Our Attorneys Just Obtained a $12.5 Million Settlement for an Illegal Commission Practice!*
We know that employees work very hard to earn commissions, and those commissions should not be reduced unless specifically allowed by law. This article will discuss three commission practices that may entitle you to back pay and/or penalties.
1. Does your employer deduct your earned commissions for “price adjustments”?
It’s very common for customers to buy an item and to later get a credit from the company because the item was put on sale after the initial purchase. This is fine. But what is not fine is when a company reduces your commissions for these price adjustments. California law prohibits the employer from deducting the employee’s commission pay based on a price adjustment that occurs after the original purchase. If this has happened, you may be owed back wages, penalties, interest, and other compensation. Contact us for a free consultation.
2. Do you receive a “commission advance” that is reduced over a period of time for returns?
If you receive a “commission advance” that only becomes “earned” after a set return period (such as a 180-day return period), it is very important that the employer provide you with an updated paystub that states what you “earned” in commissions each period at the end of the return period. Why? Because some companies never inform their employees of the amount of “earned” commission that they received at the end of the return period. They leave their employees guessing how much was actually earned in commissions following a long return period.
This is a clear violation of California law, and the attorneys at Lauby, Mankin & Lauby LLP recently obtained a $12.5 Million Settlement based on this violation alone!*
If you believe this is happening to you, please contact us for a FREE consultation, as our attorneys are happy to review your paystubs and determine if you were not given accurate paystubs.
3. Commissioned employees must receive SEPARATE hourly pay for rest breaks!
Hourly employees in California have always been entitled to a 10-minute paid rest break for each 4-hour period worked (sometimes less). The law has finally recognized that commissioned employees should be entitled to the same rights as hourly employees!! If all of your pay comes from commissions, you must now be separately paid for rest breaks. Employers can no longer discourage commissioned employees from taking rest breaks or require them to lose commissions pay while on a free rest break. Instead, commissioned employees must now be paid separately by the employer when taking a rest break. If you are/were a commission-only employee and did not receive separate hourly pay for your rest breaks, please contact us for a free consultation. You may be entitled to pay for each rest break, plus penalties, interest and other damages.
There are many other issues affecting commissioned employees as well, so if you have any questions about commission pay, please feel free to give the attorneys at Lauby, Mankin & Lauby LLP a call at 888-959-8508 for a free consultation.
* This does not constitute a promise or guarantee of an outcome for any potential matter.