SurvivingInfidelity.com^®

I left my employer of 4 years recently. It is a small business. I was an integral part of one project. The break up was not amicable.

We were negotiating a consulting agreement to allow me to provide some support on that project until its conclusion.

I should have received my last paycheck on 5/10. I did not.

I work remotely. When I left I was sitting on some reports because they still owe me some travel expenses and vacation pay as well my final check. I returned my laptop to them with the draft reports saved on the computer. They claim they don't have the reports. I have copies but I'm not inclined to send them until they pay me at least my final wages. They also owe me vacation, per diem and travel expenses.

They are refusing to pay me until they review my corporate card charges. (last charges were in Feb 2013) and a few other things. My understanding is that they cannot do that. They had 2 weeks notice and should have taken care of all this prior to that.

I'm thinking about filing a complaint with the state's department of labor.

Any suggestions on how to handle it?

Contact Labor Relations in the state in which they are located.

Fundamentally, they may be breaking the law. In my state, employers have 72 hours to issue final pay to separated employees. It may be otherwise elsewhere.

AJ's MOM

I looked in to it. They have until the next normal pay cycle to pay a separated employee.

They are trying to use the reports and finalizing the corporate card charges as an excuse not to pay me. From what I've read it doesn't seem like they can do that but I'm not sure?

This is personal. The owner is an NPD pain in the tush who is not I happy I left before the end of the project.

This is personal. The owner is an NPD pain in the tush who is not I happy I left before the end of the project.

Then don't dance the crazy.

I'd contact the feds and file a complaint.

Send them a certified letter reiterating the state law, chapter and verse, and demand payment if the time frame has already lapsed. Don't even mention the reports. Tell them you will be submitting a claim to whatever state entity covers this sort of thing if you do not receive your check within whatever you think is a reasonable period of time.

However, I had this happen in AZ (damn right to work state!) and the law did not cover payment of earned vacation, so I had to sue the former employer in small claims court. The director was NPD also and thought she'd breeze her way through it, but she had her ass handed to her in court and was admonished to settle quickly, which she did for the full amount owed to me.

Sorry you have to go through 'break up' pain with an employer.

I have to sue separately for the vacation and per diem but I just filed a claim for the back pay with state dept of labor. We will see how he feels about this when the stat contacts him.

I hope there are penalties involved for him

Oh it got more fun and exciting today. He sent an email offering to pay what he thinks he owes me during next month's payroll.

He's stated that the missing reports are worth $20K which is absurd.

He's using an employment agreement that expired 2 years ago to prevent me from contracting with someone else. Its getting stupid.