how to get money an employer owes you by Alison Green on January 5, 2015 A reader writes: Can my former employer reduce my pay to minimum wage for hours already worked because I did not give a two-week notice? They cannot. An employer can lower your pay going forward (if they alert you and give you the chance to decline to work at the new rate), but they can’t lower it retroactively. You performed that work for an agreed-upon price and they can’t unilaterally change it after the fact. We talk here pretty frequently about pushing back when employers violate wage laws, so I thought it would be helpful to write out exactly what you should do in a situation like this. Here are the steps you should follow to resolve this or any other wage violations of this nature: 1. Send your former employer an email like this: Hi Jane, I saw on my final paycheck that you’ve reduced my pay for the last two weeks I worked. The law is clear that an employer cannot retroactively lower an employee’s pay; this constitutes an illegal denial of wages earned. In order to resolve this, I’ll need to receive the $__ still owed to me, no later than (date). (State) law requires that resigning employees receive their full and final paychecks no later than X days after the last day of work, which in this case will be (date). I trust that you’ll take care of this promptly, to avoid the penalties that the (state) department of labor otherwise enforces. Thank you. Persephone (You can modify this letter for other wage violations too — saying things like “the law is clear that an employer cannot withhold an employee’s final paycheck,” etc.) 2. To find the information to replace the X in the letter above (the legal deadline for your employer to pay you), do this search online: (state name) final paycheck law Or just consult this chart. In addition, you could also do this search: (state name) reduction in wages Many, although not all, states have statutes that specifically require a certain amount of written notice before a wage change can go into effect. If your state doesn’t have that law, what your employer did was still illegal. But if your state does have that law, it’s additional ammunition that you can include in your letter. (For instance: “The Maryland Wage Payment Law 3-504 states that an employer must give an employee at least one pay period advance notice of any change in wage.”) 3. Then, if you don’t get the money owed to you by the deadline set out by the law, your next step is to contact your state department of labor and file a wage complaint. Some states are better than others are enforcement, but in general with something this straightforward, you should get the help you need. (Alternately, you could file in small claims court, but that’s more of a hassle.) You could skip steps 1 and 2 and move straight to contacting the department of labor, but very often a simple email laying out the law — and making it clear both that you know that law and that you intend to see it enforced — is all that it takes to resolve the situation. If it works, it will often get you your money more quickly, and with less fuss. You may also like:our employer wants to cut our pay -- retroactivelythe White House has proposed new overtime rules that could increase your paycheckwe're supposed to forfeit all our vacation days if we've worked from home { 93 comments }
Vicki* January 5, 2015 at 2:20 pm Alison – May I suggest a second (sub)category to Law&Order, category to be named: Yes, It’s Illegal.
Matthew* September 14, 2016 at 10:33 am Can you tell me legaly what to say to my former boss that is delaying my final check
jun* September 19, 2016 at 2:51 pm Hi , I used to get cash in hand , now my employer is lieing about my shifts and saying that I didnot work for her , I don’t have any proofs , what to do ?
AMT* January 5, 2015 at 2:21 pm I give this advice to people a lot. Apparently, people tend to think that to recoup unfairly withheld wages, they’ll have to hire an expensive attorney and file a lawsuit. Nope! The state labor board can be enormously helpful. Several years ago, I filed a complaint here in New York and received an $800 check from the DOL a few months later. I would love to see a list of stickied posts (maybe on the sidebar?) that tackle common problems like this. I can think of a few other posts that could go there, such as the “Is it legal for my employer to…?” article.
Ann O'Nemity* January 5, 2015 at 2:33 pm It really depends on the state. My state is notoriously bad about enforcing labor laws except in the most egregious of cases. Heck, just a few years ago there was a lot of media coverage because the state DOL wasn’t acting on child labor violations.
Wip* January 5, 2015 at 2:32 pm Very interesting. I had a former employer who had a similar policy. When I had asked about it they had said that since it is clearly stated in the handbook and all new hires are made aware of the policy that it was in fact legal. Would that make a difference or were they just blowing smoke?
Former Diet Coke Addict* January 5, 2015 at 2:37 pm Lots of companies conflate “the employees signed the handbook and knew about it” with “legal and OK,” which is untrue. An employer can print anything in their handbook, but an employee cannot waive certain rights by signing anything–I’m reasonably certain that wage law falls into this category.
