Is this a legitimate case?? (Wrongful Termination)

[Amber6]

What is the name of your state? WI


My significant other (Paul) was told that he has 2 weeks to buy a truck, otherwise his employer (Decker properties) was going to have to "let him go." (Paul works as a maintenance person for a large apartment complex).

Paul had a leased truck when he took the job about 9 months ago, but returned it and cannot afford a new vehicle at this time.

While he had the truck, he had to use it to go to other property sites, and to load and haul things to the dump. He was never paid for his gas, never paid for mileage, wear&tear, nothing. Basically, Decker had the use of the truck for free.

Anyway, the old apt. mgr. quit and now there is a new Apt. Manager and she has been trying to get Paul fired, apparently (she and Decker are buddies of 10 years).

So, at a meeting the 3 of them had, she whispered something to Decker about a vehicle, and then Decker told Paul he had until April 26th to buy a truck.

Is he able to do this?? There was never anything in the contract stating he had to have a truck, and if a truck is necessary, shouldn't the Property owners have to buy and provide one, since it is for company use??

If he is fired next Monday (the 26th), should he pursue this with an Attorney??

On a side note, he has not been paid anything more than straight time, regardless of overtime hours worked. He was told by Decker that he would only get straight time, but after checking WI Overtime Laws, apparently this is unlawful as well.

This guy really seems like a scumball and any input (on chances of winning a lawsuit??) would be appreciated.

Thanks!

 

[Beth3]

If your BF is performing maintenance duties, I have no doubt he must be paid for his overtime hours under both federal and WI reg's. The entity he should contact to file a complaint about that is WI's Department of Workforce Development: 608-266-6860. He could be entitled to a substantial amount of back pay.

As to the truck, I can think of no reason under federal law or any WI regulation why the employer would not be free to make that a condition of employment whenever they please. However you make mention of a contract and that could change things. What "contract" are you referring to? And is it actually an employment contract or is it just an offer letter provided to Paul back when they offered him the job?

 

[cbg]

While I'm sure that your BF has a claim for back wages in the form of unpaid overtime, I see nothing in your post to indicate that he would have a case for wrongful termination if he is fired under the circumstances you describe, unless he has a bona fide contract (doubtful in the case of a maintenance worker) and the contract specifies that the employer is responsible for providing all materials. I strongly suspect that what you refer to as a contract is actually nothing more than an employment offer, which is NOT binding and would not in any way give him a wrongful term claim.

 

[Amber6]

Thanks for the DWD info. He did talk to a representative already, and received paperwork to fill out, but he was going to wait to see what happened with the whole truck deal.

The contract I was referring to (haven't looked it over recently) was more of a letter I guess, stating that he would be an independent contractor for one month, and then a permanent employee, etc., and included a description of his time off, the fact that he'd only be paid straight time (no overtime), and also mentioned that the terms should be "just between you and I."

The previous manager quit because she was initially paid salary, with set hours, and then Decker kept changing the hours on her (with no extra compensation). In the end she had a phone strapped on her almost 24/7, and was working 9am to 9pm (the job wasn't even supposed to be a full-time job when she started).

So, the employer can demand that Paul go and buy a truck in 2 weeks, even if it wasn't an initial requirement of the job?? What if he bought a $500 beater hatchback car?? He could still be fired for not buying a truck? An employer can dictate the type of vehicle an employee buys, even if they do not provide any type of vehicle allowance whatsoever?? That's bull**** if you ask me....I think it's wrong.

Also, the new manager is now requiring Paul to only do work that has had a Work Order written up for it (a new thing she just made up). So, although he worked many more hours at the apt. complex, and did jobs she instructed him to do (that she didn't write work orders up for), he was only paid on his recent paycheck for the hours that were under the Work Orders. So, he was shorted 24 hours of time he worked!!

He contacted Decker about this, and he blew him off, saying he'd pay him on his next paycheck. If he was shorted half his paycheck, does he have to wait another 2-3 weeks to be paid for what should have been on his current paycheck??

The sad thing is that this guy (and his new buddy mgr.) is really shady, and has also done some poor things with tenants on top of this stuff. Is there no course of action to be taken here??

Thanks for the help, Beth!

 

[cbg]

I agree that it's wrong, in the moral sense, but it is not illegal.

You've provided further indications in your last post that what your boyfriend has is not a contract, but an offer of employment. It is quite possible and quite legal for an employer to change the terms of employment as originally indicated in an offer letter; if that were not true, no one would ever receive a raise, or an increased benefit plan. Those are changes in the terms of employment just as much as a decrease in pay (or a demand that an employee buy a truck); it's just that no one ever complains about that kind of change.

Unquestionably he should follow through with the claim for back overtime. I can't see that he has too much recourse with regards to the truck, however.

For your future information, a wrongful termination, in the legal sense, does not mean one that is unfair, unjust, unexpected, based on inaccurate or incomplete information, or even, in the large majority of cases, one that violates company policy. In order to have a legitimate claim of wrongful termination, it must have been ILLEGAL to terminate an employee for the reason they were termed. Wrongful terminations fall into two categories; violations of Title VII (race, religion, national origin, etc.) or violations of public policy, which translates to terming someone because they applied for or utilized a right or benefit that is protected by law (workers comp, FMLA, reporting unsafe activity to OSHA, reporting ILLEGAL (not unethical, not immoral, ILLEGAL) activity to the appropriate outside agency, etc.).

What your boyfriend has here is a jerk of a boss, but it is not illegal to be a jerk.

 

[krispenstpeter]

What your boyfriend has here is a jerk of a boss, but it is not illegal to be a jerk.

That's what I keep telling my employees but they still don't believe me

 

[Beth3]

Send 'em here. We'll straighten them out.

 

[Amber6]

Thanks for the replies, everyone.

That really sucks. Mean people suck!

What's funny, is that I work for the state (Dept. of Revenue), and we are all Union-represented (except for the Supervisors).

We have a number of people that barely do anything here all day, but the Supervisors won't dare fire them, for fear of repercussions from the Union, etc.

One woman is African-American; they have been trying to get rid of her for a while, because she doesn't do **** around here, but they won't even try....they're too afraid. It seems once you pass your 6-month probation, you have to really do something horrible to get fired.

So, we have people here that should be fired, that deserve to be fired, but won't be, for fear of legal hassles (and the Union), and Paul can be fired for not owning the vehicle his boss wants him to own. What a screwed up deal.

He hasn't had a truck since November....and all of a sudden it's now a reason for termination.

Oh well, too bad he moved to WI to be here with me, and he has yet to get a job in his field (wireless telecom/network engineering). I feel really bad about the whole thing.

Thanks again for the input. Lemme' know if you think the guy is violating any other laws!