#4) Business without ethics.

This prompt hits home in a personal way for me. In 2007, my oldest daughter Michelle was working for a monogramming company in town. She learned how to run the embroidery machines and she basically enjoyed her job without complaints. The problems began when she had an accident on the job and a needle on one of the machines went through her finger and broke off inside. She successfully had out-patient surgery on her finger and was out of work for 6-1/2 days. However, the company she worked for reported to workers' comp that she was out for a total of 21 days and pocketed the extra money. This was discovered when the insurance company called Michelle and asked for a statement about the accident.

When the insurance company asked for their money back from the monogramming company, the owners called Michelle in for a meeting. They accused her of "turning them in" and when she denied it, they accused her of lying. They warned her not to talk to the insurance agent again and intimidated her by threatening to take the money out of her check or her sick time if they indeed had to pay it back. They admitted to "stretching the truth a little bit" on the claim, but said they had protected Michelle and now it was her turn to protect them.

Things got ugly on the job after that. Michelle was repeatedly asked if she was receiving any more calls from the insurance company, and her boss made a sarcastic remark about choosing "the most expensive doctor in town" to do her surgery. She was suddenly required to work off the clock whenever she had monogramming mistakes to fix. Questionable items such as a "snagged towel" were deducted from her paychecks. In short, the job became miserable and unbearable, and Michelle walked in one day and quit on the spot.

Her last paycheck was short by about $260.00 and when we pursued it through the Georgia Labor Board, we were told that by law, employers are only required to pay an average of minimum wage for hours worked during a week, no matter what the hiring agreement might have been. The monogramming company had been careful to meet their legal obligation of paying Michelle minimum wage for the last two weeks she worked. The fact that she normally made quite a bit more than that per hour could not be legally enforced unless we took the company to court.

In a final letter to Michelle which asked her to return the key to their building, the owners expressed disappointment at her "unprofessional" behavior by not giving them two weeks' notice when she left. It's interesting that they used the same term that I'd apply to them, along with dishonest, unethical, and a few other choice words. What a shame that a young person had to learn that despite hard work and trying her best, an employer would treat her with such a lack of dignity and respect. A prime example of business without ethics. This company is still in business, but I fully expect bad karma to get them in the end!