Legal Question in Employment Law in Oregon

Contracted Employee Sent Of Work Site

Today my wife Sallie, reported to the day spa where she has only worked for one week as a contract employee. She has a space lease. Yesterday she dropped a $10.00 glass beaker and today was confronted by the spa owner. When Sallie admitted that she had dropped the beaker the spa owner told her to ''go home''. What recourse do we have for the (?) breech of contract? My wife cannot have any income if she is not on site. Section 5.1 of the lease contract reads ''Lessors reserve the right to terminate lessees lease without notice if lessee doesn't comply with agreed terms of lease and lessors have probable cause to terminate.''

Today was the Grand Opening and Sallie had invited many of her past clients and friends to meet her at the spa. She has now been denide the oportunity to meet and greet many prospective clients and stands to lose a large amount of income as well as the clients she had booked for today. Sallie also designed the buisness cards, spa menu, web site,and logo for the spa with no compensation. Can we bill the spa for these services. Sallie is a graphic and web site designer as a side job amd has been paid for these jobs in the past.


Asked on 9/18/04, 3:14 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys
Craig Crispin Crispin Employment Lawyers

Re: Contracted Employee Sent Of Work Site

Your question raises the issue whether your wife is an employee or an independent contractor. If she is an employee, the employer has the authority to discipline an employee for breakage (though it is illegal to require the employee to pay for the breakage). On the other hand, if your wife is an independent contractor, the terms of the relationship are governed by the contract. If the contract does not give the owner the right to suspend or send the contractor home, then the contract very well may have been breached by refusing to allow your wife to work as scheduled.

If we assume the contract was breached, damages and practical issues become important. It appears from your fact description that some damages have been sustained (i.e., the loss of income from the clients already booked for the day). Also, the future losses appear real, though possibly difficult to quantify.

As a practical matter, the thought of bringing suit against the owner likely means the relationship will be over. I would expect that your wife would not be able to continue working in the environment once a lawsuit commenced.

Of course, if the contract has been breached, your wife might be able to declare the contract terminated and assert a right to recover not only the actual damages suffered, but also the costs of securing an alternative location and lost income during the period of relocation.

Your rights depend almost entirely on the terms of the contract and the specific facts involved. You should consult an attorney for a full exploration of the facts and circumstances.

Please be aware that this assessment is not legal advice, but only a comment on a general question of law.

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Answered on 9/18/04, 5:24 pm


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