My question involves employment and labor law for the state of: CA
I really need some advice. I am a sales executive (software) and have worked for a company for three years. Both myself and the employer are located in CA.
Our fiscal year runs from 10/1 through 9/31 and we are a publicly traded company, hence the offset fiscal year. This is important because my compensation plan year and schedule is in line with this.
Each year we get a compensation plan letter that outlines and confirms the plan (percentages, when it is to be paid out, on what, etc). This year, I did not receive a compensation plan before the start of the fiscal year, but had been told by my manager that it would likely be changing, for the better. However they refused to provide details until it was done.
5 months into the fiscal year, I received a letter stating that my quota has doubled, commission has been cut in half, and my salary adjusted. I can somewhat understand this if it was moving forward, but it also notified me that it was retroactive to any sale closed since the begining of the fiscal year. Unforunately, I am a top sales person at my company and since I have closed alot of business prior to this announcement, I am now getting much less than expected and was in practice.
I was not being paid all year until this point as they put payments on hold since their commissions were all messed up. So i was patient, only to be royally screwed while out there doing what is right for the company. My sales are very complex and difficult, many taing a dozen engineers and 2-3 years to close. So they cannot argue that any efforts this year were also paid this year.
Their response is that since I have an annual compensation plan, and last year's expired before the start of this year, the way i WAS getting paid is null and void and therefore with a new plan it automatically started on 10/1/2007 even though it wasn't even drafted and they can pay me whatever they want.
Can they really do this? I can see where they can change a plan moving forward but to change the rate of pay after the work is done because they chose to withhold? Also do they have any case that the annual sales plan was only for a definable period of time, and had lapsed? If so this means that i had no plan at all or does the previous succeed until a new one?

