Andres Rivera-Ortiz's Answers

My employer wont pay me my last pay check and is with holding it from me

Get a lawyer, a letter from an attorney may get this Employer to pay. Fla law provides for payment of attorney fees and costs for a wage claim so If you are forced to sue and you prevail, the Empoyer will have to pay substantially more than what he owes you since he will also be paying your attorney. That is why a letter from an attorney usually resolves this type of problem, and it may be worth your while to pay for such letter. Also, there may be some issues related to overtime pay under the...

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I've been sexual harsssed by my boss at work. The company has less than 15 employees. What can I do.

Additionally, even if state or federal discrimination laws do not apply because of jurisdictional issues ( less than 15 employees), there may be local laws that do. In Miami Dade County, for example, a local anti discrimination ordinance covers employers of 5 or more employees. So check your local ordinances, or better yet, talk to an attorney in your area.

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Administrative Law Judge Hearing or Mediation...Which one???

Yes. A mediator is a neutral party who will try to get a settlement between you and your employer. This is a common way of trying to resolve disputes to the satisfaction of both parties without having to fully litigate a claim. Mediations are usually confidential in nature. What is likely to happen is that the mediator you and an employer representative ( and respective counsel, if any) will meet at a designated place. The mediator will usually explain what mediation is, advise that what is...

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How do I handle an appeal phone hearing if appeal reason by employer is incorrect?

Some general information to try to help you. First, understand that the hearing before the appeals referee will be the only chance that you will get to present your case and to counter what the employer is saying. After that there are two more levels of appeal, to the Unemployment Appeals Commission (UAC)and to the District Courts of Appeal. You will not (generally) be able to present new evidence before the UAC and the Court, everything at that level is based on the record developed at the...

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Florida State Unemployment Law

First you need to make sure that you appeal it, the determination tells you how to appeal, usually you have 20 days. Once you have preserved your rights by appealing, then the issue is why did it take you 30 days? Did you have a computer? Did their website keepo crashing as you took the test? Was it that you just did not know ( you were probably advised of the requirement when you applied for benefits, read the materials you were given) This is a new requirement that was instituted...

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Is there a legal time frame in Florida to sign a severance package?

Assuming you have no employment contract or union contract that covers this, If you are over 40, they have to give you 21 ( 45 in certain situations) days to consider it, and after you sign you have 7 days to revoke. There are other requirements for any release of Age Discrimination claims to be enforceable. If you are younger than 40, there is really no legal time frame they have to give you and they can withdraw their offer

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My version of the events and the ex employers DIFFER greatly I had a hearing, and because of that they file against me.

I assume that when you say "arbitrator" you are talking about an "appeals referee" and that this is an unemployment compensation issue. It's not a good idea to represent yourself. In Florida there are three levels of appeal, (1) a hearing before an appeals referee, usually by telephone, where you are allowed to present evidence and attack the employer's evidence, whoever loses there can appeal to the Unemployment Appeals Commission ( UAC) in Tallahassee, (3) the third level of appeal is to...

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Wrongful Termination

Yes you can but just based on the bare facts that you give you will most likely loose. Florida is an employment "at will" state, which means that if you do not have an individual employment contract, or a union contract, an employer can fire you for a good, bad, just, unjust reason, or no reason at all, but not for an illegal reason ( ex: race, national origing, sex, disabilty, etc). You have the burden of showing that the employer's reason is an illegal reason, not an easy task. Now, if you...

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How long can a florida employer hold my last check?

There is no federal or Florida law that would cover this unless you were not paid at least the statutory minimum wage and/or overtime if applicable. If that is the case, yes there is a Florida minimum wage law and and a federal law also that will be applicable. If they did pay you at least the minimum wage and if there are no issues with overtime pay, then there is no government agency in Florida , or at the federal level, that will get involved. You have to sue the employer in small claims...

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Am I eligible for PA Unemployment Compensation

Generally, if you are laid off you do qualify for unemployment benefits. However, one of the requirements in most states is that you also have to be "able and available" for work, which may present a problem for you based on fact that you state that you are "recouperating" You need to talk to an employment lawyer in your state to look at your specific situation . A good source to find on one is the National Employment Lawyers Association ( google NELA), they have a feature on their web site...

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