Boss reneged on raise...

[ellerichards]

In a meeting at the beginning of the year, my boss promised myself and another co-worker $1000 pay increases starting in February. Yesterday was payday and when I opened my check I realized it was short the $1000. When I confronted my boss (who also owns the engineering company I work for) he said that he had retracted the raise because I "didn't do enough work" in his eyes. When I pushed the issue he was unable to offer me a specific explanation. I have not been reprimanded or confronted for any wrongdoing on the job so I really have no idea whatsoever why he reneged. He did the exact same thing to my co-worker as well and gave a similar excuse. Are we covered under any kind of employment law in a situation like this? I would like to know if I can pursue legal action or if I just need to cut my losses and move on. Any feedback will be greatly appreciated!

 

[Antigone]

In a meeting at the beginning of the year, my boss promised myself and another co-worker $1000 pay increases starting in February. Yesterday was payday and when I opened my check I realized it was short the $1000. When I confronted my boss (who also owns the engineering company I work for) he said that he had retracted the raise because I "didn't do enough work" in his eyes. When I pushed the issue he was unable to offer me a specific explanation. I have not been reprimanded or confronted for any wrongdoing on the job so I really have no idea whatsoever why he reneged. He did the exact same thing to my co-worker as well and gave a similar excuse. Are we covered under any kind of employment law in a situation like this? I would like to know if I can pursue legal action or if I just need to cut my losses and move on. Any feedback will be greatly appreciated!

You are not covered unless you have a specific employment contract signed by both parties.

 

[ellerichards]

Thanks for your response Antigone. I was afraid I might be out of luck since nothing was put in writing. I was hoping that since my co-worker bore witness to the verbal contract that we both might have some recourse but I'm aware that enforcing verbal contracts can be tricky.