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replaced without notice after I signed a employment contract

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Karen S.

Junior Member
Oregon

I am employed as a on site Hotel Manager. I signed a contract and have upheld all parts of this contract. A man came in yesterday and informed me that the owner has just turned over the manager position to him, I received no notice of any kind. I called the owner and he confirmed that he did indeed turn over my job to this other person. I have been working on a salary of $2500.00 per month as well as the apartment that was provided for me to live in, on site. Cost of apartment valued at $700.00 per month. The cost of apartment was not subtracted from my base salary of $2500.00 but shows on the books as being part of my salary. This is a $3200.00 a month loss for me. The owner has offered me a front desk position of 40 hours a week at $8.40 a hour, this will be a huge cut in pay to me. Do I have any legal standing to refuse the front desk job and claim unemployment? If I accept the front desk job do I have legal standing to be able to collect unemployment on the remainder of the cut in pay I am taking? Do I have any legal standing to file against him for breach of contract?
 


BOR

Senior Member
What were the terms of the contract? Were they for a specific amount of time absent good cause termination/breach OR was it an at will contract?
 

Karen S.

Junior Member
It was a at will contract. It states that he must give me 2 weeks notice before termination but because he is offering the 40 hours a week on the front desk, I really do not know what my rights are.
 

BOR

Senior Member
It was a at will contract. It states that he must give me 2 weeks notice before termination but because he is offering the 40 hours a week on the front desk, I really do not know what my rights are.
If 2 weeks are not given, then it is a breach, absent good cause to breach.

REMEDY, is another matter.


It will probably be limited to the 2 weeks notice, salary/rent, as I have never heard of Punitive damages available in a Breach of Contract case.

Since it was at will, no reason need be given. As long as it was not for a discriminatory reason, it was a legal reason to demote, absent the 2 weeks variable.

Demotion I do not believe is a reason to quit and be eligible for unemployment?

This is a matter very important to you, so pay no mind to me. Only a licensed attorney can guide you, if you feel a need to consult one.

I am sorry you are in this mess. I have been there also. It is very degrading.

Best wishes.
 

cbg

I'm a Northern Girl
Is it actually a contract? Or is this part of an offer letter and/or employment agreement? Many people confuse them and while contracts are binding, offer letters almost never are and employment agreements might or might not be, depending on the exact wording. Only an attorney in your state who has read the entire document can say for certain.

If you refuse the front desk job you might or might not be able to collect unemployment. Turning down available work is frequently a disqualifier, however in some states, a big enough pay cut is sufficient to qualify you.

Keep in mind, however, that unemployment pays a fraction of what you've been earning. In my state, which I grant you is not yours (but mine is one of the most generous in terms of UI benefits), even if you were eligible for benefits, under the best possible circumstances your pay would have to be cut by more than 50% before unemployment would pay you more than you would earn by working, even at the lower pay. In this economy you want to be very careful before turning down a job in favor of UI, which will pay you very little and is not open-ended.
 

Karen S.

Junior Member
Thank you for your reply. After speaking with the new manager I have found some interesting information. He was actually hired 2 weeks after I was hired and then sent to manager classes to be properly trained for the position, something that was not offered to me. I left another job to take this one and I did not apply for the manager position it was offered to me, as I had worked for this company at a earlier date, as front desk help. It now appears that I was used to fill a hole for him while he was training a new manager. *sighs* If only I could go back in time and keep my old job. This 40 hours a week at $8.40 a hour is not even comparable to what I was making at the job I left to take the manager position. I guess we live and learn the hard way sometimes. :mad:
 

pattytx

Senior Member
I also am not convinced that, even if this WAS a bona fide contract, that the company breached it. Your employment status was not terminated; only the job you were currently holding.

I do agree that only attorney in your state who is versed in employment law to review it in its entirety and advise you, however.
 

cbg

I'm a Northern Girl
"At-will contract" is a contradiction in terms. If your employment was at-will, then there is no contract for employment by definition. Conversely, if you have a contract of employment, then you are not at-will.

I really think your only option to determine if you have a contract breach or not, is to show it to an attorney in your state.
 

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