Revealing One’s Plan to Retire Has Pros and Cons
Q I plan to retire one year from now when I am 62 and eligible to begin collecting Social Security. I have been employed by a large computer services firm for the last 20 years.
When is the best time for me to inform my employer of my plan to retire? Is there any legal advantage to telling my employer now? Or would I be better off waiting until just before I am ready to go out?
I am concerned about the possibility of being laid off because of budgetary problems before I become eligible for Social Security.
--J.B., Los Alamitos
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A There are potential advantages to telling your employer now about your plans to retire in a year.
If the company knows you are leaving anyway, it may decide to keep your name off any layoff list to avoid risking a claim of wrongful termination or age discrimination.
But in providing notice so far in advance, you might want to make it clear that your retirement would be conditioned on the company’s commitment to continue your employment until you become eligible for Social Security.
On the other hand, there are some distinct advantages to waiting to notify your employer of your retirement. If you think the company is planning to lay off employees, you might receive an offer with an incentive to take early retirement.
--Don D. Sessions
Employee rights attorney
Mission Viejo
Your Boss Is a Jerk? No Law Against That
Q Several of us work for a supervisor who thinks the company would fold if he were not there. He is a real control freak who makes everyone miserable.
We have complained several times to top management, only to have it fall on deaf ears. Is there a way we can petition to have him either terminated or removed from his current job without ramifications to us?
--B.D., Van Nuys
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A Employees have no right to dictate to management who their boss will be. Even today, it is not against the law for the boss to be a jerk.
If your boss is creating a hostile working environment based on gender, race or ethnicity, the laws against employment discrimination would protect you from being retaliated against for complaining.
But many employees believe that the definition of illegal “harassment” is much broader than it actually is. The fact that a boss may yell or have a bad temper or be a “control freak” does not constitute unlawful harassment.
The National Labor Relations Act protects non-management employees who engage in concerted activity to affect their wages, hours, or working conditions--even if those employees are not members of a union or are trying to organize one.
This law would probably protect you against retaliation for complaining to upper management about your supervisor. But it would not require your employer to terminate or transfer your boss. That decision is left entirely to management.
--James J. McDonald Jr.
Attorney, Fisher & Phillips
Labor law instructor, UC Irvine
Applicant Has No Right to View Test Results
Q I recently interviewed for a management position with a manufacturing/engineering firm. After passing this hurdle, I took a series of aptitude/psychological tests that consumed an entire day. I was not paid and received no reimbursement for expenses.
When I asked for the test results from my potential employer, I was given a flat “no.”
I was under the impression that I had to be provided results of any background checks, etc., upon request. Am I wrong?
--S.M., Thousand Oaks
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A The Fair Credit Reporting Act does require that certain consumer reports that are used to evaluate an applicant’s suitability for employment be provided to the applicant. However, that act does not apply to medical or psychological tests, so your potential employer was not required to provide you with the results of the tests that it conducted on you.
--Michael A. Hood
Employment law attorney
Paul, Hastings, Janofsky & Walker
Employer Not Required to Contribute to 401(k)
Q My company’s owner has been sending out feelers to all his retail stores, asking if we’re interested in having a 401(k) plan. The interesting thing is he has made it very clear he won’t be contributing toward it. By definition, isn’t a 401(k) plan financed at least partially by the boss’s contributions?
--S.E., Palm Desert
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A Although many employers contribute to their Section 401(k) plans, there is no requirement that a employer make any contributions to a 401(k).
--Kirk F. Maldonado
Employee benefits attorney
Riordan & McKinzie
If you have a question about an on-the-job situation, please mail it to Shop Talk, Los Angeles Times, P.O. Box 2008, Costa Mesa, CA 92626, or e-mail it to shoptalk@latimes.com. Include your initials and hometown. The Shop Talk column is designed to answer questions of general interest. It should not be construed as legal advice.