Wip* January 5, 2015 at 3:07 pm I agree with this to an extent. However, in this case it is legal to change an employees pay rate if they are notified prior to the rate taking place. My question was mainly if they are notified and agree to the terms at the beginning of employment, would that satisfy prior notification?
Melissa* January 5, 2015 at 3:23 pm I would imagine not, because the wage notification law isn’t about “We reserve the right to lower your wage at any time”; it’s about “Jane Smith, in 4 weeks we will lower your pay from the current $15/hour to the minimum wage of $7.25/hour.” In other words, I think it needs to be specifically addressed to you and state what the new wage will be, plus give you the opportunity to choose not to work at that wage. An announcement in a handbook does neither of those things, so I don’t think it counts.
Wip* January 5, 2015 at 3:32 pm In this situation, however, I believe one could argue that it’s not a case of “we reserve the right to lower your wage at any time,” and more of “if you do this then that happens.” It wouldn’t give an employer absolute rights to lower your wage at any given time, but it does show that you had agreed to this outcome. ( This is assuming you signed an employment contract of some sort, since the employee handbook example is a bit distracting to the central argument). However, I do believe dawbs makes a valid argument below against even this.
fposte* January 5, 2015 at 2:38 pm No, you can’t just exempt yourself from state or federal law by writing down a different policy. (There are some laws that might allow for exceptions, but retroactively cutting pay isn’t likely to be one of them.)
Wip* January 5, 2015 at 3:10 pm Similar to my response above, is this trying to exempt yourself from the law or trying to find a loophole? Just found it as an interesting take, and not trying to be argumentative.
fposte* January 5, 2015 at 3:53 pm From what you go on to describe, your employer isn’t doing what the OP’s is; that’s not a loophole, that’s just a different thing.
Persephone Mulberry* January 5, 2015 at 2:39 pm I would imagine that your state’s actual statutes trump anything an employer puts in their policy handbook, even if you “agree” to abide by the handbook.
the gold digger* January 5, 2015 at 5:29 pm Yeah, it’s not like employers get a ten amendment. Wait – and even if they did, it wouldn’t matter – state law > employer law.
BRR* January 5, 2015 at 2:39 pm Employers cannot make policies that violate the law. Extreme example to prove the point. The employee handbook says all people who are fired are to be executed.
Creag an Tuire* January 5, 2015 at 2:41 pm … “Yes, the employee was fired. Out of a cannon. Into the sun.”
BRR* January 5, 2015 at 2:58 pm This is exactly what I was thinking of. But it’s in the employee handbook so they can do it.
LBK* January 5, 2015 at 4:50 pm You guys are killing me with these comments today. I can only stifle my laughter so much at my desk.
The_artist_formerly_known_as_Anon-2* March 29, 2016 at 8:21 pm Moreso – employers cannot put themselves beyond the reach of the law by making it a policy in the handbook. Example = “Not Responsible for Accidents” in the workplace. See how far that gets a company.
Creag an Tuire* January 5, 2015 at 2:40 pm Employee handbooks are almost never legally binding, especially when they contradict actual laws.
jordanjay29* January 5, 2015 at 2:45 pm Not workplace related, but my landlord tried to do something like this in regards to entering my apartment without notice (I think it’s intended for showing the apartment at the last minute). My state law expressly forbids entrance without a reasonable notice period unless it’s an emergency (fire, water pipes bursting, someone’s in personal danger, etc). Having the line in my contract didn’t waive my rights, and I had to enforce this when my landlord tried to show my apartment during the middle of my renewal negotiation with him. So glad to be out of that place.
Ann O'Nemity* January 5, 2015 at 5:53 pm I had the same experience! Buried in the fine print of the lease was a line that they could show the apartment without advance notice and that I must keep the apartment neat and tidy for said showings or face fines! It turns out that specifying something like that in a contract does not supersede state laws. When I tried to fight them on it, they started calling every single day to say that they would be showing the apartment the following day between 9 am and 9 pm. Like you said, I’m so glad to be out of that place.
