Tuition Reimbursement

[athomedad]

What is the name of your state?MA
I had to resign my job due to family medical reasons and am currently unemployed for the forseeable future. My company has a Tuition Reibursement policy about paying back monies before the end of one additional year of service. (It is my understanding that this statement is to prevent employees from going to another company or competitor.) I do not know if I am required to pay back monies I received, but my question is this:
Can the company demand immediate payment if I am unemployed or put a lien on my property or other means of making repayment?

 

[cbg]

Assuming that the agreement is enforceable (and you will have to show it to a local attorney to determine that; we can't do it here) then yes, they can demand repayment. It isn't their fault that you quit your job, for whatever reason, without any other income. Nothing in the law says that you don't have to pay your just debts when you're unemployed.

The question, of course, is whether or not the agreement is enforceable. That will depend on the EXACT terms of an agreement. Consult local counsel. Many will give free or low cost consultations.

 

[athomedad]

What would constitute an unenforceable agreement? Do some states not allow an employer to demand repayment of monies? Another question; the company's headquarters are in Texas, the parent company is in Belgium and the place of work is in MA. Which state/country's laws should be applied?

 

[Beth3]

What would constitute an unenforceable agreement? If it was so vaguely or poorly written that the recipient of tuition monies would not understand the repayment terms. Sounds like they're pretty clear though.

Do some states not allow an employer to demand repayment of monies? Not that I'm aware of. Requiring an employee to repay tuition monies if he/she quits within a certain amount of time following completion of the class(es) is pretty common.

Another question; the company's headquarters are in Texas, the parent company is in Belgium and the place of work is in MA. Which state/country's laws should be applied? The State where you work.

 

[athomedad]

Employer amends policy

What if the employer changes the policy to accommodate their needs while the employee goes to school, but only does this in the instance for the employee (the employer wanted the employee to go to school and get education).

Example: Policy states that "school" can not interfere with employee's job or job schedule. Employer changes employee's schedule so that employee can go to class without missing days from work (forcing use of vacation time). This was a verbal arrangement that contradicted the written policy as well as other verbal considerations for me to go to school.

 

[cbg]

The employer is not under any legal obligation to allow you to go to school on their time.

 

[athomedad]

Final clarification

The policy itself does not specfiy payback of monies, but the approval form does. If the company and I only signed one form which specified two classes and I took six classes but did not sign a form stating payback, do I have to pay back money for the other four classes?

 

[cbg]

Since I have NOT seen the agreement you signed, I haven't the faintest idea. DO NOT POST IT HERE. If you do, I will not read it. Show it to a local attorney.