Is my employer required to retroactively pay me if they promised me a raise after my 90 day probation period but didn’t provide my review until 120 days?
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Is my employer required to retroactively pay me if they promised me a raise after my 90 day probation period but didn’t provide my review until 120 days?
I was hired on April 19, 2016 and informed that after the 90 day probationary period I would receive a 2 an hour raise and health insurance. My employer provided my review on August 18, 2016 which was a month overdue. They still have not provided me with insurance enrollment information although I’ve asked several times. They did tell me I will see the 2 hourly raise in my next check but aren’t they obligated to retroactively pay me from my 90 days?
Asked on August 18, 2016 under Employment Labor Law, Indiana
Answers:
SJZ, Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 7 years ago | Contributor
Promises are not enforceable: only contracts are. To be a contract, there must be mutual "consideration"--or an exchange (something from either/both side(s)) of something valuable. If the employer promised you a raise but you did not give them anything or give up anything for the promised raise, it was not an enforceable contract: it was just a "gratuitous" (or "free") promise and is not enforceable. The employer may renege on it.
Examples of when a promise like this would be enforceable would be if an employer promised you a raise if you transferred to a less desirable location, shift, or department, or agreed to do a lot of business travel; in those cases, you gave the employer something (taking on a burden it needed someone to do) in exchange for the raise.
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