I live in NY.
I work for a company that is hired to manage storage properties. I had managed a property for 2 1/2 yrs which was the first of three during that time for that specific owner group.
Early on, one of the owners took pictures of the property to put online and a few of me were included. Eventually, I had a couple of units there that were half price. I always saw that as we were helping each other out.
Before I knew it, they had an entire online marketing campaign that one of the pictures was used for. My district manager and I had made comments about advertising and getting paid for it, but the one representative from the owner group would just kind of laugh it off and, again, I had discounted rent so I was still ok with it even though we didn't have anything in writing.
Earlier this year, the owner group pulled out of their contract with my employer. To add to matters, when she discussed the fee for early termination, they threatened to pull the other two properties as well, so it's my understanding, she didn't charge them. A month later, they notified her they were pulling the other two properties.
I have still had my units there as my husband died suddenly a couple of months after all of this happened. I just started a rental at another property so I could move things out, but I'm not done yet with the holidays and them being the first. I received notice that my rates were going up by $45/ unit. I asked for one month extension in light of the holidays. The owner representative said that he would have to ask, but that they felt they had been fair in the time they had given me at the rates they had. I reminded him that they are still using my pictures on their website, on Google, on Yelp... the one on Yelp had a date with the company name of this past August, after they pulled from my employer. I told him that when I was the face of the property and when they were still honoring my rates, I didn't mind, but that I expected us both to part ways since they don't have a contract with me and I would not be basically being reimbursed for the use of my image. He hasn't responded.
Do I have grounds to ask this of them, to take the pictures down, and is it legal for me to ask for this month extension since I literally just took screen shots of these pictures the day I wrote him?
I work for a company that is hired to manage storage properties. I had managed a property for 2 1/2 yrs which was the first of three during that time for that specific owner group.
Early on, one of the owners took pictures of the property to put online and a few of me were included. Eventually, I had a couple of units there that were half price. I always saw that as we were helping each other out.
Before I knew it, they had an entire online marketing campaign that one of the pictures was used for. My district manager and I had made comments about advertising and getting paid for it, but the one representative from the owner group would just kind of laugh it off and, again, I had discounted rent so I was still ok with it even though we didn't have anything in writing.
Earlier this year, the owner group pulled out of their contract with my employer. To add to matters, when she discussed the fee for early termination, they threatened to pull the other two properties as well, so it's my understanding, she didn't charge them. A month later, they notified her they were pulling the other two properties.
I have still had my units there as my husband died suddenly a couple of months after all of this happened. I just started a rental at another property so I could move things out, but I'm not done yet with the holidays and them being the first. I received notice that my rates were going up by $45/ unit. I asked for one month extension in light of the holidays. The owner representative said that he would have to ask, but that they felt they had been fair in the time they had given me at the rates they had. I reminded him that they are still using my pictures on their website, on Google, on Yelp... the one on Yelp had a date with the company name of this past August, after they pulled from my employer. I told him that when I was the face of the property and when they were still honoring my rates, I didn't mind, but that I expected us both to part ways since they don't have a contract with me and I would not be basically being reimbursed for the use of my image. He hasn't responded.
Do I have grounds to ask this of them, to take the pictures down, and is it legal for me to ask for this month extension since I literally just took screen shots of these pictures the day I wrote him?
