Oklahoma Employment Contracts Legal Questions

Yes and no.  By depositing the check, you probably did agree to the terms, but the law provides that you have at least a week to revoke any release or waiver of age discrimination claims.  If, as I expect, your severance agreement contained such a release or waiver, I believe you would have the remainder of the week to revoke your acceptance by returning the money.  It is possible that the severance agreement also provided, explicitly, that you would have a period of time to revoke any acceptance.   ... Read More

Your former employer is not telling you that you broke the law or breached any contract,and from the facts presented you have not.  He/she is only telling you that the failure to submit a written resignation will look bad on your record.  This may be true (although it doesn't seem true to me) but (a) it seems unlikely that any future potential employer would find out about it unless your former employer goes out of his/her way to mention it if asked for a reference; (b) given the reason you are not returning, any question of future employment seems like it is a ways down the line; and (c) given your reasons for not submitting a written letter of resignation, I doubt any future potential employer will hold it against you.... Read More

Although it may be codified in some jurisdictions, the common law is that if the party paying a worker exercises too much control over a worker's work, that worker will be considered an employee, not an independent contractor.  Thus, Black's Law Dictionary defines an independent ocntractor as "[o]ne who is entrusted to undertake a specific project but who is left free to do the assigned work and to choose the method for accomplishing it."  Whether a worker is considered an independent ocntractor or an employee can have significant implications for the person hiring the worker, because he/she/it will often be liable for the negligence or other wrongdoing of an employee, but not for the negligence or other wrongdoing of an independent contractor.  THere are also tax implications, including with regard to withholding requirements.... Read More

I don't specifically know Oklahoma law, but I doubt it is any different in this area than in the jurisdictions in which I practice.  An employer can refuse to fhire someone for any reason not prohibited by statute (e.g. age, gender, religion, etc.)  Many employers require employees to have their own car.... Read More

Non-compete agreements typically are construed very narrowly.  This means that the previous employer can only limit your employment for very specific jobs, and in a very narrow geographic area.  You should see a local employment law attorney to determine the laws restricting the applicability of non-competes in your state. This is not intended to be legal advice, and is general in its nature. No attorney-client relationship exists or is formed by this information. Furthermore, this does not represent the views or opinions of LexisNexis or its affiliated companies.... Read More