C
cora smith
Guest
I worked for a company for almost 12 years. It is owned by one individual. Max # of employees was 6. I was the inside sales coordinator. I was paid $10/hour and also received a monthly bonus based on sales and margin of profit. My employer had told me when my pay reached that $10/hr mark that my hourly wage would never go higher; that I would get more in my monthly bonus as sales increased. The minimum monthly bonus was $400. By the end of 1999 and start of 2000 our sales had increased a great deal and my bonus was averaging $750-875/gross.
In January 2000 I was informed by my employer that we would be changing insurance as our premiums had increased drastically. My employer always paid for my insurance and my dependent insurance (I have 2 children). There was a meeting January 28th about the new insurance. My employer said he would pay for my insurance but I would now pay for my dependent insurance. He would be deducting it out of my pay at around a rate of $50/week. He also announced that we would be receiving a SIGNIFICANT pay increase that would more than offset the cost of the insurance and we would be meeting next week with regards to that. But the new rate would be in effect on Monday, Jan. 31st.
Finally on Feb.2nd I was called into my boss' office and handed a paper. It was an employee benefits package for Inside Sales Coordinator effective Jan. 31. My new rate of pay was $14/hour; but, they took away my monthly bonus and I was losing another $200/month on insurance. With the new plan I was looking at a loss in pay. My boss tried to tell me that with this new plan I would make more money than last year. He would allow me to work up to 48 hours (which my normal average was maybe 51 hours).
The paper also said if I was absent for any reason that he did not deem as excuseable then I would revert to my former rate of pay during a weeks time with the deduction for insurance still in effect. It also said I had to have a doctor's permit for any 1 day absent. I was never given any sick days during my employ. At the bottom it had a place I was to either sign as accepting of all terms listed or I don't accept and will immediately look for new employment.
I told my boss I needed time to look over these items before signing. He said we would meet again about it. The next day I again met with my boss and gave him my employee terms paper back and I had initialed the sentences I thought were OK and made notes in the margins for the sentences I wanted to discuss. At the bottom I changed the signature line to say Approved with changes and signed and dated it. My boss looked at the paper and said he would not change any of the items. I said I didn't think it was fair to take the bonus away. (one year I had severe strep throat and missed 2 weeks of work without any sick pay and the only guaranteed money was my monthly bonus, which he shorted since I was gone 2 weeks) That bonus was a wonderful motivator. The other girl in the office has worked there almost 3 years and still had never received a full bonus as she had a problem with coming in each day or on time. So I could understand his need for some rules for the other girl, but the new policies only benefitted her and took money away from me. My boss again said that he would not change the paper. I said I can't agree to it as written, especially with the rule of making me get a doctor's permit for one day absent. I had checked with several companies and the industry standard is 3 days. He said he would check into it and we would meet again. I asked when as I wanted to get this matter resolved and he said he had to leave at that time (Feb.3rd) and we would talk tomorrow.
Friday, Feb. 4th rolled around and he was not there all day. The other girl in the office had to leave early to take her daughter to the dentist (with permission from boss of course).
Finally, around 3pm my boss walked in and went straight back to his office and paged me to please come back. I said sure and grabbed an ink pen and walked back, ready to get this taken care of. I walked in and he looked at me and said I've decided to terminate you and handed me an envelope labeled "final compensation" with my week's pay and my 2 weeks vacation pay. I began crying and asked why and he refused to answer me. I said please, I'll sign the paper. Whatever you want, please. And he said No, it's too late for that. (I later found out he had already called a former employee and offered my job to her Wednesday after our first meeting). He just stood there looking at me and said he had nothing else to say. Good luck.
I sobbed all the way back to my office, grabbed a box and began packing, sobbing the whole time.
His vice-president walked in the room (he had been present for all meetings and the firing)saw me sitting on the floor sobbing hysterically and threw a box in the room and walked back out without saying a word. I packed my stuff and walked out without ever seeing any of them again.
