Resigned. Bonus withheld.

[diesirae270]

What is the name of your state? GA

I worked for a company that promised an certain dollar amount bonus, and when it came time to pay up, we were told funds were tight, and we would be payed 1/3 now, and the remaining 2/3 of the full amount at a later date.

They payed 1/3 as promised, but never payed the rest. 7 months after the bonus should have been payed in full, I resigned my position. With the first payment, the company gave me a pay stub indicating what had been paid, and the total balance remaining.

Recently, they paid out the remainder of this bonus to all employees who still worked there and the ones they had fired. 5 other employees all resigned around the same time I did, and when we approached the company about receiving the remaining portion of our bonus, they told us "Due to the fact that you resigned voluntarily, you forfeited any remaining bonus payments."

We all have documentation stating how much we are owed. Is it legal for the company to withhold payment of the remaining promised amount?

[moburkes]

Do you have a written contract that guarantees this bonus?

[diesirae270]

Originally Posted by moburkes

Do you have a written contract that guarantees this bonus?

Not explicitly. Just a couple pay stubs saying how much we're still owed.

I was provided with a separation agreement when I resigned that basically said "if you accept your final paycheck, you forfeit any unpaid bonus amounts and agree never to sue us". Of course none of us signed it. I've had a few people tell me such an agreement is against the law, but I never bothered looking into it.

[pattytx]

Short of an enforceable agreement (contract) to pay the bonus, the DOL isn't going to care. And even if there was a contractual obligation to pay it, your recourse would be a civil suit for breach of contract, not a wage payment claim. Sorry.