Legal Question in Employment Law in Missouri

I own and apartment complex in Missouri. The property manager is an employee who is paid only on commission based on total rental income. She does not receive a fixed salary each pay period.

One of her responsibilities is to monitor water usage and make sure maintenance fixes leaks promptly. She can check water usage 24/7 on the city web site and is supposed to check all buildings at least once a week. One building had usage 4-5 times higher than normal for a month and was not fixed. I alerted her to the problem several times but it went on for another month and cost me about $500 before being fixed.

Is it legal to deduct $500 from her pay? The dollar amount is easily quantifiable once we receive the next water bill. If not, what other options do I have besides termination? Can I reduce the pay rate for future months? thx


Asked on 4/23/12, 12:22 pm

2 Answer from Attorneys

Anthony Smith LawSmith

You can ask if the employee will agree to a reduction. If not, then you may need to replace the employee. Otherwise, you are vulnerable to a claim each time the utility bill is lower than the previous period.

Good luck

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Answered on 4/25/12, 3:58 am


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