SPECIFIC TERMS AND CONDITIONS OF THE JOB

Employment Agreements

Executives, sales/marketing people, and information technology experts, among others, are often asked to sign employment contracts prior to accepting a job or upon receiving a promotion. Written contracts are also sometimes issued as a result of a sale or purchase of a business, or in connection with an IPO in order to stabilize the workforce. Senior executives are also often offered specialized executive compensation agreements.

Close-up of African American businessman shaking hands with caucasian client after signing contract

BE AWARE OF RESTRICTIONS

Clauses of Your Agreement

Employment contracts are used to set forth the specific terms and conditions of the job. Terms often include the duration of the job, responsibilities and expectations, salary and raise stipulations, commissions, acceptable reasons for termination, notice provisions, and severance pay.

If you have been offered an employment contract, be aware that employers very often include restrictive clauses such as:

non-competition agreements;
overbroad confidentiality provisions;
loss of earned commissions from sales;
mandatory arbitration of disputes instead of court resolution;
requiring a long notice if the employee leaves, but the employer can end the employment with short or no notice;
limits on your ability to contact colleagues after the employment comes to an end.

These clauses can be quite limiting and, unfortunately, surprising to an employee if they are fired/terminated, laid off, furloughed, offered severance, etc. Employment contracts must therefore be carefully considered in advance of signing, and certainly not ignored because HR or your supervisor is in a hurry to get it signed.

The lawyers at Pelton Graham can review the proposed contract and assist you in negotiating fair and clear terms in advance of signing.

Close-up of businessman signing a contract on the table with pen

Young woman meeting new boss in his office, he is holding a noncompete agreement and giving explanations

Close-up of African American businesswoman signing contract

We specialize in the following types of Employment Agreements:

Noncompete Agreements

Executive Agreements

A Breach of Contract

If you already have a contract and your employer:

is unfairly enforcing non-competition, confidentiality, non-solicitation or other terms;

is improperly holding sales commissions;

has fired/terminated you;

has put you on lay off or furlough;

has offered you severance; or

is otherwise in breach of the contract,

you should consult with one of the experienced employment lawyers at Pelton Graham. We will evaluate your case and discuss what relief you can seek. In particular, there are a number of state laws and court decisions limiting an employer’s ability to enforce non-competition agreements.

The damages available for breach of an employment contract are usually not as large as for other types of cases. Because of this, we will also discuss all the facts about your employment with you to see if you have other claims which might increase a damage award.