Hi. I am investigating whether or not my former employer inserted fraud documents into my hiring package which may still be binding on me long after I quit in 2017. The interviewer told me in 2016 that the documents he sent to me for the hiring process related to the arrangement we had discussed, but I did not read them and do not know what was in them. I recently called my former employer to ask for the documents I signed in my hiring process. On the phone with the HR lady, when I said, "I'm trying to get a copy of my employment contract," she immediately cut me off saying there is no contract because Georgia is a right to work state. I was only using the term loosely to describe the things I signed in my hiring package. However, the way she cut me off made me wonder if she wasn't a little too fast to hide behind "right to work." Maybe this is just here meme phrase that she sees everytime she does her yearly HR training, I don't know, but I would like to know what kind of things an employer is shielded from through "right to work" law so that I can inquire about those things specifically. Thanks!
First off, her excuse is nonsense. A right to work state has nothing whatsoever to do with employment contracts. A right to work state just means there is a law that prohibits employers and unions to agree to require union membership. You can have contracts in right to work states and you can have no contracts in states that allow closed shops.
Right to work is often confused with "at will" employment. All but one state in the US is an "at will" state. That doesn't mean anything with respect to contracts either. Absent you having signed a contract explicitly with the employer (or one collectively done by a union on your behalf), all employment is "at will." This means you can quit at any time and they can fire you at any time (except for certain protected reasons like race or religion or in some cases age).
Anyhow, in general, the other party in a contract is not required to provide you with copies after the fact. You're expected to keep your own copies.
You've still not explained why a company that you're not employed with holds some piece of paper that possibly has any influence on you..
CONTRACTING takes a contract, either explicitly in writing or meeting the requirements for an oral contract. There has to be some mutual agreement and consideration (i.e., you doing something for them paying you). If that hasn't happened, there's no way you are contractually obligated to do anything (nor they).
In January, they'll send you a W-2, and if you have contractual payments (that you somehow are ignorant of) that amount to over $600 you'll get a 1099.
