contract

Turns out I'm not the only one who is worried about the AT&T and T-Mobile merger. About 71 percent of you said in a recent poll that you had concerns, and many of you chimed in with your misgivings. Here's what some of you said:

• "I left AT&T quite a while back thanks to their horrible service (customer and tech both) to move to T-Mobile, and have never regretted it. Until this week. Now I guess I need to look at Verizon." —  z0rkzer0 .
  
• "I have been with T-Mobile for many years. Whenever I have tried another carrier I have always been disappointed and end up coming back to TM. Not even the iPhone managed to make me stray and so I am really scared to see how this merger is going to affect the quality of service I have come to expect with TM." — kindo1313

I'm right there with you readers. My worries for how this move will affect the quality of my wireless carrier got me thinking about whether I can switch out of T-Mobile before the merger takes effect. According to an article from Forbes, it still isn't clear if T-Mobile customers will be charged a termination penalty if they decide to leave the carrier before their contract is up. But something you might be relieved to find out is that it's illegal to change the terms of any prior contract with T-Mobile even after the firm joins AT&T. If you find a "materially adverse" change, such as a price increase, you can dispute that with the carrier and perhaps even break your contract without paying any fees.

The merger won't go into effect until a year later and I'm pretty glad that my contract ends January next year. Hmmm, is it just me or does the iPhone from Verizon look quite tempting all of a sudden?

Wedding planning and etiquette can be tricky. If you have a dilemma like the one below, be sure to share it in the Ask Savvy group.

Dear Savvy,
Prior to my wedding day, I had a hair and makeup trial — both of which were not cheap. I loved everything my stylists did and didn't think twice about my decision to sign contracts with them. I'm not sure what happened, but on the day of my wedding, I ended up hating the way I looked. I know it wasn't in my head because the pictures of what the trials looked like were completely different from the end result. Luckily, a bridesmaid was able to set my mind at ease with a few minor changes. I'm not sure what the protocol is but I don't feel like I should have to pay these people for a job that I was not satisfied with, especially on one of the biggest days of my life. I already paid them a 50 percent deposit, so can I just call it even at that?

Disappointed Deann

To see the Savvy Bride's advice, read more.

Last night Paula Abdul announced on her Twitter that she won't be returning to American Idol next season. Paula hasn't given a reason, but it's rumored that she was making $5 to $8 million per season and wanted more . . . a lot more.

There could be millions of reasons why Paula chose to exit stage left, but stories about contract and negotiation disputes suggest she decided to make the move when she didn't get what she wanted.

Negotiating for a job or salary increase can be incredibly frustrating and challenging. Sadly, employers can't always — and often don't — give us what we want. Have you ever walked away from a job after a tough negotiation?