Suspended with out Pay till further notice Nebraska

[asher]

Wednesday I was told to turn pickup and cell phone in that I was suspended without pay till further notice, by Saturday I had recieved in the mail Cobra insurance papers and 401k transfer papers, the owner of the company has never called to say that I was fired. Saturday's paycheck never showed up for the preivious week nor did I recieve a half a week paycheck for the next weeks worth of work. I was salary. It has been two weeks since I was suspended without pay till further notice, I was fortunate enough to have had a job the next day, but was wondering if because I was salary if I am still owed the week and a halfs work of pay, that I have not recieved.

[cbg]

Since it is evident that you were fired whether you were ever told you were or not, you are not owed any wages beyond the last day you actually worked. The law specifically allows for exempt employees only to be paid that part of the pay period that was actually worked, during the first and last weeks of employment.

[asher]

Well its been a month and one week since my termination, a week ago I went to the office to take my 401K paperwork in for some help from the office gentle that handles that, when he was nice enough to hand me some papers he wanted me to sign, they were severance agreement and mutual release papers, under paragraph 2 they have UnPaid Compensation, which says the Employee agrees that the company shall have the right to retain any unpaid compensation (earned prior to termination, but not yet paid) due and oweing to the Employee to reimburse itself for any expenses incurred due to the Employee's conduct, but that the company shall have no further right to collect any sums from the Employee. I have not signed these papers, and was just wondering weather or not I should seek an attorneys advice on this.

[Pattymd]

Regarding the compensation, I can tell you that clause is not enforceable. The company has no legal right to withhold wages that have been earned, whether you sign anything or not, and at this point, they are WAY past the date by which final wages were legally due. I'd go ahead and file a claim for the unpaid wages with the state Dept. of Labor.

I don't really understand the other clause, though. Can you explain further?

[asher]

The company guy that helped with the 401K papers called today, wanting to know if I had gotten those papers signed, I told him I was not happy with the way some of it read,and that I hadn't had a chance to have my attorney read it, he then said to me "well you know, that 401k money will be coming in soon and I hate to see that held up". I told him it was not legal for him to hold my 401k money, and he stamered a bit and said oh ok. I think I will be attorney shopping.

[Pattymd]

I'm not sure there's anything yet that an attorney is needed for. Like I said, the state DOL is your first recourse for your wages.

What exactly is/are the issue(s) with the 401(k) paperwork you're concerned about?

[asher]

Just start from the begenning here: I was on a job, I told the head project manager that they did not have enough milling for the job when I first showed up on the job. Threw out the job we had waste millings, which is not useable when I called the office project manager and asked him what to do with the waste millings he said get rid of them, so I sold some to a farmer (which in the construction world they do for beer money for crews is a common practice) instead of dumping them in a blow out. I took the money instead and lined up a nice meal for my crew. (as we were all working months away from home). Well a few months later that farmer wanted some more waste millings, and went back to the project and asked if they had anymore, they are now accusing me of selling the good millings (as the job ran out of millings, and they had to find more to finish it) and being as it was a Federal job, turned it over to the Attorney General, they are now saying that I sold $8000.00 in good millings when I actually sold $500.00 in Waste Millings, the company asked me if I sold the good millings and I said No they went to every place I sold the waste millings and took pictures of the waste millings. So now they want to keep my week and a half paychecks for cost of thier attorneys. I have yet to be contacted or told anything about if they are actuallly going to court over this. I do have a truck driver that said they would go to court if it gets to that point and testify that what they hauled to the farmers was the waste millings. The insinuation from the Office guy yesterday was that if I did not sign thier papers that gives them my permission to let them keep my last two pay checks it would hold up my 401k money that I decided to take out early instead of rolling it over, to pay off my home and help get us threw the winter months.

[cbg]

The plan document determines when 401k money has to be distributed. There is nothing in the law that says they have to give it to you the minute you request it. I've seen plan documents that only allow distribution once a year. So before you threaten them with legal action, be certain you know what the plan document says.

It MIGHT allow for immediate distribution. Then again, it might allow for quarterly, semi-annual, or annual distribution. If any of those options are the case, he could legally hold the 401k money that long.