Answers Posted By Christopher Ezold

Answer to Sub-contractor or not

You are likely an employee, not a contractor.

Before I respond to your inquiry, I must state that we have not spoken, I have not reviewed the relevant documents and facts, and I do not represent you. Therefore, my discussion below is not a legal opinion, but is informational only. Finally, my discussion applies only to issues to which Pennsylvania or Federal law apply, unless otherwise specified.

That being said, you are likely an employee, not a contractor. As your employer appears to direct your work, provide your tools and dictate policy, you aappear to be an employee. You should be making at least minimum wage, and may be entitled to participate in various benefits plans that your employer may have (401k, medical insurance, etc.).

Generally, in Pennsylvania, an employer can hire, fire, discipline or change your pay at will, without any reason. Unless you had more than a 'promise' for 'guaranteed wages' you have no claim on the change to your wage structure. If, however, you had a written or verbal agreement, you may have a claim for breach of contract, regardless of whether you are an employee or contractor.

That being said, it is likely that damages are small, although without reviewing all your material and discussing the matter with you I cannot tell for sure. It is likely that a lawsuit will not be worth the time, money and effort put into it. It is far more likely that you will be better off finding a new position elsewhere.

If you would like to discuss this matter further, please feel free to contact me at the below address(es) or number.

/Christopher E. Ezold/
Nancy O'Mara Ezold, P.C.
One Belmont Avenue,
Suite 501
Bala Cynwyd, PA 19004
(610) 660-5585
Cezold@Ezoldlaw.com


posted Nov 29, 2006 1:50 PM [EST]

Answer to Harrasment

You may have a claim, but quitting your job makes it more difficult to pursue.

Before I respond to your inquiry, I must state that we have not spoken, I have not reviewed the relevant documents and facts, and I do not represent you. Therefore, my discussion below is not a legal opinion, but is informational only. Finally, my discussion applies only to issues to which Pennsylvania or Federal law apply, unless otherwise specified.

That being said, you may have a claim, but quitting your job makes it more difficult to pursue. Your claim would be based on the other cousin's behavior; was he treating you badly because he was jealous of your relationship? If so, he may have violated the law prohibiting discrimination and harassment based on sex. Your long history with the company gives rise to an inference that you would have stayed with the company for a long time; your damages might be significant. Therefore, you may have a claim that would allow you to seek compensation for having been forced out of a job.

However, your having quit presents a legal and a practical challenge. First, you now have to prove that the harassment was so pervasive that your quitting is more accurately described as a termination. This burden does not exist if you are still employed there or if you are fired. Second, not being there deprives you of access to witnesses and the added pressure that your presence creates for an employer who now wants you gone. It is always easier to settle claims when the employee is still employed.

Generally, you should NEVER QUIT a job due to harassment or discrimination before speaking with an attorney, especially if you intend to pursue a claim. At the very least, your ability to collect unemployment is reduced.

You may still have a good claim, depending on the facts of the harassment and your leaving. Without the facts, however, I cannot tell you whether your claim is worth pursuing.

If you would like to discuss this matter further, please feel free to contact me at the below address(es) or number.

/Christopher E. Ezold/
Nancy O'Mara Ezold, P.C.
One Belmont Avenue,
Suite 501
Bala Cynwyd, PA 19004
(610) 660-5585
Cezold@Ezoldlaw.com


posted Nov 20, 2006 1:45 PM [EST]

Answer to Severance pay due if outsourced

Your employer likely has no obligation to provide severance.

Before I respond to your inquiry, I must state that we have not spoken, I have not reviewed the relevant documents and facts, and I do not represent you. Therefore, my discussion below is not a legal opinion, but is informational only. Finally, my discussion applies only to issues to which Pennsylvania or Federal law apply, unless otherwise specified.

That being said, your employer likely has no obligation to provide severance. Employer policies are generally not enforceable contracts; severance policies are more akin to gifts than obligations. Furthermore, many severance policies have provisions that cancel severance upon the employee obtaining new employment.

If, however, your employer singles you out for cancellation of severance when other employees in your situation do not have their severance cancelled, you may have a claim. Generally speaking, however, you have no right to severance pay. Therefore, your employer can likely deny you severance if you do not take the new position.

If you would like to discuss this matter further, please feel free to contact me at the below address(es) or number.

/Christopher E. Ezold/
Nancy O'Mara Ezold, P.C.
One Belmont Avenue,
Suite 501
Bala Cynwyd, PA 19004
(610) 660-5585
Cezold@Ezoldlaw.com

posted Nov 4, 2006 08:00 AM [EST]

Answer to terminated before probationary period ends

The probationary period is irrelevant to a noncompetition agreement.

Before I respond to your inquiry, I must state that we have not spoken, I have not reviewed the relevant documents and facts, and I do not represent you. Therefore, my discussion below is not a legal opinion, but is informational only. Finally, my discussion applies only to issues to which Pennsylvania or Federal law apply, unless otherwise specified.

