Working without pay

[akmom]

I don't know if this is the appropriate forum. I'm not a business owner, but it looks like the closest thing to a forum for business/work-related issues.

I've been at my job for a year and a half, and they have been delinquent on my pay for two months. This is the third time this has happened. The first time, I gave them the benefit of the doubt, and just waited for them to get around to paying me. After two months, I started declining work, telling them I wouldn't take on any more clients until they had paid me for the jobs I already did. I don't know if it was coincidence or not, but I got my full pay immediately after that.

The next time, they underpaid me. When I brought it up, they kept asking for all kinds of documentation that I knew they already had. But I kept providing it again anyway. I kept working, since I was still getting *most* of my pay. And after five months, they finally gave me all my back pay.

Then again in June, I got a paycheck that was significantly lower than it should have been. I let them know, but I wasn't able to identify which jobs were missing, since they didn't send me a job summary with it. It was just a handwritten check. Previously they always sent me a page listing the jobs I did and how much revenue each one generated (I'm paid commission), so I could see what they left out. So this time I just sent them my own job summary, showing what I was owed, and let them figure it out.

I'm not the only person that experiences this. My boss has made it very clear that he doesn't like it when people raise issues about pay, and that they're usually wrong anyway. Maybe it's true, maybe it's not. But every job I do is time away from my family, and I keep good records, so if I'm not getting paid for something, I do complain about it. Even though sometimes the hoops I have to go through takes more time than the job did.

My husband thinks I should just quit. When I took the job, we had some debt and kept running into major expenses. As soon as one thing got paid off, something else would happen and we'd be back in the red. So I took this job because I was tired of always being behind. Now we have everything paid off, and no foreseeable expenses, and my pay is pretty insignificant compared to my husband's anyway. Of course that could change, if an appliance breaks or we have an E.R. visit... there's always something. Always. And the advantage of having this job in particular is that I usually choose my own hours.

And I was thinking if I quit, I may have trouble finding another job because it is the only thing on my resume since college. (I was a stay-at-home mom for 5 years.) All the job applications and interviews I've had ask for a reason you quit your last job. If I say they quit paying me, I'm afraid that either it won't be believable, or it will look like I didn't work for a very professional company. I figure that only way around it is to secure a new job before quitting, which probably won't be until all my kids are in school. Is this good reasoning, or should I just cut my losses on this job that frequently forgets to pay me?

 

[ezeric]

Hey Akmom, I think your husband is talking about 'the families' best interests when he said 'quit'.

At the same time, look around for something new, ask DADDY (FATHER/GOD) to show you where to work, or instead, give you creative new ideas to do your thing with a new focus.

A worker is worthy of his/her wage - the scriptures clearly teach. (see 1 Timothy 5:18)

And don't worry about what your resume will look like or sound like, just speak the truth because when you do, GOD becomes part of it, and it has weight (glory/power) when spoken, as HE IS TRUTH! (see John 14:6)

Blessings to you and hubby and may the LORD grant you wisdom in this area of life!

-eric


the-exchanged-life.blogspot.com

 

[parsley]

Find out where the middleman is in the process, and talk to them. Maybe he keeps hiring new people in payroll that don't work out (or don't get paid themselves).

I have had this problem where I work, in a large reputable company. But it goes in waves. One time I had it narrowed down to a certain department -- in addition to the paper going through too many hands -- and shortly after I drew attention to it, they removed that group's connections (without resolving my issue).

You can be a help to the owner if people are making errors, because he cannot keep an eye on everyone. If someone is embezzling, or careless, they are losing him money and employee loyalty.

It would be tempting to bill him for all the hours you've spent calculating payroll mistakes... never appropriate, but tempting. You can also speak to Dept. of Labor about it, or at least tell him that you plan to go there. (At which point he might fire you, which would give you more reason to go.)

Tough decision. But I think it's important to persist. Anyone who shows financial savvy will in the long run be an asset to his company. Whether he thinks so or not. He might be dishonest, but hold him to honesty. You have that right. You have a contract with him that he is not keeping.

The handwritten check was very questionable -- that might be the place to start. One time I walked into a situation midstream at a smaller company, and the person before me had not kept ANY records; I was expected to come up with numbers (thin air) and respond to the public about the gaps, while no one explained it to me. I got out of there fast.

 

[Christian Networking]

Threaten to notify the IRS (if you're in the US) that will get them on their toes

Rick