Commission Disputes in Kansas City

Many salespeople in Kansas City rely on their retail knowledge and ability to sell products in order to make a living beyond what they earn for their normal salary or hourly wage. People who depend on commission payments and are denied this commission for some reason often feel like they have nowhere to turn. Similarly, employees who go through a rough patch of sales and do not earn their normal amount in commissions should not have to earn below minimum wage. A Kansas City employment attorney can help you acquire commission payments that you are owed, as well as enforce the Kansas state minimum wage if you have not been paid fairly.

Who can Collect Commission Payments?

If your employment contract lays out the terms under which you receive a commission for a product or service that you sold, your employer cannot deny payment simply because they say that the company cannot currently afford to pay. Whether you are a mattress or a car salesperson, you are entitled to the commission that you have been promised. Under Kansas statute 44-341, a commission salesperson is someone who is paid by commission and is not any of the following:

● An employer;
● Someone who makes an order or purchase for his or her own account for resale;
● A real estate broker or real estate salesperson and licensed under that act; or
● A door-to-door salesperson regulated by K.S.A. 50-640.

Employer has Refused to Pay a Commission

However, if your employer has refused to pay commission, such cases can become quite complex and must be handled by an experienced attorney. Your employer cannot deduct certain expenses from commissions and must abide by the contract in terms of whether the commission is based on gross sales or net sales. Moreover, some employers will violate the contract by refusing payment on a sale that was finalized after the employee left the company. For example, if you brought in a client but were terminated before the deal was finalized, your employer must abide by whatever agreement is in your contract. Some contracts are based on “commissions earned through the last day of the contractual relationship,” while others include commissions earned by the employee for sales finalized after he or she has left the company.

Lack of Commission Causes Employee Pay to Fall Below Minimum Wage

According to Handshake, typical gross sales commissions average between 7% and 15%. For a worker who has a base salary of less than the minimum wage, if he or she misses a few sales due to any reason, that worker can easily fall below the Kansas City minimum wage of $7.70 per hour, as reported by The Kansas City Star. Minimum wage violations must be dealt with by a lawyer.

Call a Commission Dispute Employment Attorney

Whether your commission pay has been denied by your employer or you have been earning less than the current Kansas minimum wage, you need legal representation. The lawyers at HKM Employment Attorneys LLP have more than 40 years of experience solving all types of wage disputes between employees and employers, and never stop fighting for our clients’ best interests.