Bait and switch concerning wages

[StickItToTheMan]

What is the name of your state?
MASSACHUSETTS


i joined a company back in june '05 for employment. this job, btw, is
a tele-sales job. during my interview, the 3 guys interviewing me told
me that the average first year employees' total compensation will be
$65K/year. moreover, it's written on company's advertisements and in
our notes that the first year average total compensation is $65K "with
the potential to earn $100K+".

i turned down a $70K job for this crap job whose base salary is
$12/hour (or $25K/year) + a small commission. i did some research
within my company, and this is what i found out:
1. nobody is getting anything close to $60K/year. and i have proof of
this.
2. they told *everybody* in the interviews that we can expect to make
$70k/year.
3. our average salary is more like $32K/year.
4. i have many witnesses who were lied to, and they all feel violated
and tricked.
5. i have the advertisement on our corporate website stating that the
total salary averages out to be $65k with the potential to make $100k.
6. i have additional proof stating the commission that every employee
has earned their first year here or they commission that they are on
track to make. this figure does *NOT* represent their total
compensation with the salary of ~$25k/year. i downloaded this info
from our public information computer systems.

i'm seriously thinking of suing this company, because we were all
duped. everyday, i come to work, and i see many sad faces, and i want
to do something honorable and brave for these innocent people. we are
so poor, that i'm buying clothes from e-bay now!

assuming that i won the case after one year of total employment (and
assuming that i only earned $32k), i feel that i'm entitled to *more*
than what i should have made at this company (the mean of $60k-$65k) if
i were to win this case. if i simply sue for ~$30k, THIS WILL NOT BE A
DETERRENT TO THE EMPLOYERS simply because all they are being asked to
do is what they stated they would do. By asking one party to obey
their contracts does NOT PUNISH the delinquent/dishonest party.

do i have a case if i take the employers to court?
what are your suggestions to procede with this case?
what am i/we entitled to?
questions/comments/suggestions?

 

[CheeseBlotto]

Quit bitching and get a different job. You have zero legal options.

 

[mlane58]

do i have a case if i take the employers to court?

Not hardley

what are your suggestions to procede with this case?

Try and quit blaming the employer for your failures

what am i/we entitled to?

Not a damn thing

There is absolutely nothing in your post to suggest that your employer lied or misled you about your job. Sales and commission jobs are tough. If you don't have the skill sets to be successful than thats not the employers fault. Try stepping up to the plate and taking some responsibility for your actions or lack of.

 

[Beth3]

I have to disagree with the above posters. If you were purposefully mislead during the recruiting process in order to induce you to accept the job, then you might have a claim to bring. You'll need to talk to a lawyer about that.

What you'll need to consider though is whether you want to be tied up for years in litigation with no assurances of prevailing, big attorneys fees to pay if you don't win a suit or it gets dismissed, and if you are awarded some judgment by the court, whether it would be large enough for you to be left with something meaningful after attorneys fees and other costs are paid.

Or you could just focus your energies on finding another job.

 

[HomeGuru]

I agree with the latter.

 

[StickItToTheMan]

Thanks Beth3 and HomeGuru

Thanks for your encouragement.

To address the other posters: Without a doubt, absolutely none of us - and I have the proof and many witnesses - are seeing anything anywhere close to $60k.

Finally, in your experience, how long would it take to settle this in court, provided that I had 2-3 former employees to back me up and a good lawyer? I am definitely concerned about this case dragging out for a while.

 

[CheeseBlotto]

Just what do you think you could get out of persuing this? Even if those who think you might have a legal action (I still disagree) are correct, what are your actual monetary damages? At best, they would be the difference between what was advertised and what you are making. At best, possibly less. Not worth the time and effort. Quit wasting your most precious resource (time) on trying to get back at someone, and move on.

 

[pattytx]

And this is a perfect example of why "if it sounds to good to be true, it probably is" is a cliche. It's true.

 

[HomeGuru]

And this is a perfect example of why "if it sounds to good to be true, it probably is" is a cliche. It's true.

**A: sounds good to me....