Job that doesn't pay... or does it?...

[akmom]

I guess I'm posting in this forum because I don't want it to get a lot of publicity. I have mentioned that I started working part-time back in February. It is a very flexible job and the pay is supposedly decent (more on that later). I am able to set my own hours, and I also have a lot of control over how much work I take. Basically I am covering some geographic areas that full-time employees covered in the past, but because of the commute, it was using up a lot of the company's man-hours to do these remote jobs. I live pretty close to most of them, and not so close to others (but still closer than the company's headquarters).

Here is my dilemma. I am paid entirely on commission. I know what my percentage is, and how much each job site pays. So I know what I am supposed to get. I also know that I have turned in all the necessary paperwork, and received delivery confirmation for it. However, I have been working for two months and have not received any pay.

I have spoken to my boss about this three times. For the first three jobs, I worked with another employee who trained me on techniques. So I asked how having two people on the job affected pay, and he told me, "We take the hit for training." I assumed that means the company is paying double (40% of the job revenue, instead of 20%) during training. I certainly didn't volunteer to train for free, as it involves my time, paying a babysitter, and actually performing the work. Anyway, the second time I talked to my boss about it, I asked about the pay schedule. He said we get paid on the first day of each month. Well I didn't get anything March 1, but I figured there might be some paperwork delays regarding new hires. Well I didn't get my April 1 paycheck either. So I called the company again and they said they were mailing checks out Friday (not the first of the month). Well it is Monday and still nothing. So I'm getting really annoyed.

Please note that I live in Alaska, so many of the jobs involve long commutes, and I am not compensated for mileage. They also required me to get some licensing which I did not already have, and that was an additional cost. So I have invested a lot of money and some time (60 hours) into this job, and would like to see some returns. They have no trouble mailing me supplies for the job, but for some reason there is always an excuse about why pay is delayed. I've never run into this problem with any employer before, so I'm not sure how to approach it.

I did some research and the company has never been involved in a lawsuit, nor have any of its owners. They have many corporate clients, which they have serviced for over a decade, so I'm sure they're a legitimate business. I don't understand why there are such obstacles to my getting paid. So what I want to do is give them an ultimatum, and refuse to perform any more job orders until I receive my paycheck (and its amount is satisfactory). My boss is flying to my area next week for my additional training, and I am tempted to tell him when he arrives, that I expect my paycheck or else he might as well just fly right back because I'm done. But I don't know if that is very professional. I certainly don't want to create hostility if they really do intend to follow through with paying my commission, because it's a great job. Then again, I'm not really willing to invest any more travel or time into the company until I start seeing some compensation. How should I handle this?

 

[singledad]

This is hard, because you have to strike a balance between demanding what is due to you, and preserving your relationship with your employer, since you seem to want to stay in the job. But paying a salary late, or not at all, is completely unacceptable in my books.

I would start with putting together copies of all the paperwork you submitted, calculating what you should have received, and demanding to be given a date at which you will receive it, or alternatively an explanation why you won't receive it (In writing). Also check if your employment contract says anything about payment during training.

If you don't get a satisfactory answer, or you don't get your payment on the date they gave you, it might be time to hire a lawyer, but know that doing so would be a CLM (Career Limiting Move). Companies don't like employees who sue them. Refusing to do any more work until you have an answer, or until they fulfill their obligation, is also very much within your rights, IMO. You're not volunteering for a charity, after all.

In fact, demanding interest on late payments would probably also be within your rights, although that would be another CLM.

they said they were mailing checks out Friday

Seriously? They mail checks? As in little pieces of paper you tear from that book you get from the bank, in an envelope with an address and a stamp? No EFT? Is this still common in the US? Or was that just a another way of saying they're making payments?

The only salary checks I've ever received (and it's only been one or two, when there were stuff-ups with salary payments) were put into my hands by an HR person.

PS - What are the chances of your check having been stolen by a mail-sorter?

 

[akmom]

I don't know about the rest of the country, but mailing checks is the norm here. They've invested a lot of money into my training, insurance, and equipment already. That's the only reason I've been patient. They must know I won't work forever without pay, and they're a few thousand dollars invested into my hire. Plus, it's expensive for them to send employees out to my location. It's much cheaper to hire local (me). And they're at least a few months from finding anyone with the right certifications to start work right away. (I was the only applicant who already had them, according to them.) And they've accommodated me on several matters that were not part of the original contract. For example, I told them I did not want to use my personal vehicle to haul hazardous materials, so they provided me a company vehicle, even though the terms of my employment required use of my own. How long should I let this go on, and should I take advantage of my boss's trip to demand pay?