Purr purr purr* January 5, 2015 at 6:22 pm I had the exact same issue! I put my foot down on my landlord showing up at my apartment and letting himself in with a key any time he wanted and he got really nasty, including using physical violence. The funniest part though was when he got in my face and said, ‘I’m going to show people around every minute of every day from 9am to 9pm and you can’t stop me.’ OK, so that’s not that funny but it just amused me that he had decided to sour our relationship because I wanted him to follow the law and so he decided to act like a 60+ year old child about it. So, like you also said, I’m so glad to be out of the place!
jordanjay29* January 5, 2015 at 9:23 pm Wow. I’m also glad you’re out of there. I’d be terrified that such a person would be petty enough to abuse his access to my place for more than just showing potential tenants.
jordanjay29* January 5, 2015 at 9:21 pm Yeah, I really don’t get it why some landlords have to be so immature. Sadly, this city has a shortage of housing as is, so you take what you can get. And that means putting up with some morons like this.
AnonCan* January 5, 2015 at 6:55 pm We had a similar experience in Ontario, Canada. Basically we learned, sure a landlord can put anything they like in a lease, but it does not supersede the rules laid out by the tenant board. Like you all said so happy to be out of there!
Wip* January 5, 2015 at 2:48 pm First, I’d like to say I’m not defending that policy in any way. Second, I completely understand that you can’t write policy that conflicts with state or federal law. I guess my question was more about semantics. If you accept a job that states your pay is X, unless you fail to give 2 weeks notice, then it’s minimum wage for the last pay period. Could that be considered prior contractual consent? I’m by no means a lawyer, but thought it was an interesting perspective, regardless of the true legality.
Wip* January 5, 2015 at 2:53 pm To further clarify, I believe they may have also had the employee sign paperwork agreeing to said policy.
dawbs* January 5, 2015 at 3:21 pm FWIW–and I am neither a lawyer, nor do I play one on TV and this is probably far further than I should attempt to delve into law–allegedly in some states, an employment contract/paperwork that one is ‘forced’ to sign is invalid–and in some states, saying that the job is dependent on signing said contract is considered forced/coerced. (Either saying ‘sign this and you get the job’ OR saying ‘sign this now to keep your job’ counts) Which I only know a little bit about because of pushing back when I bussed tables in college and they wanted me to pay for broken dishes (which I did not pay for, but all the other bussers did).
Wip* January 5, 2015 at 3:35 pm That is a very good point that I had not considered. Similarly, I know that a lot of non-compete agreements are being rendered unenforceable in many cases because they’re too restrictive.
fposte* January 5, 2015 at 3:57 pm Okay, I misunderstood what you were saying before. I suspect that it’s still not kosher, because it’s still a retroactive pay cut for work performed, but maybe Employment Lawyer will have a view.
Wip* January 5, 2015 at 4:10 pm Yeah, I guess I had more of a loose idea of what I was trying to get at when I first responded and it solidified a bit more toward the end. I agree that it’s still a bad policy, and more than likely illegal, but I was just playing devil’s advocate on this one and coming from a different angle to spark conversation. Also, I thought it might be useful for anyone that gets told what I was.
Anonymous for Now* January 5, 2015 at 2:40 pm This is so helpful – bookmarking in case I need it in the future (although I hope I won’t!) I do have one question to clarify. I am a remote worker. I live and work in one state, but my home office is in another state across the country. Would the law of the state I live in apply to me, or would I go by the law of the state where my company / home office is located?
RR* January 5, 2015 at 2:45 pm IANAL, but it is my understanding that the laws of the state in which you live/work are the ones that apply.
Ask a Manager* Post authorJanuary 5, 2015 at 2:46 pm Generally it’s the laws of the state where you’re working.
Charlotte Mcmillian* April 21, 2016 at 11:34 pm Does a employer have to pay over time in the state of AL.? And if so how did I get what they o me?
Natalie* January 5, 2015 at 2:47 pm For wage and hour laws, they apply to anyone working within that state regardless of where they live or where their company is based. Workers comp and tax stuff varies more depending on state.
Not usually anonymous* January 5, 2015 at 2:40 pm Sigh. I’m told a former owner of the company I’m at used to do that, plus pay them an extra $50. We are in Missouri, and the policy used to justify it was this: An employer can reduce an employee′s wages without violating any law. However, an employer subject to the Missouri Minimum Wage Law or the Federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), may not reduce an employee′s wages below the federal minimum or state minimum wage (whichever is higher). Missouri law does require employers to give their employees written notice of a reduction of wages at least 30 days before the reduction is to take effect. (See Chapter 290.100, RSMo). If an employer fails to give the appropriate notice, it is liable to each affected employee in the amount of fifty dollars. If the employer does not voluntarily pay the fifty dollars, the employee may recover it by filing a private lawsuit in court. I read that as a chance for an employer to totally screw over an employee. To be clear, I think it’s BEYOND egregious and I told my boss if I caught wind of it occurring again, I’d walk out the door. He didn’t understand why I thought it was so horrendous, but our current owner is ethical and gets why it’s so awful, so I’d defer to him if my boss ever suggested implementing this practice again. Good grief. I’m in HR (there wasn’t an HR dept when the old owner would do this) and take treating people fairly very seriously.