My vacation pay and that week's pay was at my old rate of $10/hour. Shouldn't it have been $14/hour as I was told the previous week that the new rate was in effect Monday before I was fired on Friday? Or if I'm given my old rate shouldn't I be entitled to 1/5 of the monthly bonus as per the old agreement?
In January 2000 I was informed by my employer that we would be changing insurance as our premiums had increased drastically. My employer always paid for my insurance and my dependent insurance (I have 2 children). There was a meeting January 28th about the new insurance. My employer said he would pay for my insurance but I would now pay for my dependent insurance. He would be deducting it out of my pay at around a rate of $50/week. He also announced that we would be receiving a SIGNIFICANT pay increase that would more than offset the cost of the insurance and we would be meeting next week with regards to that. But the new rate would be in effect on Monday, Jan. 31st.
Finally on Feb.2nd I was called into my boss' office and handed a paper. It was an employee benefits package for Inside Sales Coordinator effective Jan. 31. My new rate of pay was $14/hour; but, they took away my monthly bonus and I was losing another $200/month on insurance. With the new plan I was looking at a loss in pay. My boss tried to tell me that with this new plan I would make more money than last year. He would allow me to work up to 48 hours (which my normal average was maybe 51 hours).
The paper also said if I was absent for any reason that he did not deem as excuseable then I would revert to my former rate of pay during a weeks time with the deduction for insurance still in effect. It also said I had to have a doctor's permit for any 1 day absent. I was never given any sick days during my employ. At the bottom it had a place I was to either sign as accepting of all terms listed or I don't accept and will immediately look for new employment.
I told my boss I needed time to look over these items before signing. He said we would meet again about it. The next day I again met with my boss and gave him my employee terms paper back and I had initialed the sentences I thought were OK and made notes in the margins for the sentences I wanted to discuss. At the bottom I changed the signature line to say Approved with changes and signed and dated it. My boss looked at the paper and said he would not change any of the items. I said I didn't think it was fair to take the bonus away. (one year I had severe strep throat and missed 2 weeks of work without any sick pay and the only guaranteed money was my monthly bonus, which he shorted since I was gone 2 weeks) That bonus was a wonderful motivator. The other girl in the office has worked there almost 3 years and still had never received a full bonus as she had a problem with coming in each day or on time. So I could understand his need for some rules for the other girl, but the new policies only benefitted her and took money away from me. My boss again said that he would not change the paper. I said I can't agree to it as written, especially with the rule of making me get a doctor's permit for one day absent. I had checked with several companies and the industry standard is 3 days. He said he would check into it and we would meet again. I asked when as I wanted to get this matter resolved and he said he had to leave at that time (Feb.3rd) and we would talk tomorrow.
Friday, Feb. 4th rolled around and he was not there all day. The other girl in the office had to leave early to take her daughter to the dentist (with permission from boss of course).
Finally, around 3pm my boss walked in and went straight back to his office and paged me to please come back. I said sure and grabbed an ink pen and walked back, ready to get this taken care of. I walked in and he looked at me and said I've decided to terminate you and handed me an envelope labeled "final compensation" with my week's pay and my 2 weeks vacation pay. I began crying and asked why and he refused to answer me. I said please, I'll sign the paper. Whatever you want, please. And he said No, it's too late for that. (I later found out he had already called a former employee and offered my job to her Wednesday after our first meeting). He just stood there looking at me and said he had nothing else to say. Good luck.
I sobbed all the way back to my office, grabbed a box and began packing, sobbing the whole time.
His vice-president walked in the room (he had been present for all meetings and the firing)saw me sitting on the floor sobbing hysterically and threw a box in the room and walked back out without saying a word. I packed my stuff and walked out without ever seeing any of them again.
My vacation pay and that week's pay was at my old rate of $10/hour. Shouldn't it have been $14/hour as I was told the previous week that the new rate was in effect Monday before I was fired on Friday? Or if I'm given my old rate shouldn't I be entitled to 1/5 of the monthly bonus as per the old agreement?