FIRST.— They owe you money

Overtime that never got paid. Commissions that never showed up. A month they told you they’d catch up on and never did. Severance pay that doesn’t add up when you run the numbers.

Here’s something most people don’t know: almost every time I review a dismissal case, I also find an amount the company owes. Because they’re paying below the collective agreement, because the job category is wrong, because overtime isn’t being paid. There’s almost always something.

SECOND.— The prorated bonus trap

This is a classic, and most people have no idea.

The collective agreement says extra pay (Christmas and summer bonuses) is paid out twice a year: in June and in December. But the company tells you, “Don’t worry, I’ll spread it out over your monthly pay, so you’ll take home more each month.” You say yes, because it sounds like a good deal.

The problem: if the collective agreement doesn’t actually allow for prorating, what they’ve been paying you each month isn’t your extra pay. It’s a separate voluntary bonus — a different thing entirely.

What does that mean? It means they still owe you the full extra pay — June and December, in full — on top of continuing to pay you the “voluntary bonus” you were already getting monthly. This can add up to a lot of money, and most workers never claim it because they don’t know it exists.

THIRD.— What I can claim on your behalf

• Unpaid wages: unpaid months, partial paychecks, off-the-books payments they’re now denying
• Overtime: do you have any record? Messages asking you to stay late? That can be claimed
• Miscalculated final settlement: unused vacation days, prorated share of extra pay, severance if applicable
• Allowances and supplements: night shift pay, hazard pay, seniority pay… anything the collective agreement guarantees that you’re not getting

FOURTH.— The wrong job category issue

This one hits close to home for me. The company assigns you a lower job category than the one you actually work, and pays you less than you should be earning. Sometimes it’s to save money, sometimes it’s pure nerve.

You can claim the salary difference for the last 12 months. And if you get fired, your severance is calculated on the salary you should have been earning — not on the reduced amount they were actually paying you.

FIFTH.— Important deadlines

• Wages: you have 1 year to file a claim from the date they were due
• Amounts tied to a dismissal: 1 year from the court ruling or the settlement

Don’t let time run out. Every day you don’t claim is a day you’re eating the cost yourself.