That being said, the probationary period is irrelevant to a noncompetition agreement. You are no less an employee of an employer if there is a 'probationary period' - you can be hired or fired during your probationary period just as easily as after. Unless you have a contract to the contrary or are in a very narrow range of government employees (who don't have noncompetes anyway), the 'probationary period' is really an illusion. If the noncompete is effective, it'll be just as effective during as well as after the 'probationary period.'

The only out for the employee is that they were terminated; an employer generally does not have a legitimate business interest in enforcing a noncompete against an employee that wasn't good enough to keep. Only if the employee is terminated for reasons such as stealing, gross insubordination, etc., will the noncompete generally be enforcible.

The situation you describe is fact-dependent; the reasons for the termination are the pivot on which the enforcibility of the noncompete will turn.

If you would like to discuss this matter further, please feel free to contact me at the below address(es) or number.

/Christopher E. Ezold/
Nancy O'Mara Ezold, P.C.
One Belmont Avenue,
Suite 501
Bala Cynwyd, PA 19004
(610) 660-5585
Cezold@Ezoldlaw.com


posted Nov 2, 2006 5:08 PM [EST]

Answer to Changing Non-Competes

You may not be bound by either noncompete if you sign the last one after you begin working.

Before I respond to your inquiry, I must state that we have not spoken, I have not reviewed the relevant documents and facts, and I do not represent you. Therefore, my discussion below is not a legal opinion, but is informational only. Finally, my discussion applies only to issues to which Pennsylvania or Federal law apply, unless otherwise specified.

That being said, you may not be bound by either noncompete if you sign the last one after you begin working.

Noncompetition agreements must include legal consideration for the employee; that is, they must give the employee something. Pennsylvania courts have held that once you are employed, you have to be given something else besides 'continued employment' (such as cash, a promotion, etc.) for a noncompete to be valid.

If the first noncompete has a 'problem' that renders it unenforceable, and you sign th second noncompete, but get nothing for doing so, you may not be bound be EITHER noncompete.

If you refuse to sign, however, your employer may fire you, and you will have no legal recourse except unemployment.

To know whether either noncompete would bind you, I would need to read them both and discuss the facts of your hiring and the terms and conditions of your employment.

If you would like to discuss this matter further, please feel free to contact me at the below address(es) or number.

/Christopher E. Ezold/
Nancy O'Mara Ezold, P.C.
One Belmont Avenue,
Suite 501
Bala Cynwyd, PA 19004
(610) 660-5585
Cezold@Ezoldlaw.com


posted Nov 1, 2006 4:23 PM [EST]

Answer to Going to work for a client but client will still retain agency, non-compete valid?

Your noncompete may be valid, but may not apply to employment with a client.

Before I respond to your inquiry, I must state that we have not spoken, I have not reviewed the relevant documents and facts, and I do not represent you. Therefore, my discussion below is not a legal opinion, but is informational only. Finally, my discussion applies only to issues to which Pennsylvania or Federal law apply, unless otherwise specified.

That being said, your noncompete may be valid, but may not apply to employment with a client. In Pennsylvania, a noncompetition agreement must be reasonable in time, geographic scope and substantive scope, and is enforcible to the extent it protects a legitimate business interest of the employer.

I cannot determine whether the noncompete is valid on the facts you provided; however, it appears that your employment with a client may not violate the terms of the noncompete. In-house work that your employer does not do is not competition nor is preventing you from doing suchg work a legitimate business interest of the employer.

However, if your employment in-house with a client does take business away from your former employer, even if the client still remains a client of the former employer, you may be in violation of the noncompetition agreement. I suggest you have an attorney review the document and discuss your situation with you in detail.

If you would like to discuss this matter further, please feel free to contact me at the below address(es) or number.

/Christopher E. Ezold/
Nancy O'Mara Ezold, P.C.
One Belmont Avenue,
Suite 501
Bala Cynwyd, PA 19004
(610) 660-5585
Cezold@Ezoldlaw.com


posted Oct 30, 2006 2:05 PM [EST]

Answer to Discrimination Again

You should see an attorney before filing with the EEOC.

Before I respond to your inquiry, I must state that we have not spoken, I have not reviewed the relevant documents and facts, and I do not represent you. Therefore, my discussion below is not a legal opinion, but is informational only. Finally, my discussion applies only to issues to which Pennsylvania or Federal law apply, unless otherwise specified.

That being said, you should see an attorney before filing with the EEOC. The first step in bringing a legal claim is filing a complaint with the EEOC or the PHRC. Determining which agency you should file with and framing the complaint are issues your attorney will assist you with. If you file without the advice of an attorney, you may omit necessary facts or ancillary claims, such as retaliation, from your complaint. Such omissions will make it difficult to find an attorney who will take the case after you have filed.

