Can I sue my employer for paying me less than the job description states? Do I have a case?

Question

I have been employed for 2 yrs and was hired on to a position where they told me my paygrade was a 6. 2yrs later I have found that it is actually a 7. I noticed in the job description in the paperwork that the job I was doing was a 7. I work really hard and have gotten excellent yearly work reviews and they have cheated me out of almost $2,000. Not to mention I would be getting paid a lot more at this point. What should I do. Any Professional advice would be greatly appreciated.

Answer 1

if u have agood relation with your boss, u can talk to him about it.

If u don't have a good relation, it may be better to find another job.

Answer 2

A lawsuit would fail as you got what you were offered.  The fact that they were willing to pay you more just makes you a poor negotiator.  You cannot accept an offer of which you are unaware.  However, the company might have personnel policies in place and you might have a shot at convincing them to remedy the problem.  If you try the court route, you lose.  

Answer 3

You might speak _nicely and politely_ with your supervisor and point out this information.

Lawsuits will generate bad feelings and probably they will find some reason not to need your services in the future.

Answer 4

You took the position with the pay grade of a 6.  Just because they are now offering it at a 7 doesn't change anything.  I would discuss it with your supervisor and see if they can change you to a 7 now, but you won't receive back pay when you agreed to do the work at a pay grade of a 6.

Answer 5

Its not unheard of to change the pay grade level for jobs.  It is quite possible that the jobs was a 6 when you were hired 2 years ago, but has changed... they are not responsible to pay you if they change the pay grade of your job description after you are hired.

I would talk to your manager... If you have been there 2 years and have had excellent reviews, I would bet that they would be willing to move you up to a level 7, though I doubt you would have a case for any back pay.

Answer 6

If you were told that your pay grade was a 6 and you accepted the position on that basis, then you accepted the pay grade along with the job.  Do you know it if was actually a 7 when you accepted the job or have they changed it since that time.  

In any event, talk to your supervisor and point out the fact that you have discovered that your job description indicates that your pay grade should be a 7 and you would like to request that they increase your salary accordingly.  If they are amenable, you might ask if they would consider making the raise retroactive to either your start date, or the date when they upgraded the payscale for your position.  

You must realize of course that they can fire you for any reason or no reason because, unless you have a written contract, you are an at will employee.  If they take exception at your asking for a raise, they don't have to have an excuse to let you go.  

(If you have a contract for your job - you might go back and check to see if it indicates what you pay grade should have been when you were hired.)

Answer 7

Unless you have some kind of signed contract that says you get level 6 pay, you get what is stated for your position.  You'd need to be able to prove that they promised you something else; or, far more difficult, that people in your same nominal pay grade are being paid more than you are for comparable work.

Otherwise, how you deal with this depends on how reasonable you think your employer will be, and how much you need to keep your job.

Answer 8

Ask your employer if you should be getting paid more. If not and you don't like it, quit. You have no case, though. Employment is at-will, meaning you're not forced to work there.