collecting vacation pay

[Trindee]

What is the name of your state? Illinois

Hi, I was hired at a small company in August 04. I worked there until Nov. 04. I was given all of my vacation, sick and personal days in a lump sum when I started working there. My position was eliminated and now the owner is not willing to pay me for the 12 vacation and sick days that I have on the books. It is listed as "time" on my paychecks, but she refuses to pay them out. Is there anything that I can do?

Thanks for your help and advice.

Trindee

 

[Beth3]

Illinois reg's require that employers pay out earned but unused vacation upon separation.

Assuming that "I was given all of my vacation, sick and personal days in a lump sum when I started" means you were immediately eligible for vacation time (i.e. you didn't have to work there for six months or a full year before you'd earned it which is typically required by most employers) then contact IL's Department of Labor and file a complaint. FYI, no State requires that sick days or personal day sbe paid out upon termination.

 

[Trindee]

Exactly. It was immediately available to me. Now I can't get the owner of the company or her sister (Director of Operations) to return my calls or tell me why they wont pay it out. They have been passing the blame of non payment back and forth; one says that the other has to ok it before it's paid out, and my position was eliminated on Nov. 2. My last check came Friday and the vacation pay wasn't on it.

 

[Beth3]

You might want to give this one last shot with the company. Contact one or the other of them and tell them that IL law requires earned but unused vacation to be paid out upon separation and if you don't have your vacation pay by [reasonable date], you'll have no choice but to contact the DOL and file a complaint. That ought to get them moving.

 

[Trindee]

Thanks a lot Beth. I don't think that either of them will speak with me, as we have been going back and forth already for a couple weeks. I was trying to rectify this without having to get an attorney, but, I don't know if that is going to happen. I will send them a certified letter with the request as an attempt to reach them, if that doesn't work, I guess I'll have to try another course of action.


Once again, thanks for all of your help and advice.

Trindee

 

[Beth3]

If they have voice mail or e-mail, just leave one or both of the message. You don't need to send a certified letter. Sounds like the two of them are in a pissing-contest with each other but that's not your problem.

If that doesn't work, then contact IL's DOL.

 

[cbg]

Just as an FYI: There is a difference between "making vacation immediately available" and giving it to the employee in a lump. Many, many companies, including several I have worked for (I do not necessarily condone this practice, and my state has the same law as Illinois) will allow an employee to "borrow" time they have not actually accrued.

Example: The employee earns two weeks of vacation per year, and it accrues on a monthly basis. The employee actually "earns" .83 days per month. However, the employee may "borrow" some or all of the time immediately, so that they can use time they haven't actually earned yet.

As a result, at the time of the employee's leaving the company, that time is not available to be paid out. In fact, in my state, the employer can require the employee to pay back any such time, as opposed to paying out the remainder of the years' accrual.