work problems

K

KaBar

Joined
Dec 30, 2004
Messages
609
ive been at my dealership for nearly a year, 6 months as a mechanic and 5 months as a parts man.

to give you some back ground, i work under 3 men. the owner of the dealership, and two parts managers (one for each brand) i do counter work, returns, and stocking parts and chemicals when im not bussy.

today, the gm parts manager came up to me when i got to work and told me to find a missing case of brakelean parts cleaner. he told me that sence i am the one who takes the boxes off the shelf and puts them under the counter that its my fault and if i dont find it that its coming out of my paycheck. :eek: all through out the day when ever he seen me he asked me in a searious additude how was i going to pay for the stuff. imo this is boarderline harassment, insenuating that i stole the bottles.

now, this is not a huge amaunt, only 12 bottles but its still going to cost me 30-40 bucks. i went in to our inventory computer and found out that we "should" have 27 in stock but theres only 1 case (12) under the counter so theres 15 missing. to top that weve only sold 10 so far this month while in the past months we have sold 40-45 bottles rather consistantly.

to me its clear that im not going to find the missing cleaner, ive been all over that dealership and even in the warehouse and i cant find it. in all probability the 3 other countermen are giving stuff away with out billing it on to a repair order. its happined before, last month one of the other guys got caught giving out 4 tires but not billing them out on the repair order and it happins all the time with small nuts and bolts.

normally the dealership eats the cost by billing them out to the shop ticket. should i be billed for the cleaner when all i do is take a box off the shelf and put it under the counter if i did not take the cleaner and i did not give it out with out billing it out? it hasent reached the owner of the dealership yeat but ive got a feeling ill be in his office in the morning sence i refused to pay today.
 
They cannot take money out of your check without a written authorization. Document EVERYTHING from here out. Times, dates, events, who said what and exactly when, emails, etc. If the worst happens, bust out COPIES of all your documentation (keep all your originals at home). That will let them know you are not taking this lightly.
 
If they're going to hold you personally responsible for the stuff (financially or otherwise), then they have to give you control of it. Basically, you have to have the only key.

Otherwise, there is absolutely no way to know where the stuff went and it's wrong to hold you responsible, financially or otherwise.

Today, it's a few bucks with of cleaning solvent that's disappearing. What happens next week when engine control modules or transmissions or something really expensive starts disappearing?
 
Tomorrow morning, I'd suggest you go to the computer and print the pages you mentioned showing historical usage, recent usage, and current inventory. Have those pages in your pocket neatly organized so that when the owner asks you about this problem, you can say, "Sir, I've researched this problem. Please let me show you what I've found. Last year, according to the computer, we sold 40-45 bottles of this stuff per month. Here are the computer records and I've tabulated the sales by month on this page right here. Now, look at January and February of this year. We sold only 12 bottles in January and ten in February. Either parts are suddenly coming in clean, the mechanics have suddenly stopped cleaning parts, or this cleaning solvent is getting used and simply not billed for. Now, look at this: according to the computer, we're supposed to have 27 cases of this stuff in stock right now. But I've scoured the whole place and can only find one case. Either someone stole 26 cases of cleaning solvent, or it's simply being used and not billed for."

If you make a good and clear presentation, the boss will be impressed with your work.
 
I think the gm parts manager is setting you up. Since you aren't the only one with access to the missing product, it is not your fault if it's gone.
 
I agree on the set-up thing, for whatever reason they want you gone. They'd rather you quit then get fired so they are going to start harassing you, hoping you'l either quit or give then a reason to fire you after a big argument or something.

heh, maybe you should call the police with a theft report.
 
Chuck is right document everything. And since it is a product which every one has acess to Two managers and two other counter guys there is no way you can be held responsible.

This guy is also a bully. Stand up to him now or he will continue to pull this crap. You have the right to tell him that you are not responsible for the missing product and that since a few weeks ago someone was giving away tires how the heck can he hold you responsible? I would then also explain to him that although you can understand that he is angry and frustrated with the loss of profit for the parts department and the missing product. He should also understand that you have pride in your work and you also are angry and frustrated by this missing product.
Then tell him that though he is your boss and you will do what he says that he owes it to you to treat you with more respect. In my opinion this guy is an ass. He could have used this opportunity to have an employee for life if he had just said..
" hey man Ive got a very frustrating problem and Im mad about it..there is some missing brake cleaner..I dont know what happened..maybe it was given away..maybe stolen...could you make this a top priortiy to find it or investigate for me and get back to me.."

anyway..tell him how you feel..its important he respects you..good luck..
 
Most people don't realize it, but there is no need to set someone up to fire them. Work is generally defined as an "at will" relationship, thus your employer may fire you for wearing yellow socks, car pooling with your friend, parking too close to the building, etc, just as you may choose to leave for any reason. Unless you are in a union, or there is some other legal specification that you must be fired for cause, you have no protection whatsoever. This is especially true if you are in a so-called "right to work" state, which actually means quite the opposite.

If you report to three different people, line up some support from them.
 
Have a meeting with the owner and two managers and put it all on the table !If you're going to be held responsible then you should be the only one with access .
 
When things get worse, remember, the Federal Labor Board is your friend.
Go there and file suit against them for their wrongdoing.
They'll go in and inventory every time card of every employee since they opened, looking for pay violations, and generally make the owners life miserable. It's against the law to hold you responsible for the missing goods, as noted above, and it's probably the parts manager that's up to his eyeballs in this, and needs you as a scapegoat.

Accusing you of stealing is also something you can sue them for in civil court. Juries don't much like employers, and often with good reason.
 
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