Furthermore, an attorney may be able to settle the case without the time and expense of filing a claim.

If you would like to discuss this matter further, please feel free to contact me at the below address(es) or number.

/Christopher E. Ezold/
Nancy O'Mara Ezold, P.C.
One Belmont Avenue,
Suite 501
Bala Cynwyd, PA 19004
(610) 660-5585
Cezold@Ezoldlaw.com


posted Oct 13, 2006 08:12 AM [EST]

Answer to treated unfairly?

It is unlikely that the validity of your noncompete depends on whether other employees signed it.

Before I respond to your inquiry, I must state that we have not spoken, I have not reviewed the relevant documents and facts, and I do not represent you. Therefore, my discussion below is not a legal opinion, but is informational only. Finally, my discussion applies only to issues to which Pennsylvania or Federal law apply, unless otherwise specified.

That being said, it is unlikely that the validity of your noncompete depends on whether other employees signed it. Although it is wrong, it is generally not illegal to treat employees differently or unfairly. However, it IS illegal to treat employees differently due to race, gender, religion, disability, age, etc. If the employees who had to sign the noncompete are all white, or Baptist, or over 40, there might be a claim for discrimination.

Furthermore, many noncompetition agreements are drafted incorrectly; they do not meet the requirements of the law. Even when drafted correctly, they cannot prevent you from working in every capacity for a competitor; depending on your position and responsibilities with your current employer, you may be able to find permissible work with a competitor.

These issues are all fact-dependent, and would require analysis by an attorney. If you would like to discuss this matter further, please feel free to contact me at the below address(es) or number.

/Christopher E. Ezold/
Nancy O'Mara Ezold, P.C.
One Belmont Avenue,
Suite 501
Bala Cynwyd, PA 19004
(610) 660-5585
Cezold@Ezoldlaw.com


posted Oct 10, 2006 08:05 AM [EST]

Answer to Piracy laws

She may not trespass, but there is no general law against soliciting employees.

Before I respond to your inquiry, I must state that we have not spoken, I have not reviewed the relevant documents and facts, and I do not represent you. Therefore, my discussion below is not a legal opinion, but is informational only. Finally, my discussion applies only to issues to which Pennsylvania or Federal law apply, unless otherwise specified.

That being said, she may not trespass, but there is no general law against soliciting employees. She has no right to be on her former employer's property; she should be advised that she is prohibited from coming on the property, and if she does, the police should be called.

Generally, only a non-solicitation agreement can prevent solicitation of employees. However, if the solicitation is part of a plan to drive the employer out of business, or to impropely interfere with the business, there is a small chance that the employer may have an unfair trade practices claim against her or her employer. Without significant factual backup, such a claim is highly unlikely to exist, however.

If you would like to discuss this matter further, please feel free to contact me at the below address(es) or number.

/Christopher E. Ezold/
Nancy O'Mara Ezold, P.C.
One Belmont Avenue,
Suite 501
Bala Cynwyd, PA 19004
(610) 660-5585
Cezold@Ezoldlaw.com


posted Sep 22, 2006 12:33 PM [EST]

Answer to how to nullify non-compete and do i have the right?

The noncompete may be invalid, or may be invalidated by your employer's actions.

Before I respond to your inquiry, I must state that we have not spoken, I have not reviewed the relevant documents and facts, and I do not represent you. Therefore, my discussion below is not a legal opinion, but is informational only. Finally, my discussion applies only to issues to which Pennsylvania or Federal law apply, unless otherwise specified.

That being said, the noncompete may be invalid, or may be invalidated by your employer's actions. You are correct that the lack of a geographic limitation may render the noncompete invalid. However, there is also a nonsolicitation clause that generally does not need a geographic component, as it is implicit in the nonsolicitation of particular clients. You may therefore be able to work in a competitive position for a year, as long as you don't provide services to or solicit a customer of your employer.

The fact that you have little or no contact with your employer's clients may render the nonsolicitation invalid; however, I would need further facts to make that determination.

Finally, your employer may have already breached the contract with you, or may do so in the future, by nonpayment or late payment of wages. Again, I would need further facts to make this determination.

It is likely, therefore, that the contract is unenforceable against you. Further, your employer's practical situation may preclude them from pursuing you regardless of the enforceability of the contract. You should contact an attorney to discuss the issues in detail, however, before taking a competing job or soliciting or working for any client of your current employer. There are practical and legal steps you can take to avoid the restrictions in the contract that an attorney will lay out for you.

If you would like to discuss this matter further, please feel free to contact me at the below address(es) or number.

/Christopher E. Ezold/
Nancy O'Mara Ezold, P.C.
One Belmont Avenue,
Suite 501
Bala Cynwyd, PA 19004
(610) 660-5585
Cezold@Ezoldlaw.com


posted Sep 9, 2006 11:44 AM [EST]