Severance Agreements Changes to Combat COVID-19 Related Economic Loss
In the era of COVID-19, many employers are attempting to lower their bottom line. Many employers turn to measures affecting workers, such as buying out employees close to retirement, mass lay-offs, and the issuance of severance agreements among all levels of companies.
What You Need To Know about Severance Agreement
Although workers often feel powerless during the discussions of a severance agreement with an employer, it is important to realize that often the employer is asking for something from the worker in return for the agreement. This makes it reasonable for the employee to attempt negotiation. Employers often want to ensure that they limit their future liability for lawsuits and other claims. This necessitates that most severance agreement to contain a waiver of such claims by the employee. While certainly the employer has the ultimate power- as a severance agreement is not legally required to terminate employment in an at-will employment setting- employees can also exert some power to negotiate based on their willingness to release potential current and future claims against the employer.
Another factor to consider is whether you will be subject to a Non-Compete Agreement upon the end of your employment. Non-Compete Agreements are typically upheld in Ohio and can be difficult to navigate when searching for your next position. This can often be a sticking point in negotiations of a severance package and can have broad implications for your future job search.
How We Can Help
The employers have attorneys on their side and you should too. Assistance in reviewing and negotiation your severance agreement can be incredibly helpful in protecting your future. Clarity on your responsibilities and on any potential non-compete issues is crucial. An attorney’s review can lead to additional items or an increase of the payment or other terms. Speaking with an attorney gives you the opportunity to discuss what is most important in the negotiation, and to make those goals a priority. Our office offers flat-fee severance review and advice to anyone facing a severance package. Contact us at 614-221-4221 for more information.
What is Wage Theft?
What is Wage Theft?
Wage Theft is when an employer neglects to pay their employees for all of their time at a fair price. One of the most common instances of wage theft is when an employer pays an employee less than the minimum wage required in that specific area. Additionally, other common forms of wage theft include employees who have their tips stolen, receive pay “under the table” or off the books, employees not paid fair overtime pay, and employees who are forced to work off the clock for any amount of time. These are just a few of the most common examples of wage theft committed in the United States, but any form of shorting an employee’s pay is considered wage theft and is therefore illegal.
If you suspect that your employer is stealing your wages, then you are entitled to compensation, and the unpaid wage attorneys at Barkan Meizlish are here to help you get it. Contact us today for your free consultation and be on your way to recovering your stolen wages.
Wage Theft Statistics
Wage theft is a major problem in the United States and especially in the state of Ohio. It is so common that it has likely happened to you at some point in your life and is nearly guaranteed to have happened to at least one person you know. Approximately $50 billion in wages are stolen by U.S. employers nationwide every year. That number is enough to provide 1.2 million people with employment and pay them $20 per hour. In comparison, the combined robberies, motor vehicle thefts, larcenies, and burglaries added up to less than $14 billion in 2012. States, along with the Federal Department of Labor, recovered approximately $933 million in stolen wages that same year, less than 2 percent of what was taken from hard-working employees. These statistics show just how damaging wage theft is to the average American household’s quality of life, the economy of Ohio, and the national economy as a whole.
Thankfully, people are fighting the war against wage theft. While we are still a long way from completely eradicating the problem, some states have taken significant action to address the issue and recover those wages that have been stolen from their residents. New York has the strongest anti-wage theft laws in the country and has even passed a Wage Theft Prevention Act to closely monitor employees’ pay through mandatory reporting on behalf of the employer.
State attorney generals in 45 states have recovered $14 million in stolen wages. In addition, private attorneys like those at Barkan Meizlish have recovered $467 million in class-action lawsuits, while the U.S. Department of Labor has recovered $280 million. Unfortunately, this hasn’t even put a dent in the estimated $50 billion stolen from hard-working employees annually, which is why we here at Barkan Meizlish are still fighting hard to prevent wage theft across the state of Ohio.
Ohio Wage Theft
The state of Ohio has ranked second in the nation when it comes to workers reporting wages lower than the minimum wage. Wage theft is a huge problem in Ohio and has detrimental effects on the lives of our friends and neighbors. Not only does wage theft reduce the quality of life of those affected, but it has detrimental effects on our state’s economy. When an employer steals from their employees, they steal from everyone in the state because millions of dollars are unaccounted for, meaning there is less money to allocate for infrastructure, education, and governmental assistance. If you or somebody you know has experienced wage theft in Ohio, you need to contact an experienced wage theft lawyer like those found at Barkan Meizlish.
Columbus Wage Theft Lawyer
Wage theft hurts the national economy as well as the economy of the state of Ohio. Our home was founded by hard-working pioneers, and so we find it truly ironic that so many of the employers in the state are stealing from their employees regularly. You have a duty as a resident of Ohio to report unfair theft of wages in order to uphold a higher standard of living for yourself and your fellow Americans. Here at Barkan Meizlish, we work with employees to help them recover the wages that they have worked for. Contact us today for your free consultation with a professional wage theft lawyer in Ohio and be on your way to recovering what is rightfully yours.