M
michellecatt
Guest
BACKGROUND INFO:
I was terminated from a job on July 13, 2001. This particular company has a quarterly bonus plan which is based on the employee's billable hours, profitability of the store location, etc., According to the company's bonus plan policy, employees are considered eligible to earn the bonus as long as they are employed during the entire bonus quarter. If a person quits during the quarter, they are still eligible to earn their bonus but it would be prorated. However, those employees involuntarily termed are not eligible to receive a bonus check if they are not with the company as of the date the bonus checks are cut. The policy also allows the company up to 90 days after the close of the quarter to pay bonuses.
According to the wording in their policy, I was eligible to earn a bonus because I was employed during the entire 2nd quarter bonus period, but on the flip side, I was not employed when the bonus checks were cut so I wont receive the bonus check I worked for. I was the highest producer at my store and our location had the highest revenue for the entire region, so I was expecting a fat bonus before all of this happened.
This policy confuses me. I keep focusing on the words EARN and ELIGIBLE. It seems to me that if I was eligible to earn the bonus, I am to be paid the bonus. My first question is whether bonus monies are also considered wages? If so, then the company owes me my bonus wages and thats that. But if the law finds a distinction in how it views bonuses and earned wages, then I was hoping to find a legal loophole in the way their policy is written that would still allow me to persue this bonus. I already got screwed out of a job, and I dont want this company to screw me out of money that I worked so hard for too!
Your advice is greatly appreciated.
I was terminated from a job on July 13, 2001. This particular company has a quarterly bonus plan which is based on the employee's billable hours, profitability of the store location, etc., According to the company's bonus plan policy, employees are considered eligible to earn the bonus as long as they are employed during the entire bonus quarter. If a person quits during the quarter, they are still eligible to earn their bonus but it would be prorated. However, those employees involuntarily termed are not eligible to receive a bonus check if they are not with the company as of the date the bonus checks are cut. The policy also allows the company up to 90 days after the close of the quarter to pay bonuses.
According to the wording in their policy, I was eligible to earn a bonus because I was employed during the entire 2nd quarter bonus period, but on the flip side, I was not employed when the bonus checks were cut so I wont receive the bonus check I worked for. I was the highest producer at my store and our location had the highest revenue for the entire region, so I was expecting a fat bonus before all of this happened.
This policy confuses me. I keep focusing on the words EARN and ELIGIBLE. It seems to me that if I was eligible to earn the bonus, I am to be paid the bonus. My first question is whether bonus monies are also considered wages? If so, then the company owes me my bonus wages and thats that. But if the law finds a distinction in how it views bonuses and earned wages, then I was hoping to find a legal loophole in the way their policy is written that would still allow me to persue this bonus. I already got screwed out of a job, and I dont want this company to screw me out of money that I worked so hard for too!
Your advice is greatly appreciated.