Is My Contract valid?

[wantlegalhelp]

What is the name of your state?IN
I could get in trouble by even posting this. My contract states that I cannot discuss policies with anyone during the agreement or subsequently.
My problem is that there are 5 of us in sales and we are so getting ripped off. In our contract it states that extra expenses relating to a sale, as phone lines etc for promotions will be deducted from outrcommission. The amount of the deduction is UNDERSTOOD prior to the sale of the event. (We are never told what these expenses will be. It gets expensive from 150 month on up.
At the end of the year we asked if we could get a statement of how much we paid so we could deduct it on our taxes.We were told no. That this came off the top of our commission, and that we were not getting anything nor allowed to discuss it with an accountant or anyone. (Top, bottom who cares, its our money). It never shows on our check stubs as it is taken out of the commission first, then we get whats left and thats what is on our check stubs each month.
Well, I think its double dipping and its wrong.
My problem and also my co workers is that we need our jobs. It is also in our contract that we can not go to work for anyone in any type of competitive business for a year after we teyminate employment. This is all Ive done for years.
At the bottom of our contracts it says: This agreement is signed and acknowledged by both parties in the presense of two withesses.
There were no 2 witnesses present or signatures. Only ours and the boss. Does this make the contract void or am I forced to stay there and keep my mouth shut to feed my family?

 

[Beth3]

Take the contract to an employment law attorney. Potentially, I see a number of violations of federal and state law, starting with that you and your coworkers are prohibited from discussing company policy. That may be a violation of the National Labor Relations Act, which specifically says empoyers may not abridge employees' rights to engage in concerted activities and discuss the terms and conditions of their employment.

It's also quite possible that these payroll deductions are prohibited by your State's law since you are not advised in advance of the amount of the deduction and your authorization is not sought at that time.

You also need to ask an attorney whether the employment contract was properly executed. The bottom line is only a local attorney who has read the contract can specifically advise you. Good luck.

 

[wantlegalhelp]

Thanks for replying. Ill try to get someone to look at the contract as soon as I can get the money.

 

[pattytx]

Many larger cities have a Lawyer Referral Service affiliated with the local or state Bar Association who will refer you to an attorney with knowledge of the speciality you rquire for a brief and low-cost meeting to determine if you have a case and want to hire him/her (or someone else, or nobody). Look in the Yellow Pages for Attorney Referral Services. I did this a couple of years ago and the initial meeting was only $25 for a 30-minute meeting.