Are Training Contracts Enforceable?

[$$$4nothin]

contract breaking

99 times out of 100 you will not have to pay the $, but like someone else said earlier you are just burning a bridge. It is true that if you are breaking a contract you already have another job, but what happens if you blow it during training or are furloughed. Do you think your old company will say yeah sure you can come back or do you think they will say tough luck. And what will they say to any other employers that call them to ask about you. Is an extra couple of months really worth hindering the rest of your career. Maybe yes, but probably no.

 

[great cornholio]

My old company had one of those and there were some guys that skipped out and didnt pay the money. The company kind of bothered them about it for a few months, but nothing too bad and one guy even set up a payment plan. Like 5 bucks a month and stopped paying after the 1st month. Anyways they never drug these guys into court or anything like that, but from what I hear the company turned them into a collection agency so now their credit is all dicked up. Just somethin else to think about.

 

[TopGun-MAV]

a strong word of advive. some of these contrasts are enforcible. be very very careful you are working for before skipping. if turned over to a collection agency yeas they can destroy your credit. the company has nothing to loose.

just my 2 cents

 

[Country Wild]

The US Supreme Court ruled on a case a few months ago that was over a training contract. Training contracts are not enforceable due to the fact that it violates "indentured servant" status. If you are finacially and legal binded to a job that you can not leave because of this then that contract is illegal an non enforceable. This case also involved a collection agency, the collection agency is being sued now in civil court and some individuals are headed off to criminal court. Seven of the seven judges ruled against the contract.

 

[I Hate Freight]

Collection Agencies

You can fight collection agencies. You can file rebuttals to debts with the credit bureaus and force agencies/creditors to prove you actually owe the debt or it will be removed from your credit report. In the case of training contracts it is hard to say you don't owe the debt but there may very well be extenuating circumstances.

For instance, your company is sold to another and your job is drastically changing. Pay is changing, benefits changing, you're told you must relocate when you cannot and your health insurance premium is more than tripling. So you take another job in order to survive and the company demands you pay your contract. Sorry, but in this case you did not leave your job, your job left you. Do they have the right to demand the training money? You bet.

IHF

 

[icefr8dawg]

here's something to throw in the mix, a lot of operators have us doing illegal things. A free out of the contract could be arranged as a bribe in some cases. Feeling like a scumbag aside though...

 

[English]

The US Supreme Court ruled on a case a few months ago that was over a training contract. Training contracts are not enforceable due to the fact that it violates "indentured servant" status. If you are finacially and legal binded to a job that you can not leave because of this then that contract is illegal an non enforceable. This case also involved a collection agency, the collection agency is being sued now in civil court and some individuals are headed off to criminal court. Seven of the seven judges ruled against the contract.

Do you have a reference for this?

 

[bobbysamd]

Training contracts

a strong word of advive. some of these contrasts are enforcible. be very very careful you are working for before skipping. if turned over to a collection agency yeas they can destroy your credit. the company has nothing to loose.

Disguised in this illiteracy is a point. Among other things, a contract (or "contrast," if you will) must have a legal purpose, and commiting a person to training expenses is not illegal. Therefore, you should assume that the contract is enforceable.

The question then turns on how much effort a company might put forth on enforcing it. It may decide that it's not worth the expense to go after the individual who breached it. On the other hand, the individual could be sued for breach, bad faith and/or other legal theories.

One other point worth considering is your reputation. Mr. P-F-Ter notes, correctly, that a breached training contract can be turned over to collections. If you signed a training contract but have another gig lined up, it very well may be worth it to negotiate a settlement. Doing so will protect your credit, but, more importantly, protect your reputation.

 

[F70pilot]

Some of the "contracts" I have perused did not mention training per se. They were promisory (sp) notes which is a bit different.