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unreimbursed comissions and business expenses

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formeremployee

Guest
What is the name of your state? Iowa and Missouri

I apologize if that sounds mis-leading, but this is a bit of an odd circumstance. I was employed by a company in Missouri, fulltime, but worked out of my house in Iowa. My territory was the entire United States.

I was recently terminated. I do not have issue with the reasoning. My problem lies in the fact that I have unreimbursed business expenses and commisions.

My former employer has a history of this sort of thing, so in order to help insure that they would pay me, I have held some of thier equipment(computers, cell phone, digi camera, etc). They are(as I figured they would) refusing to pay me for the business expenses and commisions due me.

First question; Am I within my rights to hold their equipment as collateral?

Second question; I understand that they may have some rights regarding my expenses until my corporate credit card is resolved, but after that point, are they obligated to pay me?

Third question; Can I sue them to recover this money, or conversely, can they sue me to recover their equipment?

Fourth question; Do I have any rights regarding attornies fees, lost time from work, etc in order to fight this matter in small claims court?

The amount in question is around $2,500

Lastly, thank you to the providers of this forum, and the folks that take time out of their schedules to assist folks like myself.

Sincerely,

Formerly Good Employee
 


Beth3

Senior Member
"Am I within my rights to hold their equipment as collateral?" Nope, you sure aren't. The money they may owe you and the property in your possession are two ENTIRELY separate issues and must be handled separately. If, for example, the company was holding your final paycheck until you returned all company equipment that is also prohibited and I expect you'd be posting here, hollering about that. Return the equipment now.

"I understand that they may have some rights regarding my expenses until my corporate credit card is resolved, but after that point, are they obligated to pay me?" To the best of my knowledge, California is the only State that statutorily requires employers to reimburse employees for their business related expenses. In the other 49 States, it's a matter of company policy.

"Can I sue them to recover this money, or conversely, can they sue me to recover their equipment?" Yes and yes.

"Do I have any rights regarding attornies fees, lost time from work, etc in order to fight this matter in small claims court?" You can try to claim those expenses too but it's up to the court to determine whether they will award those to you.

Return the equipment and send the company a registered letter saying that if you do not receive commissions and expense reimbursement due you by [reasonable date], you will have no option but to pursue the matter in court.

So far, neither party has acted in good faith. You're holding onto property that doesn't belong to you; they're hanging onto your expenses and commissions. Someone needs to make a move here and I suggest it be you. You undoubtedly need the money more than they need the equipment.
 
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formeremployee

Guest
So you are telling me I have no rights or recourse? Even if they have set the precedence of paying my business expenses and auto expenses?

The reason I ask, is that I know for fact, based on past experience that they will not pay me the money they owe me.

What about a lean or some other method of trying to get them to pay me?

Thank you again for your timely response, even if it isn't what I wanted to hear.

edit; I should also add that per their instructions, I have turned over the equipment to my attorney. although as a result of a voicemail malfunction and having been out of town on business, I was not able to do so on their schedule

also, they did hold my final check for 3 weeks and they still owe me commisions for 3rd and 4th quarter, sorry I left that out. Do I have any recouse on these matters.

Thank you
 
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Beth3

Senior Member
"So you are telling me I have no rights or recourse?" Did I miss the part where I said that? I confirmed that you are free to pursue them civilly. A few States also consider commissions the same as wages so it would be worth a call to your State's Department of Labor to see if they can assist you.

"What about a lean or some other method of trying to get them to pay me?" (You mean lien, not lean.) You need to obtain a judgement in your favor in order to file a lien. The first step is to file a claim in small claims court and have the employer served.

So call your DOL first and then contact the clerk of court's office for small claims court in your municipality. And send the company equipment back. If you file suit without doing so, they'll just counter sue. Holding their property hostage will not give you any leverage with the court.
 

cbg

I'm a Northern Girl
I don't disagree with a thing Beth said, but I want to clarify one point with regards to #3.

Yes, you can sue them; yes, they can sue you. But there's a difference. The equipment UNQUESTIONABLY belongs to them; whether you are owed the expenses and commissions is a joint issue between state law and company policy. It does NOT belong to you by statute. So if you sue them, you MIGHT win; if they sue you, they WILL win.
 
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formeremployee

Guest
It sounds to me like I need a different lawyer. I have acted per his instructions through out this matter.

Thank you for your help
 

Beth3

Senior Member
An ATTORNEY told you not to return the company's equipment? :eek: Yep, you sure do need a different attorney. At some point, not only can your employer pursue you civilly for the equipment, they can also file criminal charges for theft.
 
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formeremployee

Guest
When this all started, I called my attorney to find out what I should do. I also told him that I knew that they would not pay me if I sent them the equipment. He said that I could turn the equipment over to him, and he would make the arrangements to get my money and return the equipment. As stated previously, the equipment is no longer in my possession, I have turned it over to my attorney.

He is supposed to be getting a hold of their attorney this afternoon. If we can not come to terms, I guess I will return their equipment, I never intended to keep it anyway. Since they have no assets in my state, even if I win a judgement, aren't I out of luck with regards to collection? This is what my local DOL has told me, which led to my previous statement, "So you are telling me I have no rights or recourse?"

Which is exactly how I feel
 
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formeremployee

Guest
well, go figure, they have decided, since we were going to file suit, that I could keep the equipment in lieu of the money they owe me.

Now that only leaves the question of the commissions, and according to the Iowa DOL, they have to pay me that under the wage and labor statutes.
 

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