Not usually anonymous* January 5, 2015 at 2:41 pm Link to the above quote (2nd paragraph, I failed to put it in quotes) https://molabor.uservoice.com/knowledgebase/articles/283167-can-an-employer-reduce-the-wages-of-its-employees
jordanjay29* January 5, 2015 at 2:47 pm So kind of them. “We totally screwed you on your last paycheck. Here’s our legally-obligated-minimum of $50 so you can’t take us to court.”
Natalie* January 5, 2015 at 2:50 pm I’d be really curious to know how the courts in MO have interpreted that statute. It seems reasonable to me to read it as requiring payment of $50 *and* whatever the previous wages were.
Ask a Manager* Post authorJanuary 5, 2015 at 3:30 pm Yes, that would be my reading of it too. They’re not saying you can do it if you pay people $50. They’re saying you can’t do it, and if you do it anyway, in addition to needing to retroactively fix it, they’ll tack on an additional $50 fine.
Not usually anonymous* January 5, 2015 at 5:14 pm I agree that’s probably the application of the statute. I just know the former owner thought he was very clever. Surprisingly (holding up my sarcasm sign), people never gave notice and would just quit showing up! We are making headway in changing the culture, but that is not an overnight thing.
Anonymous One* January 5, 2015 at 2:45 pm This is great advice. I just want to add that if you think your employer will fight you on your wages, it might be a good idea to send the letter in #1 as an actual letter, certified mail so that you get that green card showing you that the letter was in fact received by your employer. For email, it would also be great if you could get a “read receipt” but those are optional for the recipient of the email. It helps to keep track of this kind of paperwork, so make sure you have copies of everything.
hc* January 5, 2015 at 2:58 pm I’m trying to collect a missed week’s pay plus expenses from my employer right now and it’s an enormous pain. I still work there and will continue to for the foreseeable future, so I have to be even more diplomatic! What a pain.
Kat* January 5, 2015 at 3:34 pm I would send the letter by certified mail, making a copy of it beforehand. I’d put the final check stub, with incorrect amount, in a file along with a copy of a previous check stub showing the correct amount/correct rate of pay. Any response from the company should go in the folder as well. Keep notes if needed, it will help you immensely later if you are forced to take further action. I’d also suggest printing out the relevent laws and putting them in there for your own reference. Good luck!
Employment Lawyer* January 5, 2015 at 3:42 pm This is what I do for a living. Sorry if I disagree on a few things… 1. Send your former employer an email like this: Even if you ignore my advice below, do not rely on email. If you’re going to bother with a demand letter, send it simultaneously via email and also certified mail, return receipt requested. As for the demand rather than calling an attorney: I disagree for a simple but non-obvious reason: it’s my experience that employers tend to screw up more than one place. An employer who holds your last paycheck is MUCH more likely to be an employer who -wasn’t paying you for lunch although you worked at your desk; -charged you for broken dishes; -made you share tips with the manager; -misclassified you as exempt or as an independent contractor; and so on. Roughly 50% of my employee clients have claims which they did not recognize on their own, or which they did not know existed. Some of them are extreme: One person called me to help her recover $450 in illegal deductions. But she didn’t realize that all of the things she thought were legal were actually prohibited… her end check after settlement was over $14,000. Another person called me for a $100 paycheck issue and discovered he had a claim for two years’ worth of unpaid overtime, judgment in the high four figures. Others are more minimal. But on average, 50% of them have extra claims and those claims add between 20-50% of the value. So I recommend the following steps. 1) Go to http://www.nela.org. Or Google “yourstate NELA” to find your local state chapter. Or find a “wage and hour” attorney. All of us on NELA represent primarily employees. 2) Call one of them. Or more than one. This should not cost you a dime. Nobody I know charges for referrals or basic “do I have a case” questions; almost all of us do initial screening for free whether or not you hire us in the end. 3) Decide what you want to do after talking to an attorney, and move on.
