Is it legal for employers to deduct missing inventory from wages for retail sales staff?
Get Legal Help Today
Compare Quotes From Top Companies and Save
Secured with SHA-256 Encryption
Is it legal for employers to deduct missing inventory from wages for retail sales staff?
It says in the handbook that this is the normal procedure.
Asked on January 1, 2015 under Employment Labor Law, Missouri
Answers:
SJZ, Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 9 years ago | Contributor
If the employees agree to the deduction, it is legal. It is not clear whether or not simply stating it in tehe employee handbook is sufficient to infer agreement: in some cases, such as where the policy is very clearly stated and employees sign a form indicating that they received and read the handbook, it probably is, but if there is no acknowledgment of receipt or the policy statement is at all ambiguous or unclear, it probably is not.
However, note that even if the employer cannot directly deduct the cost of the missing goods, they can ask the employee to pay; and they could certainly fire the employee (since unless he/she has an employment contract, he/she is an "employee at will" and may be fired at any time, for any reason whatsoever) for not repaying the value of lost merchandise. And if the employee still did not pay, if the employer believed they could prove it was the employee's fault, they could sue him or her; and if they believed the employee stole the merchandise, file a police report and/or press charges.
IMPORTANT NOTICE: The Answer(s) provided above are for general information only. The attorney providing the answer was not serving as the attorney for the person submitting the question or in any attorney-client relationship with such person. Laws may vary from state to state, and sometimes change. Tiny variations in the facts, or a fact not set forth in a question, often can change a legal outcome or an attorney's conclusion. Although AttorneyPages.com has verified the attorney was admitted to practice law in at least one jurisdiction, he or she may not be authorized to practice law in the jurisdiction referred to in the question, nor is he or she necessarily experienced in the area of the law involved. Unlike the information in the Answer(s) above, upon which you should NOT rely, for personal advice you can rely upon we suggest you retain an attorney to represent you.