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Employer wants benefits repaid after separation

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Animal Doc

Junior Member
What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? New Hampshire

My wife worked as a veterinarian at a New Hampshire animal hospital from Jan. 2006 until Oct. 2008. Among the benefits she received from her employer was reimbursement for certain professional expenses, including her state license and continuing education (both required of her to continue practicing medicine in NH).

Upon her departure this month (she accepted a job at another hospital), her employer demanded that she re-pay some of those reimbursements that she'd already received. In a letter, her employer stated that those benefits "were based on you working a complete year." Since she only worked 78 percent of the calendar year, her employer wants her to repay 22 percent of the reimbursements.

There is no written employment agreement or contract beyond a letter indicating her annual salary and vacation time. My wife has never received a copy of any hospital policy that speaks to this issue.

Does her former employer have any basis for trying to recoup these benefits?

Thanks.
 


pattytx

Senior Member
Probably not. If the ex-employer wants to sue, let them. Without a written agreement to repay under certain conditions, they'll almost certainly lose.
 

Animal Doc

Junior Member
Thanks very much for the replies.

One follow-up question: What's to stop her employer from concocting some hospital policy on this issue, sticking it in a binder and claiming it was always there? And if they were to do such a thing, would it hold any legal weight in their effort to recover the payments?
 

pattytx

Senior Member
Legal weight? Maybe a little bit more than nothing at all but, to reiterate, she signed nothing and the ex-employer can't fake that. Honestly, I wouldn't worry about it at this point. She can either ignore them altogether or "There was no such policy communicated to me during my employment with you and I did not agree to such terms for repayment."

Motards :eek: (ok, so don't put that in your response ;) )
 

LeeHarveyBlotto

Senior Member
Company policy (as expressed in offer letters, policy manuals, etc.) rarely rises to the level of an actual contract, so even if they dummied something up, it wouldn't mean much.
 

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