In a Medicare Supplement insurance call center sales environment, selling for a broker, we are paid a base hourly rate and "bonused" (vs. co...

Question

In a Medicare Supplement insurance call center sales environment, selling for a broker, we are paid a base hourly rate and "bonused" (vs. commission) on volume of sales. It's a signed contract every year. In an attempt to control some compliance issues (making minor mistakes in a Medicare approved script) the company threatens to dock bonuses. Four compliance "failures" in one month could result in 50% loss in bonuses. The company will ask us to sign an addendum to the original contract and agree to this. I want to know if this is legal. (Side note - we are required to use a Medicare approved script, which we have . The broker's compliance focus is based on pressure from other insurance companies who each want things done their way. The requested changes are outside what is actually required by Medicare. Our current script has already been approved. The broker is attempting to keep carriers happy in order to keep their contracts. We are contracted with over 20 carriers. Replacing the word "yearly" with the word "total" could result in a failure) Is docking pay like this legal?

Answer

If you agree to it, yes, it is. They cannot force you to sign the amendment to the contract, but they may be able to terminate you if you don't. It depends on what the current contract says about amendments and consequences of not signing agreements.