Employment

Is it legal for a company to employ you with a unsatisfactory background check, knowing the offense is against company policy, not inform you that the offense prevents you from being employed with that company and then the company discharge you 3 months later because of the same background check that they ran when they hired you?

My corporate office is located in Pinellas County, Florida. I signed a tight non-competition agreement based on the promises of promotion and participation in the ownership program. I was promoted and transferred to Texas. It takes three years as a branch manager to qualify for ownership. My company is now closing my branch since they already have a branch within a few miles north of mine. The company offered to demote me, reduce my territory, and guarantee my salary only until January of 2007. I declined. I want to seek employment with a similar company in this area. I have work in this industry for the last seven years. It is my career. Do I have a chance to remain in this industry because of breach of contract? What are my options?

Is it legal for an employer to reduce your salary but at the same time increase your hours of work? Is there a legal limit on how many hours a week an employer can work an employee without any days off? Also, is there a limit on how much time a person gets for lunch?

My employer overpaid me and is requiring me to pay this money back. Am I required by law to repay this amount?

I am the president of my own company. I also work independently as a freelancer for a couple of companies. My question is: How long does a company have before they are obligated to pay a freelancer legally in NY.