Boss secretly deducts employee's 'hours worked' from timesheet, only to learn a hard lesson in ethics
'Being a VA is already tough since we are often treated as if our time is worth less just because we work online.'
Every employee deserves to be paid for their work and efforts. However, when a Reddit user noticed that her boss had been secretly deducting her work hours, she inquired about it. The response she received is now making her look for another job. Sharing the ordeal on Reddit, u/PurpleNo5449's post from November 30 has been liked by more than 1,400 online users so far.
u/PurpleNo5449, who works as a virtual assistant, recently noticed that her boss had been deducting hours from the timesheet. "I log in on time, finish all my tasks, and even send proof of everything I complete, yet somehow my 'actual hours' are always less than what I submitted," the author wrote. However, when she confronted her boss, his reply took her aback. "They said they were removing the time when I was 'not visibly active' even though the tasks they assigned were things that did not require constant clicking. I literally delivered everything on time," she wrote. Expressing her frustration, the author feels like she is being punished for doing her work diligently.
My Boss Deducted Hours I Actually Worked and Still Expects Me to Stay Quiet
byu/PurpleNo5449 inantiwork
"Being a VA is already tough since we are often treated as if our time is worth less just because we work online. Watching my pay shrink for work I actually did makes it even worse. At this point, it feels like they expect free labor and hope I will not complain," she added. Following the terrible experience, she is now looking for a better opportunity. A 2018 study by Aabha S. Singhvi, Nilesh N. Dhage, and Pradeep P. Sharma noted that lower or unfair compensation is closely linked to decreased motivation and reduced job satisfaction. By cutting down wages from hours of work the author had done, the employer is committing an unethical practice of wage theft, which should never be encouraged.
Soon after the post went viral, many users expressed their disappointment in the boss's move. u/krewtan wrote, "The dept of labor can go in to their payroll software and see how many hours have been deducted. They will make sure you get paid for those hours deducted." u/AttilaTheFun818 commented, "This is illegal. During your idle time you are 'engaged to wait' and it’s considered time worked. If you're inclined you can pursue this with your state labor board. And of course should probably seek out other employment." u/reddit_user498 shared, "In addition to the legal aspect that everyone has mentioned, I would also get a list of exactly which tasks are 'visibly active' and only complete those. If anyone asks your work product is not complete it’s because you aren't getting paid to do that."
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