Pay rate reduced after working several months

[leigh6000]

I would like to know if it's legal to hire in someone at a certain salary and then reduce the amount several months later because the district manager that hired you made a mistake and offered you to much money?

There was no reduction because of any fault of the employee. He was informed that when he was hired in, the District Manager made a mistake and offered him too much money, but they really were only going to pay him x amount.........which was about $5000 less per year.

He hasn't quit since he had such a hard time finding this job to begin with, but it would not seem legal for them to be able to do that. Unfortunately there is no written contract stating his salary, but he went for months with one income and now he has had to take considerably less.

 

[cbg]

For some reason, a great many people appear to believe that while increases in salary are their right, decreases in salary are illegal.

Neither is true.

In the absence of a valid, bona fide, enforceable contract to the contrary, an employer may legally lower an employee's salary or rate per hour whenever he finds it appropriate. The only caveats are that it cannot be dropped below state or Federal minimum wage (whichever is higher) and if state law requires prior notification of such a reduction that the employee receive the required notification.

Likewise, while an employer certainly may raise an employee's wage or salary with or without notice, there are no circumstances whatsoever outside of a contract in which they are required to do so. The only exception would be if the employee was working at exactly minimum wage, and minimum wage was raised by either the state legislature or an act of Congress.

Under the law, all that any of us are entitled to is minimum wage per hours worked.

The fact that is was not the employee's fault does not make the reduction illegal.

 

[calalily]

Question for cbg

If you are offered a salary for a job (above minimum wage) and you accept the job at that salary, isn't that in effect an oral contract? How can the business say "Whoops we didn't mean to offer you that much?" Then the salary for every employee could be reduced after they work a few weeks or months.

 

[cbg]

If you are offered a salary for a job (above minimum wage) and you accept the job at that salary, isn't that in effect an oral contract?

No. There is no consideration and there is no guarantee of duration.

How can the business say "Whoops we didn't mean to offer you that much?"

Because no law prohibits it.

Then the salary for every employee could be reduced after they work a few weeks or months.

It can.

 

[leigh6000]

It's especially sucky because the man quit his previous job to take the higher paying one and by the time they changed his pay rate (to less than what he was making at his previous job) the other job position had been long filled and he couldn't go back. He looked for a very long time for a higher paying job and there are just none here in Ohio. Right now you are lucky to even be employed. Now he is really upset because he would not have taken the job if he had known what they truly wanted to offer him. He feels like they duped him on purpose.

For future reference, would it be appropriate to have his salary put in writing? Would an employer even do that? I don't think it occurred to him that anyone would ever come to him and say........oh........sorry........so and so messed up. We never offer anyone that much money to start so we are going to have to take it back a notch. Especially after several months. I can't even imagine how any employer has the nerve to do something like that to a person. I could see if it was right away, but this was MONTHS later and not because the company was downsizing or the employee did anything wrong.

It is really shocking at the things employers can get away with. This man has never had financial problems before but now he is slow on bills and such because of what they have done. He is hoping to go back to his former employer when a position opens but there's no telling how long that will be. At least he left on very good terms and they wouldn't hesitate to take him back if/when they can. In the mean time he is back to looking.