9-55 may sue their employer. This means that the Parker v. Leaf River Cellulose and Swindol v. Aurora Flight Sciences Corporation cases should be remanded by the Fifth Circuit back to the US District Courts for a determination of how much damage each employee suffered because of their employers’ illegal action.
One other thing for employers and employees to keep in mind is that Miss. Code Ann. section 45-9-55 not only prohibits enforcement of a no-guns-in-parking-lot policy, it also prevents the employer from establishing or maintaining such a policy. Thus, just having a policy in the personnel manual is a violation even if the employer does not terminate the employee.
