Confirming employee information to lenders

**Dave A** · 08-Nov-11, 12:42 PM

Originally Posted by BusFact

One side of me is saying that this is not ethical and I shouldn't try and control my staff like that. However I am currently sitting with garnishee orders for roughly 25% of my staff and I have one guy applying for a loan to a small loan crowd so that he can pay off a R3,5k bill to virgin mobile and have some spare cash on top of that.

Wow! That's a high percentage

Sounds like some financial planning training sessions or some counselling might be in order.

**roryf** · 08-Nov-11, 01:16 PM

I have heard my book keeper telling callers from loan companies, that certain employees are only on a temp contract.The book keeper does the wages and knows about who has orders against them and who can't afford to get a loan.

I also try talk to the employee before they sign an agreement.The employees don't normally check the interest rate or realize exactly how much they will be paying off.

If the employee is a temp then they won't usually get the loan.

**BusFact** · 09-Nov-11, 01:48 PM

Originally Posted by Dave A

Wow! That's a high percentage

Sounds like some financial planning training sessions or some counselling might be in order.

Well the sample size is a bit small, so may be misleading. Its 4 employees out of only 16 and one is actually a child maintenance order, not a credit issue.

But if anyone knows of a company that provides basic financial training to low educated staff, I could well be interested.

**Dave A** · 09-Nov-11, 09:02 PM

How are you paying them?
Weekly, bi-weekly, monthly salary?
Cash or into a bank account?

I find the trick is to stop the habit of blowing Friday's pay by Monday and excercising some discipline. That's why I pay all my staff a monthly salary regardless of grade, and into a bank account - no cash.

Then I talk about budgeting.
Draw up a list of monthly expenses.
What is left can be divided up every week and the goal is to try to spend less each week than that weekly allowance.
The change goes to savings for a rainy day, or the occassional big ticket item.

I also differentiate between want and need.

It has worked quite well. I only have one abject failure - ironically one of the highest paid members of staff

**wynn** · 10-Nov-11, 07:49 AM

Originally Posted by Dave A

I only have one abject failure - ironically one of the highest paid members of staff

Is that you or the wife?????

**wynn** · 10-Nov-11, 07:52 AM

Is there still a huge fine or jail as punishment if you fail to submit a payment of a garnishee?
I don't mean refusing to comply, but if for some reason you omit a payment or two?

**BusFact** · 10-Nov-11, 10:32 AM

Originally Posted by Dave A

How are you paying them?
Weekly, bi-weekly, monthly salary?
Cash or into a bank account?

I only have one abject failure - ironically one of the highest paid members of staff

Its funny you say that. Some of my worst cases of always asking for loans are my highest paid guys.

I have a 50-50 split in staff in terms of monthly and weekly payments.
Almost all the time its an EFT. I'm just not interested in handling cash.

**BusFact** · 10-Nov-11, 10:36 AM

Originally Posted by wynn

Is there still a huge fine or jail as punishment if you fail to submit a payment of a garnishee?
I don't mean refusing to comply, but if for some reason you omit a payment or two?

I haven't heard of anything like that before. My understanding is that the debt (the unpaid garnishee amounts) simply becomes that of the employer and so they then get lumped with the letters of demand, interest fees, penalty fees, legal fees .... etc.

**Justloadit** · 10-Nov-11, 10:40 AM

You are entitled to charge your employee service fees to service the garnishee, as this is a pain in the but, especially if you are a SME, but you do not want to burden the employee any further than what is necessary.