Hummingbird* January 5, 2015 at 3:50 pm How does this work if it’s vacation pay the company it will pay out upon leaving but then leaves you hanging for months?
PEBCAK* January 5, 2015 at 3:58 pm Depends on the state. A few require them to pay it out, in which case they specify the timeframe and so on, but in most states, it’s not required.
Employment Lawyer* January 6, 2015 at 9:26 am Varies by state. In some states (like Mass.) earned vacation is a wage and must be paid as a wage, on termination. Other states differ.
The_artist_formerly_known_as_Anon-2* January 6, 2015 at 11:56 am And here in the People’s Republic of Massachusetts – if there’s an unpaid wage and the employer decides to flick a booger in the ex-employee’s windshield and resist – there is a concept of “treble damages”…. Meaning – when the employee wins, the payout is 3x versus what they would have paid out in a timely fashion. Also – sometimes, non-payment of wages here can become a criminal matter. It’s rare – but it happens. Most employers from big companies will not horse around with this — if they have a rogue manager who wants to make life hard for his people / make a statement / have fun by not paying employees what’s due them, he could take a trip in handcuffs! They want to avoid that, and also the publicity. It is nice to live in a state with stringent laws…
AdAgencyChick* January 5, 2015 at 4:15 pm Dumb question: What about if you’re exempt, you quit, and you’re technically overdrawn on PTO for that point in the year? Can an employer reduce your pay by the amount of the PTO overage? Example: Jane takes a 5-day vacation in January and resigns on March 15. Jane’s employee handbook states that employees accrue 1 day of PTO per full month worked. HR manager says 3 days’ pay will be taken from Jane’s final paycheck because she has a negative PTO balance of 3 days. My employer makes you check a box when you request PTO stating that you understand that any negative balance will be deducted from your last paycheck. Years ago, I quit a job and had a balance of I think -2 days, which my employer happily informed me they were docking my pay for. I wonder whether I could have fought it. I would have, because although I didn’t need the two days’ pay THAT badly, this was a job where I had been working 15-hour days for weeks on end because management refused to hire help for my copy partner and me. It seemed really chintzy of them not to just let me have my paycheck, especially since those of us who’d been putting in extra hours were supposed to have received comp time. When I raised this at my exit interview, I was told that no verbal agreements for comp time would be honored now that I had resigned, and I could not reduce my negative balance that way. Man, it would have been nice to say, “Actually, you HAVE to pay me.”
Natalie* January 5, 2015 at 4:22 pm My gut feeling is that it wouldn’t be kosher. Your employer generally can’t make random deductions from your paycheck for all kinds of physical things (items you may have broken, short cash drawers, etc) and I can’t imagine an intangible thing like leave balance would be treated differently. If they let you go negative on PTO and then you quit, that’s their problem.
NJ anon* January 5, 2015 at 7:00 pm They can do it in nj. My former employer did/does it and an employment lawyer said it was legal to do.
A Teacher* January 5, 2015 at 5:15 pm My employer did this when I quit several years ago, the thing is I had days of sick time left and they had charged me pto for a sick day, I was also on a 10 month contract but they were paying me over 12 (like a teacher–but it was a big name PT company in the Chicago area). They took the overdrawn pto day out of my last paycheck and didn’t pay me the 5 months of pay that had been held. I should’ve gotten an attorney at the time. Live and learn the hard way for me.
fposte* January 5, 2015 at 5:51 pm From what I can see, the answer is “Maybe, it depends on how they do it.” I’ll post a link separately, but the issue seems to be whether their docking you turns you retroactively into a non-exempt employee and thus puts them into hot water.
fposte* January 5, 2015 at 5:51 pm Here’s the link: http://www.thompson.com/public/headlines.jsp?id=61
CAA* January 5, 2015 at 7:16 pm I have been told that in California, employers are not permitted to recover PTO that was used in advance of being earned, so in your example Jane would have to be paid for the actual time worked and the 3 days could not be deducted from her final paycheck. I haven’t looked up this particular law to verify it myself, but the practice at all the employers where I’ve been a manager has been in line with this, so I tend to believe it.
Adonday Veeah* January 5, 2015 at 7:58 pm This is true for California. If an employee leaves with a negative PTO balance, company eats it.
Stephanie* January 5, 2015 at 7:58 pm My old employer in VA would make you pay it back or deduct it from your final check.
