Help Wanted: 2 jobs, 1 disability payment

DEAR CARRIE: I have to go on disability after surgery. I have a full-time job and a part-time one. I am told I can collect disability only from the full-time job, not the part-time one. Is this true? -- Which Pays?

DEAR WHICH: Both employers would most likely contribute, but your total benefit would still equal either half of your weekly wage gross, or a maximum of $170, whichever is higher, said Joseph Cavalcante, a spokesman for the New York State Workers' Compensation Board.

"That maximum is per worker, not per job," he said. "If an employee works two jobs in the same week, then both employers' insurance plans will contribute to that one payment."

Workers can also carry private, optional disability insurance that may also provide a payment. The terms of those individual contracts will dictate those payments, Cavalcante said.

DEAR CARRIE: We work for a large insurance company that evaluates us every year. When the reviews are favorable, we receive a raise. But now the company says we earn too much, based on an industry standard, and wants to cut some salaries next year by more than $10,000. That will wipe out raises. Can the company legally do this? I understand New York is an employment-at-will state, and we are not unionized, but can our employer take away merit raises we worked so hard for? During the performance review, managers and employees sign the review. So isn't our employer essentially breaking a signed contract? The cuts will affect thousands of employees, and there is the definite possibility of a class-action lawsuit. -- Razed RaiseDEAR RAZED: Wiping out your raises would be unfair considering that you earned them for a job well done, but the company's action would be legal. Here's why:

"Merit increases of pay in New York are entirely discretionary and up to the employer," said attorney Michael Borrelli of Borrelli & Associates in Great Neck.

That means employers can give the raises and take them back unless a union contract or other employment agreement prohibits the forced giveback. The change of heart reflects New York's employment-at-will status that you mentioned.

In such states employers have wide latitude over such things as pay.

"Employers can set whatever rate of pay or salary they want to, so long as they operate within the boundaries of the law with respect to minimum wage and overtime," Borrelli said.

That said, I am not sure on what basis you and your colleagues would file a lawsuit seeking class-action status, unless you could prove that the company's actions would disproportionately hurt women or older workers or other groups protected by state and federal anti-bias statutes.

DEAR CARRIE: I interviewed recently with a company for an exempt, salaried position. A manager told me that if hired, I had to work 70 hours a week, and if I fell short, my pay would be docked. Is this legal?

-- Legal Docking?DEAR LEGAL: Not exactly a pitch that makes a company attractive to prospective employees. And it sounds illegal, to boot. If you are truly exempt, your company doesn't have to pay you for all those extra hours you work in a week. But at the same time, the company cannot dock your pay when you miss less than a full day. It can dock your pay only when you miss a full day for personal reasons. So the company's scheme would violate the law.

For more on disability benefits go to: http://bit.ly/QC95dn

For more on overtime exemptions go to http://1.usa.gov/sQRzCo