 

[singledad]

I don't really know. I'm a bit of a hard-ass when it comes to my pay. IMO, if the money they invested in you were to come off your pay, that should have been agreed, in writing, before they invested it. If I were you, I'd demand an explanation and a commitment to when I WILL get paid, at the very least.

But as I've said, I'm a bit of a hard-ass that way.

The way I see it, I have living expenses and I count on my salary to cover them. If I miss a payment because my salary was late, MY credit record suffers, and I refuse to accept that. I'm sure it's less serious if you're not actually dependent on the income, but it sound like you actually are, in order to cover the extra expense of daycare, mileage etc...

IMO there is nothing unprofessional about demanding an explanation of why you haven't been paid. On the contrary. Appearing to be happy to work for no pay creates the impression that you are just doing it for fun - as if you are the stereo-typical 1960's housewife who does the "little job" just to get out of the house and maybe earn some pocket money, rather than a professional business woman. (And I'm sure you'd rather be seen as the latter).

As long as you keep the tone professional.

I would approach it like - these are the jobs I've done. According to my calculations, this is what the company owes me. I have not received any payments. Please explain to me if I am misunderstanding something, and when I can expect the money I am owed. They don't need to know about your daycare expenses etc, what you spend your money on is none of their business. You worked for it, you should get it. If you can't get a satisfactory (to you) answer, I think it will be perfectly fine to say that since there are expenses involved for you in performing your duties, you find yourself unable to do so until you have been paid.

If you were a company rendering a service to another company, you would cease to offer said service upon non-payment, not so?

 

[cybele]

This may sound crazy, but it's the only logical reason I can think of for you not receiving your pay... if they are posting it, are you 100% sure that they have the correct address?

 

[akmom]

They have managed to mail my work supplies in a timely manner, every time I have run low. The check should be going to the same address.

I'm past the point where I'm demanding when and how much pay I get. I've done that, and I keep getting the answers I expected, but no check to back it up. And nothing in writing from them about the compensation schedule. They haven't claimed it's lost in the mail; they've claimed "it's coming," and "we just found your paperwork, sorry" and "you get 20% of all the services you do, don't worry." I have the client's invoices, so I know what it's supposed to be. A written invoice for the client, and a verbal agreement to pay me 20%, and nothing happening.

Last night I looked into our state's resources for making wage claims, so I guess that's the next step if I have to. Until then I guess I will just have to refuse to perform any more jobs. I'd hate to jeopardize my relationship with our regular clients by not attending to their service requests in a timely manner, but I think two months is a reasonable amount of time to expect my employer to work out my pay.

 

[singledad]

Ok, it sounds like you've already followed most of my suggestions, so yes, it is time to get tougher.

Last night I looked into our state's resources for making wage claims, so I guess that's the next step if I have to. Until then I guess I will just have to refuse to perform any more jobs. I'd hate to jeopardize my relationship with our regular clients by not attending to their service requests in a timely manner, but I think two months is a reasonable amount of time to expect my employer to work out my pay.

This sounds like an entirely reasonable next step. I understand your concern about your regular clients, but you can't work for nothing, and it sounds as if they will continue to abuse you for as long as you'll allow it. I'd refer any complaints about the lack of service straight to your manager. I'll bet they'll pay you pretty quickly when their clients start complaining...

 

[akmom]

Well I presented my ultimatum today. I got a call asking me to do a service over a hundred miles outside my service area, because their regular employee called in sick. I told them that I would have to be compensated for mileage for a job that far out, and that I did need to receive my overdue pay before I could do any more work orders. Her reply was, "Well I was hoping you could do this one as a favor, since the other guy is sick." Really? A favor? It's a job so far away that the fuel costs alone would eat up more than half of my commission for said job. Why would I waste a whole day for almost no pay, when they haven't even paid me my wages yet? That's absurd. If no one does the service, then they won't get paid anything for it. What do they have to lose by giving up some of their portion to cover my travel? I don't even get it.

Anyway, I told them that I couldn't do any more services until the pay details were resolved, and that I would require travel reimbursement for the out-of-area job if they wanted me to do it. So I guess we're at an impasse until then. Has any one else ever had a problem getting their pay, and how did you handle this??

 

[akmom]

Well... they paid up, finally. Hopefully this was a one-time thing and not an indication of things to come.

 

[cybele]

Good to hear.

 

[singledad]

Excellent! I hope for your sake u it was a once-off that won't be repeated...