Unpaid Vacation - Texas

[BLDan]

Texas State code (661.062) I think may apply.

I was laid off from my position at a State agency due to budget cuts. This agency has a policy to pay out accrued vacation time to employees when they leave.

When I was laid off I had to sign a "Seperation agreement and Final Release" contract with agency, which outlined the bases for continued benefits (severance pay etc.).

Within this document it states:
...Through the Separation Date, (myself) will continue to perform any duties at management's discretion and will continue to accrue all applicable leave.

For regular employees there is a rule that we can only carry over so many vacation hours to the next fiscal year. At the time I was laid off I asked for an immediate payout of vacation time because I was very near the carry over amount, The Agency refused.

After the severance period expired I received a check for my vacation time minus the amount I accrued during the severance period (67 hours). When I inquired about the missing hours I was told I would not be paid for those hours since they were over the carry-forward amount and converted to sick time due to my severance period extending "between fiscal years".

Issues:
1. If I had been laid-off in April instead of May I would have been paid for the vacation hours.
2. If they had paid out my vacation when I asked (first laid off) I would not have gone over the cap.
3. Nowhere in the document they had me sign does it say anything about Hours over the carry-forward cap converting to sick time since the laid-off employee obviously cannot take/use up vacation time.

Do they owe me the hours?

[cbg]

When you showed all the associated documents that we cannot read from here to an attorney, what did the attorney say?

[BLDan]

I have not reviewed the case with a legal representative yet.

Within the document (Separation agreement) any dispute has to go through mediation first, which I have requested.

I am just trying to do some research at this point to see if my argument is valid.

I may also file a claim with the Texas Workforce commission.

Thanks for your rely.