We’ve noticed over the years that, come December and January, we start to get a slew of phone calls and emails from employees who were either terminated in late December, apparently by employers who think that they can avoid paying bonuses by terminating employees before the end of the year, or who quit their jobs in January and are told that because they are not employed when their annual bonus is paid, they have forfeited their bonus. Nothing could be further from the truth.
Under Maryland law, if an employee earns a bonus or commission, then the employee must be paid for their work — regardless of whether they are still employed on the date that the bonus or commission is scheduled to be paid by the employer. In fact, employers risk having to pay liquidated damages, either double or treble damages, as well as attorneys’ fees and costs for refusing to pay such bonus or commission payments. If you are in this situation, give us a call or send us an email and we will let you know if we think we can assist you with your potential case.