Can an employer change a set wage down to minimum wage automatically if terminated?
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Can an employer change a set wage down to minimum wage automatically if terminated?
My ex-employer made employees sign a document for a wage decrease. If we are terminated or quit without 2 weeks notice, they change your wages back down to minimum wage. Is this legal? My former employer is doing this to me.
Asked on May 13, 2019 under Employment Labor Law, Wisconsin
Answers:
SJZ, Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 5 years ago | Contributor
If you signed the agreement for a wage decrease, it is legal: you contractually agreed to this, and that contract is enforceable. You say they "made" the employees sign this agreement, but in the law's eyes, the choice to sign was voluntary, since you could have refused to sign and sought other employment. Employment in this nation is "employment at will": among other things, that means that the employer may set essentially terms or conditions it likes on employment, since there is no right to or guaranty of a job; and if employees do not like those terms and conditions, they do not need to work there.
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