Employment Lawyer* January 6, 2015 at 9:22 am Yes, sometimes. It depends on state law. In Massachusetts, for example (which is one of the most employee-friendly states around) this would only be legal if it was a clear policy; and if the employee agreed to “borrow and repay” time off; and if the resulting paycheck did not drop the employee below minimum wage.
Jerry Vandesic* January 5, 2015 at 4:26 pm It’s not just about getting the pay they owe you. If your former employer violates the law, you might be owed damages above and beyond your paycheck. For example, in MA, if you are shorted in your last paycheck, your former employer owes you 3x the shortfall. This penalty is MANDATORY, even if it was an innocent mistake: http://www.mbbp.com/resources/employment/wage-hours-law-ma.html
reader* January 5, 2015 at 8:07 pm When sending supporting documents try and send copies and not originals and always keep an extra copy for yourself just in case. These type of things are why I keep paper copies of what I send with the originals and always do receipt requested with snail mail. Much more difficult to change something (and easier to prove). And extra copies help with the lost it/never saw it issues.
Marie* January 5, 2015 at 10:42 pm When I was a teenager, I worked in a well-known chain restaurant that tried something like this. They announced all resignations required two weeks notice or pay would drop to minimum wage, and required all staff to sign something stating they agreed with the new policy. If they didn’t sign it, their pay checks would be withheld. I was a kid and didn’t know this was wildly illegal, and like Employment Lawyer stated up thread, it wasn’t the only illegal thing (they also frequently scheduled me for 2 am shifts when local law says teenagers can’t work past 9 pm, and with unpaid cleanup I was usually working till 3 am). I was already making minimum wage so I didn’t care, but a waitress whose dad was a lawyer came in to scream at the manager one day and that was the end of that. I had been considering quitting that job for awhile (it was my first job so I stuck it out awhile not knowing other jobs weren’t like that), and then we were required to have a four hour unpaid meeting to memorize a new corporate manual that included micromanaging like acceptable locations for the butter when placed on pancakes (dead center for the top pancake, with each pancake successively layered so that a butter pat could be placed on each pancake without touching the edge of any other pancake). I wasn’t a server and the entire meeting was about server issues, so I just up and left. The manager chased me down in the parking lot and demanded I return. When I protested I wasn’t a server, she asked if I wanted to be and offered to promote me “in a few weeks.” I impulsively told her I’d be gone in two weeks. She kicked my shoe, said “you suck!” and took me off the schedule completely. It’s generally easy to fool employees sometimes, because we don’t always know the law, but this restaurant also had a reputation for hiring foster kids (like me), and it took me a few years to realize that wasn’t cause they were nice.
IT Kat* January 5, 2015 at 11:33 pm Just out of curiosity, what does “An employer can lower your pay going forward (if they alert you and give you the chance to decline to work at the new rate)” mean? Basically if they say they’re lowering their pay, give you the notice required by law, your choice is to take it or quit? Or am I missing something? A job I worked for several years ago did something like that – basically said in a company meeting that everyone’s pay, across the board, was getting cut by 15%. We got notice in writing shortly thereafter. But it seems that there isn’t a chance to decline – I mean, other than leaving the company? Or are they obligated to pay you the old rate of you decline the wage change? (Speaking in generalities because state laws vary, but I’m honestly not seeing another option then ‘accept it or quit’.)
Ask a Manager* Post authorJanuary 6, 2015 at 12:26 am Yes, your choices are to take it, try to negotiate it to something else, or quit. They’re not obligated to continue paying you the old rate; they just can’t change it retroactively and without notice.
Employment Lawyer* January 6, 2015 at 9:24 am Yes. Work at the new rate/terms/responsibilities/hours, or quit. Depending on the change, there are times when you can treat the change as a “constructive discharge,” quit, and receive unemployment. But that is hard to do and you should never assume it will work without talking to a local specialist.
Patrick* January 5, 2015 at 11:59 pm It’s amazing how fast dropping the “department of labor” name gets results. My wife worked for a temp agency that had not paid her a shift differential wage for a couple months, and she was owed about $300. They dragged their feet for a couple months and the HR person kept promising they were processing it. I worked with her to write a friendly “give us the check by Friday or we will turn you over to the DOL” message and she had a check the next day…Magic!
annie hernandez* May 30, 2015 at 1:20 pm I have a question. if you transfer from 1 department to another, that pays less, can your employer legally reduce your pay?
kristy* August 5, 2015 at 4:05 pm So my employer hasn’t paid me within the two weeks of my regular paycheck, due to the fact when I applied something didn’t go through the computer and I did what they told me to do to receive a paycheck, They then said the company will send me my check within a week? It’s been a week and still hasn’t arrived and I’m still working everyday with out money in my pockets. What should I do ?
