Release of claim for unpaid wages

[Highlanderltd]

My position was eliminated and I was terminated. I have received my final check within 72 hrs,but it was missing 2 days of comp time pay. Employer has been notified. I am being asked to sign a release agreement in exchange for 1 month of pay. The release agreement includes release of claims for unpaid wages. I have 21 days to sign the release agreement or I lose the chance to collect the 1 month of severance pay. By law, can the employer use the severance agreement to avoid paying me the unpaid 2 days of comp time. I am sort of being blackmailed with regard to giving up the unpaid comp time to get the 1 month severance pay.

 

[cbg]

Were you a public employee - i.e. did you work for an arm or agency of the Federal, state or a local government?

 

[Highlanderltd]

No, it was a privately owned company. They agreed to comp time.

 

[cbg]

I want to be very clear about this. Are you talking about time off in lieu of overtime that you never got to take? Or something else?

 

[Highlanderltd]

I worked a holiday and then I also worked an extra day due to a contractor visit. The job was 3 days per week. So if I worked 4 days it was an extra day. Before I was terminated, I was allowed to take that extra day as paid time off. This is also being done for another part-time employee. Since I have been terminated, the only way to be compensated is to pay me wages for the extra day worked. I would not consider it over-time. My most important question is-- should I sign the severance pay release agreement. It says I am releasing them for any claims against unpaid wages. I would think it is illegal to put that in a severance agreement.

 

[cbg]

It is not even close to illegal to put that in a severance agreement; in fact, that is standard practice.

I'm still having trouble following what happened. How many days did you ACTUALLY WORK and how many days did you get paid for?

 

[ElleMD]

There is case law which hold that you can not sign away your rights under wage and hour law. That said, as long as you were paid for every hour you actually worked (assuming you were a non-exempt employee), you aren't entitled by law to those extra days of pay. The company may have a policy to pay such days if they wish, but they are not required to do so.

 

[Highlanderltd]

I worked 4days or one of the weeks. So one extra day and did not get paid for that extra day. In the other case I worked 2 days and worked the holiday which should have been an off day. I am salaried, exempt but they agreed to comp time for extra days worked.

 

[Highlanderltd]

Yes I found case law in California and Maryland to that affect. ElleMD I am salaried and worked 3 days per week for that salary. When I work 4 days in a week I would get a comp day off in the future. Also, in one case I worked a company Holiday which I was entitled to. So I am terminated and want to be compensated for the 2 days at the same rate I was paid salary for.

 

[Highlanderltd]

To be clear, I did not get paid for 2 days worked. They were extra days worked beyond the agreed 3 days per week with Holidays.

 

[cbg]

Wait, wait. You're exempt? Did your salary get shorted?

FYI, case law in CA and MD is worthless in NH.

 

[ElleMD]

If you are exempt then you aren't legally entitled to any extra pay. Exempt employees are paid the same no matter how many hours or days they work. Nothing you sign at this point will change that.

 

[Betty3]

Agree with Elle. Exempt employees are paid a fixed salary per work week no matter how many hrs. they work. The employer doesn't have to pay you anything extra. Sorry.

 

[Highlanderltd]

Even if I worked a holiday that they provide to everyone else and even if they agreed to comp time in my case.

 

[ElleMD]

Even then. Unless you had a written contract promising you some sort of extra compensation for working those days, legally you are not entitled to them. It is not unusual for a company to allow you to bank holidays for current employees but it is much more unusual to ever pay exempt employees extra or allow that time to be paid if an employee leaves.