Q: Are the new company owners obligated to uphold my truck allowance agreement after a merger?
I work for a company that recently merged with another company. Three years ago, I signed an employee agreement that provides a weekly truck allowance, maintenance costs, and a fuel card for using my personal vehicle for work. The company taking over is attempting to remove these benefits without providing any justification for this change. There is no clause in the agreement that addresses how mergers affect these terms. Are they obligated to uphold the original terms of my agreement?
A:
The parties almost always can modify a previous agreement if they both mutually agree to the modification. If the parties do not agree, it depends upon what the original agreement provides whether one party can unilaterally modify the agreement. If there is nothing that gives the company the right to modify the terms of the truck allowance agreement, then they cannot modify the terms without your agreement.
Be aware, however, that it is not uncommon for an employee agreement to specifically reserve the "at-will" nature of the employment relationship. "At-will" means that either party can terminate the employment relationship at any time for any reason except for those specifically prohibited by law (e.g. race, color, ethnicity, national origin, sex, age, pregnancy, disability, and religion). So, while the company may not be able to modify the terms of the truck allowance agreement, the company may be able to terminate your employment relationship entirely for not accepting the company's new proposed terms for truck allowance. But the company is bound by the old terms with respect to its obligations up to the termination of your employment.
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