Falsely Accused & Terminated* October 13, 2015 at 12:08 pm I live in Texas & have worked over 20+ years in retail. I recently quit one job because of no chance for advancement & took a pay cut to take a job at a gas station for training as Assistant Manager for $10+/hr. I worked there from Monday to Sunday. On Sunday, I was accused of attempting to steal money and told that they don’t trust me & they will call me back if they change their mind. I called on payday (Tuesday) to see when I needed to come pick up my check & was told I don’t work there anymore & they’re mailing it. I finally received it & they docked my pay to minimum wage for both pay periods (Friday to Thursday was their pay period) and shorted me an hour on the first pay period. How do I handle this? They made me sign a paper before I could clock in on my first day of work saying that if I quit they can lower my last paycheck to minimum wage, which I was told is illegal. They lowered all of my pay on both checks to minimum wage & they fired me, I did not quit. They did that to another girl on my second day of work, too. Is any of this legal? What are my options?
Jackie* November 7, 2015 at 9:20 am I want to know if you work somewhere that pays every two weeks and you start on their pay week and you quit 3 months later on their pay week do they still owe you money
shubhi* November 19, 2015 at 7:16 am hey, just want to ask that my employer gave me salary by 2 cheques of equal amount of different dates..don’t know why….but my 2nd cheque got dishonored and got it back from the bank….intimated same to my employer….now the situation is my employer is not answering my calls and don’t know what to do next…. someone help please….
Chantiel* December 6, 2015 at 7:35 pm I need advice. I live in Spokane Washington. I recently lost my job because a woman came into the store and stole. They held me responsible and fired me. Now my manager won’t give me my final pay which was 12/04/15 and it’s now 12/06/15. I went to pick it up and she wanted me to go cash my check and give her $85 because she said “Based on where she was in the store we are guessing $85 that you are responsible for paying back” so she puts my check in her purse and said she would meet me at the bank. Then when I didn’t get there right away because I was in traffic she texted me saying “I can’t wait so you can call me later or tomorrow or something to get your check” then never answered me. What can I do????
lance* April 14, 2016 at 9:31 am my boss hasnt paid me for three weeks and refuses to pay me i stopped working for her but she owes me a lot of money i am 25 years old who can i get involved to get the money she owes me
Ask a Manager* Post authorApril 14, 2016 at 12:33 pm I just saw in your comment on a different post that you live in Arkansas. You need to file a wage claim with the Arkansas Department of Labor and they can help you get the wages you’re owed. Here are instructions on how to do it: http://www.labor.ar.gov/divisions/Pages/wageClaims.aspx
MrAEMiller* August 30, 2016 at 5:18 pm This is what Trade Unions are for. A good Union will not only write these letters for you (which depersonalises it making you come over as less bitchy and more professional) they will fund legal action for you and pay any tribunal fees (at least that’s how it works in the UK). They’ll even represent you in court if it goes that far. I only ever had to do this once but the threat of Union action worked wonders. They coughed up the same week. Of course I could take them to court on my own (it’s an open and shut case) but the knowledge I’ve got financial backing other than my own piggy bank speeds things up. You may think there isn’t a Union for your sector but there usually is one if you look for it. It’s a form of insurance and like most insurance no one really wants to have to claim on it but when you do and it works you feel well smug…
Yvette* September 3, 2016 at 9:31 pm I have a question , i had quit my job and i had accumulated 35 hrs in sick pay while i was working….does my old employer owe me that money.
Colton Welsh-Weber* October 29, 2016 at 12:08 am Hey guys I live in Alberta Canada and I just had my employer after I called them the same day, hire me on the spot, work me 32 hours in the shop handling and cutting steel for 2 days and they did not orientate me or get any of my legal info like my SIN number or banking info or my place of residence….none of it….. before firing me the second day in because I forgot to angle cut a few pieces of steel that we’re all still regardless the proper length. What are my options here in Alberta I shouldn’t have to get scammed all those night shift hours especially after breaking my back to do the job I was employed for…Anyone have any suggestions?