​​Section 409A is intended to regulate deferred compensation arrangements. It was enacted, in part, in response to the practice of Enron executives accelerating the payments under their deferred compensation plans in order to access the money before Enron’s bankruptcy, and also in part in response to a history of perceived tax-timing abuse.​​

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The bankruptcy code prohibits an employer from discriminating against or terminating an employee for filing or having filed for bankruptcy protection. A federal court in Wisconsin has extended this retaliation protection to an employee who intended to file for bankruptcy (and later did so). In Robinette v.

In Myers v. Toojay's Mgmt. Corp., the Eleventh Circuit held that a federal Bankruptcy Code provision prohibiting termination of and discrimination against employees for filing bankruptcy does not cover hiring decisions. Plaintiff was offered a job as a restaurant manager conditioned upon a background check. The employer rescinded the job offer allegedly because plaintiff had filed for bankruptcy.

Companies in severe financial distress often seek refuge in bankruptcy. However, while bankruptcy may offer the company-debtor protection against claims of unpaid wages, it does not insulate individual officers, directors and managers from personal liability under the Fair Labor Standards Act ("FLSA") for such claims. InBoucher v.