Would you payback your employer if they terminated you and overpaid your severance?

[alaskaguy]

Microsoft claims that an inadvertent administrative error caused it to overpay severance for laid-off workers. Now its sending out 1,400 collection letters to the laid-off workers.

Link:
Microsoft Former Employees Refuse To Return Overpayments

 

[dosry5]

Re: Would you payback your employer if they terminated you and overpaid your severanc

ummm....I don't know. If I was "laid-off", and if it ruined me finanically to the point I had to file BR or lose my home.....I'd make 'em come after me.

 

[michaelrr1]

Re: Would you payback your employer if they terminated you and overpaid your severanc

How about AT&T in the last paragraph actually doing the right thing?

"While many technology jobs are being cut, AT&T did something amazing last month. They brought back 5,000 jobs to the United States by canceling some of their contracts for customer service that was handled overseas. The company will employ new customer service representatives in three states."

 

[CyCrazy]

Re: Would you payback your employer if they terminated you and overpaid your severanc

Nope thats their mistake, they would have to take me to court before I would give it up. I am also tight as hell so it would be a struggle for em

 

[Clonehomer]

Re: Would you payback your employer if they terminated you and overpaid your severanc

So can we send microsoft a collection notice for Vista since that has quite a few "inadvertent errors" that we have to deal with everyday.

Oh yeah, I would fight this all the way. If they gave you the severance check how can they ask for it back?

 

[ericlambi]

Re: Would you payback your employer if they terminated you and overpaid your severanc

The article doesn't say how much overpaid these people were. If it was something like one paycheck, it is pretty awful for them to ask for it back.

 

[CyCrazy]

Re: Would you payback your employer if they terminated you and overpaid your severanc

doesnt matter how much it was for. The company made a mistake and paid you that money. they just cant say whoops we fired you paid this money and now want some of it back! I am not a lawyer but I dont see how they would win this one when it is there F'Up

 

[AnkCyclone was SL Cyclone]

Re: Would you payback your employer if they terminated you and overpaid your severanc

If the employees were inadvertantly shorted, would/should they ask for the employer to pay the amount owed?
It is all about what is right.

 

[aeroclone08]

Re: Would you payback your employer if they terminated you and overpaid your severanc

As someone who recently signed a severance agreement, it says the amount in the contract. If that's the case here I assume it'd be pretty easy, legally, for Microsoft to get that money back.

 

[CyCrazy]

Re: Would you payback your employer if they terminated you and overpaid your severanc

As someone who recently signed a severance agreement, it says the amount in the contract. If that's the case here I assume it'd be pretty easy, legally, for Microsoft to get that money back.

Well yes if there is a signed contract you would not have a leg to stand on. If no contract existed you would

 

[nj829]

Re: Would you payback your employer if they terminated you and overpaid your severanc

If I had a contracted amount and it was more, then yes, I give it back. Otherwise I think I would be very tempted to keep it. I can't imagine microsoft is hurting for the money though so in this case I would really want to keep it.

 

[ISUAlum2002]

Re: Would you payback your employer if they terminated you and overpaid your severanc

As someone who recently signed a severance agreement, it says the amount in the contract. If that's the case here I assume it'd be pretty easy, legally, for Microsoft to get that money back.

This. BUT....Microsoft would have to weigh the cost of trying to get those funds back against the amount that they are trying to recover. If they are spending more to recover the funds than they are likely to get back, then it is pretty ****** of them.

 

[superdorf]

Re: Would you payback your employer if they terminated you and overpaid your severanc

Its just like if you deposit a check, and the check bounces... YOU have to pay the bank back if you spent it.

Its crappy, but you have to do it.

 

[Cyclonepride]

Re: Would you payback your employer if they terminated you and overpaid your severanc

They will get it back. There's a lot of precedent here, like bank errors.

 

[cmoneyr]

Re: Would you payback your employer if they terminated you and overpaid your severanc

They will get it back. There's a lot of precedent here, like bank errors.

Agreed, I don't see any way they don't get their money back, the employees really have no right to the extra money.

 

[keepngoal]

Re: Would you payback your employer if they terminated you and overpaid your severanc

I had a buddy back in CR that went to the ATM on payday and he said that $35K was in his checking account. He went to work, picked up his paystub. they over paid him by A LOT. He took home over $35K after taxes, maxed out his 401k contributions. He then went to HR to let them know of the mistake. They were grateful for his honesty and said they would have found the error at some point.

It took the employer 4 weeks to take the money back and he got to keep the interest as a thank you. I think it netted him like $600 or something.

I thought it was a stand up thing to do.

-keep

 

[SeattleClone]

Re: Would you payback your employer if they terminated you and overpaid your severanc

I am salaried, but get overtime pay calculated hourly for over 44 hours per week. A couple years ago my monthly direct deposit pay stub indicated I had been paid for 190 hours overtime instead of 19. I contacted payroll to let them know, and they thanked me and said they would have noticed it eventually anyways.

 

[CycloneErik]

Re: Would you payback your employer if they terminated you and overpaid your severanc

I am salaried, but get overtime pay calculated hourly for over 44 hours per week. A couple years ago my monthly direct deposit pay stub indicated I had been paid for 190 hours overtime instead of 19. I contacted payroll to let them know, and they thanked me and said they would have noticed it eventually anyways.

190 hours of overtime?!? Wow, that's a little bit of an error.:wideeyed:

 

[SeattleClone]

Re: Would you payback your employer if they terminated you and overpaid your severanc

190 hours of overtime?!? Wow, that's a little bit of an error.:wideeyed:

Simple decimal error... 19.0 or 190. The most amazing part is that I was working 19.0 hours of overtime! Basically 12 hour days... and that happened for several months. I paid for my first HDTV (37" LCD) with overtime pay during 1 year.

 

[IcSyU]

Re: Would you payback your employer if they terminated you and overpaid your severanc

Simple decimal error... 19.0 or 190. The most amazing part is that I was reading CF for 19.0 hours of overtime!

There ya go. Fixed. :wink: