Fired worker gets paid for unused vacation, despite company’s policy
July 16, 2009 by Sam NarisiPosted in: Firing, In This Week's E-Newsletter, Latest News & Views
Employers who follow their own policies regarding vacation time are usually safe. But here’s a case where a court forced an employer to make a payment to an employee who was fired for misconduct — even though the company’s policy said he wasn’t owed anything.
The company’s handbook said that employees fired for “gross misconduct” would not receive pay for earned but unused vacation time. The term “gross misconduct” was not defined.
One employee was fired after he failed a mandatory drug test. He did not receive any vacation pay.
He sued, claiming a failed drug test didn’t reach the level of gross misconduct and demanded a payout for the leave he didn’t use.
The court agreed. Since the company didn’t explain what conduct it was referring to, the judge tipped the scales in the employee’s favor and said “gross misconduct” refers to actions that are “intentional, wanton, willful, deliberate, reckless or in deliberate indifference to an employer’s interest.”
And, according to the court, failing a drug test didn’t make the cut. The employee was awarded his payout.
The lesson: Be careful about using terms that are open to interpretation without clearly defining them. If the handbook had simply said, for example, that employees forfeit their paid leave if they’re fired for breaking company policy, the court battle likely could have been avoided.
Cite: Lang v. Quality Mold.
Tags: gross misconduct, handbook, paid leave, vacation
July 20th, 2009 at 10:14 am
My daughter has accrued over five weeks of vacation time based on her pay stubs. She is twenty years old and has been working for this particular company for five years during the summer months. They did not re-hire her this year and said that she is not eligible for her vacation pay. I would like to pursue this. Who would I need to contact? Thanks, Karen Etheridge
July 24th, 2009 at 4:10 pm
I would start with your local DOL people, or an attorney. Depending on the state you are in she could be eligible for three times the wages due.
July 27th, 2009 at 10:25 am
The company my brother-in-law worked for in NJ tried to do this to a group of people. They took it to the labor board and won. The employer was told that if they put it on the paystub as accrued and eligible then they have to pay it out regardless of the reason for termination. They looked at it that the employee could have taken the time the month before termination and been paid, so it was owed to them.