Desi employer asks me to sign a 1 yr contract...is it valid

A

ankur80

Registered Users (C)
Hello all,

I just graduated with a MS degree in US and I am on OPT. I could not find a job so I went with this desi employer of mine. He has copies of all my documents and has asked me to sign a 1 year contract with him that I cannot leave him before 1 yr from starting date else I will have to pay him 10,000 dollars and other expenses like training ( which was basically 10 days material expanded into 30 days) using lab etc.

I was wondering if it is a valid contract and can he sue me if I break it.

I have heard such bonded labor contracts are not valid in US.

Thanks,
Ankur
 
Can you give me contacts of any employment attorneys and an idea of how much would they charge for their services ?

Thanks,
Ankur
 
He cannot make a contract on top of the DOL rules (which is two weeks notice )regarding length of service, if you are joining as employee (not assistantship/residency/trainee). However, you may have to refund him his loss. thats legal.Normally it will be calculated based on the length of service.ie.if you stayed for 6 months then half of whatever etc. If you are signing a legal document show it to an employment attorney and look at the actual statements.
 
desi2007 said:
He cannot make a contract on top of the DOL rules (which is two weeks notice )regarding length of service, if you are joining as employee (not assistantship/residency/trainee).
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Yes, he can. However, in most states the law requires him to provide something over and above mere employment in return for this concession by the employee.
 
Thanks Desi2007 and Real Canadian for the reply. I want to mention quick facts about him. The company is registered in New Hampshire with an office in MA too.

I joined on Aug 1, 2007. Signed documents with in 1st week. Then until Aug 31 our training contiunued which was basically definitions of QA terms, Little unix and SQL and Winrunner, QTP, Loadrunner and it ended with Sample resume preparation( you know what I mean..I was dead against this but they convinced me by telling I have no chance of getting a job if I don't prepare resume as they say...so I complied). He also asked me to remove my previous resume from all job posting sites.

Sep 1 marketing started when their 2 person marketing team flooded every possible mid client and job portal with my new resume. I would get calls from midclients who would say "ok I am submitting" and then I would hear nothing about the requirement after that. "So from Sep 1 until Oct 14" I was jobless, was paid nothing (0 dollars per hour )(but only given a apartment to stay on shared basis and allowed to use the lab..which did not have sufficient computers anyways). Then I got this project.

Some others clauses are : I will be paid hourly. Right now I am getting paid below the prevailing wage( but I am on OPT). So if my project ends I will be paid 0 dollars per hour on bench(but I can stay in the apt he provides again where I fly back at my own expense), there is not a single day of vacation in the whole year not even sick leave, there was not even a single day of temporary accomodation provided when I moved here, I got 500 $ relocation allowance which I get only once during my employement with him, he however paid for travel expenses ( no food ) whenever I went for interviews.

Don't you think this is a strictly one sided arrangement and after all this do I have any liability to pay him anything if I leave. BTW I am only making 36.58 % of my end client billing rate ( there are 2 more "layers" in between...phew!!)

Thnx
 
in my opinion:
unless you signed a legal document, and you can show all the above (prove that he never followed the rules), you are safe. not providing payment is convincing. I am not sure how OPT works. but from the H1b rules, he needs to pay you for every day from day1. if this is brought to attention of DOL his coy will be auditted (one of my friend's coy was aduitted for a similar reason). Normally these guys, wont like to expose them in front of DOl etc.

However, if you want to avoid any risk and If its a legal paper- then a contract cannot one sided. you can add the clauses after checking this with an employment attorney and get comments and negotiate before signing the deal. I have done similar thing for another person for under 100 bucks.
 
The paper that I signed had legal language and had my social security number and DL number mentioned where I had to sign. It was not notarized or anything , there wa no mention of any lawyers and was on computer stationary. I already signed it in August. He said he will give me a copy of the agreement but hasn't given the copy so far. If I ask him the copy now I think he will understand that I am taking legal advice....! Thats a problem isn't it ?
 
from aug 1 till October xx date you are suppose to be paid. looks like he didnt pay you. thats a good enough reason.ofcourse he might reduce boarding/tution fees. talk to an attorney and you can kick him. If you wish, you probably could sue him and get some money, that your attorney will tell you.
 
ankur80 said:
Thanks so much Desi2007 for your valuable advice !
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I believe that they hired you as an trainee if thats true you cant do anything. This is true even with National Institute of Health Trainee positions which is by the way most respected and largest US Gov funding agency.
 
If this would be a legal contract you would get a copy automatically in the beginning. Don't fall for scams like this. I hear of these "arrangements" from time to time on this forum and I am puzzled of how naive some recent OPT grads can be. They stay with these blood suckers, suffering without knowing that they could leave at any time and find a decent job.

You could do the following. Find a decent job then tell them you want to move. If they will start screaming you know they are fake. They will not be able to start any legal action if any because you did not leave. However, it will be revealed more of their scam in the process and open your eyes. You will then be able to decide if this was a fake contract or not and move on.
 
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