employer trying to drastically reduce pay rate after 6 weeks of maternity leave. can they do this? small company only 20 employees company is in ny

What reasoning do they give?

no reason just said he cant pay me what I was making anymore.. I had notice that the store had hired two more employees while I was out.

Are you the only one making less?

yes I am . And it is very frustrating I have been there longer than anyone else. I go in to talk about what day I am going to start working again and I get told to call and make an appointment to talk to the boss . who is only one of five employees in the store. it's sad that he can't take 5 minutes for his oldest associate. needless to say when i call to make the appointment the boss is always unavailable to set appointment.

If your employer reduces your pay because they can no longer afford to pay you what you had been receiving, that is not illegal. However; if they reduced your salary ONLY because you took maternity leave, that is illegal. It seems suspicious since they hired two employees while you were out. If you do believe your wages were reduced JUST because of taking maternity leave, you can put in a discrimination complaint with your state's Human Rights Commission or the EEOC. I note your first post indicates 20 employees employed by your employer.

employer trying to drastically reduce pay rate after 6 weeks of maternity leave. can they do this? small company only 20 employees company is in ny
No they cant call a lawyer.
JoeC

well my self and my other half had started a delivery service to help the company with the moving and delivering of goods, once i had the child they stopped sending us orders and we were told he wasnt needed to deliver anymore so we said ok fine no problem i let him know i would return after maternity leave everything was ok, then i go back and i am told i am not needed in the office where i have been for over 2 years but that i should be commisioned and i would have to take a 200 dollar payrate or try finding somewhere else. there is one other female working there and she is part time no more experience than myself but is not having her pay cut. he is telling me to take it or quit.

Speak to an employment lawyer, the EEOC, the NY Division of Human Rights, or a combination of the three. I don't know what more we can tell you than that.

would I be eligible for unemployment if i did not return to work because of reduction of pay rate .. I cant afford to go back at what they are offering.. i have to worry about paying for daycare for three children at 12$ an hour ..

Very questionable. Some income is better than no income. There is nothing that says you can't return and then look for something else at the same time.

Whether or not a reduction in pay is grounds to quit and collect unemployment, and if so how much of a reduction is enough, is very state specific. You would need to talk to your state's unemployment commission to get anything close to a definite answer.