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Parenting
Bateaulover
member
Coworker and forgery?
Bateaulover
member
in Parenting
Not sure how to proceed. Our small office of 15 people was asked by the receptionist to contribute to the three children of coworkers that are graduating this year.
. I am PT, and I don't know these kids, but I understand office politics to know that I needed to pay up. I know their parents and was happy to give the money because as an adult, that's just what you do.
The receptionist had three graduation cards that she sent around to sign, and said she had three envelopes, one for each kid, and that the company would match whatever was given.
I overheard receptionist talking to accounting lady that three of us had not given our money yet graduation is a month away, so I wrote out three separate checks, one for each graduate, written out to each kid.
I looked on my online banking today, and receptionist had signed each kid's name and her name and cashed the checks to supposedly go into the communal pot of cash! I was livid. I went to her and told her that I wrote the checks to them because I wanted them to know how much money came from me. She mumbled something about "we'll get it worked out."
Apparently she used to work at the bank and they just let her do that when she explained what she was doing. I did tell several friends at work and they couldn't believe it. Maybe I was wrong to do separate checks, but regardless I don't think she should have cashed them without asking the kids' permission.
What does Parenting think? My boss wasn't in the office today. I don't want to start a war, but I want her to know what she did was wrong. It's like she's oblivious. She also takes money from clients when they come in to pay. It makes me wonder what else she has done.
. I am PT, and I don't know these kids, but I understand office politics to know that I needed to pay up. I know their parents and was happy to give the money because as an adult, that's just what you do.
The receptionist had three graduation cards that she sent around to sign, and said she had three envelopes, one for each kid, and that the company would match whatever was given.
I overheard receptionist talking to accounting lady that three of us had not given our money yet graduation is a month away, so I wrote out three separate checks, one for each graduate, written out to each kid.
I looked on my online banking today, and receptionist had signed each kid's name and her name and cashed the checks to supposedly go into the communal pot of cash! I was livid. I went to her and told her that I wrote the checks to them because I wanted them to know how much money came from me. She mumbled something about "we'll get it worked out."
Apparently she used to work at the bank and they just let her do that when she explained what she was doing. I did tell several friends at work and they couldn't believe it. Maybe I was wrong to do separate checks, but regardless I don't think she should have cashed them without asking the kids' permission.
What does Parenting think? My boss wasn't in the office today. I don't want to start a war, but I want her to know what she did was wrong. It's like she's oblivious. She also takes money from clients when they come in to pay. It makes me wonder what else she has done.
This discussion has been closed.
Re: Coworker and forgery?
This.
Yes, the bank let her cash them for cash. As I read this all typed out it sounds even worse! Glad I'm not just making this big in my head.
The whole scene is so very wrong.
People should get fired over this. Non-negotiable.
Also, your company should stop expecting its employees to give cash gifts to children of coworkers. Very bad practice.
Yeah, super small here too. I'd hate to see anyone get fired, because she would throw my name all over town. I just can't let it go though.
Do I go to my bank? Or the bank where my work makes deposits? I am not certain where she did this. I'm scared y'all!
This. You'll need copies of the checks with the forged endorsements.
I completely agree, but I don't think that's the biggest issue at hand
But, tellers that go cashing things willy billy need to go
I was with Robin on your first post - that you were right but that wasn't the issue really needing to be dealt with. But this? This is off base. You know damn well that those kids weren't given the checks and signed them over to the company worker. Obviously it's ok to sign a check of YOURS over to whomever you choose and that's not at all what happened here. I also want to know how in the world you think the OP could lose her job over this. IMO, the worst that will happen is that the company does nothing to the shady worker and OP has to live the rest of her days getting the side eye from anyone who thinks she overreacted. Personally, I think she is reacting appropriately.
THIS. I used to be a bank teller, and this is definitely grounds for immediate termination. Plus, the lady is also breaking the law by forging your signature on the checks, I believe. That is shaaaaaaady.
The VERY NICE thing to do would be ask her to pay you the money back, re-issue checks to the graduates, and that way no one would get hurt and your money would be treated the way you wanted it to. However......you could definitely just cut to the chase and pursue action against both the bank and her.
We had all already signed the cards. I honestly thought she would just put my check in the card with the other cash. The reason I did the checks in the first place is because I wanted the kids to have a record of what came from me, in case some WAS skimmed off the top. I know, this sounds stupid now. if I had it to do over, I would have politely told her that I was giving the gifts on my own, and stayed out of it. I'm a wuss and probably won't call the bank. I am going to quietly mention it to my boss, and then the ball is in his court.
This is a great idea.
Yeah no. Don't cover up for everyone
I think she still needs to pursue action against the bank teller. That stuff should not be happening.
I can see the images onlineshe signed their name and her name side by side.
I'll mention it to my boss and leave it alone.
That is very true. Honestly, a teller that careless probably doesn't need to be a teller any longer. It just sucks cause doing this has a chance of actually hurting OP at work, if action were taken against the admin lady. There's a chance that if she just called the bank, the bank could report the admin lady if they captured her ID (they should have, but with that teller, who knows!)
Thank you. You are making me feel better. I definitely see Hilarity's view that this could bite me, but at the same time, I can't let it go completely.
Yeah, they would just wait three months and let me go bc of "budget issues". I know how it could go down. I'm going to tread lightly tomorrow and talk to my boss without bringing emotion into it. I'm just going to tell him the facts and then leave it alone.
Absolutely this. I can't believe they let her do this.
I would tread carefully. Clearly, what she did was wrong. I don't think it was a huge deal to write a check. I never have cash, but I have a checkbook at work and I would write it out to the kids and not burden the admin with cashing it. I also received a mix of cash and checks for a babyshower that was thrown for me by my coworkers. That being said, I agree with PP that this could end badly.
If you go forward with this you need to be prepared for a backlash if potentially 2 people are fired and possibly criminal charges are filed. Even though you were not in the wrong at all, you very well could be (wrongly) viewed as the one that made a mountain out of a mole hill and caused a lot of drama that winds up hurting people.
Personally, I would probably not tell my boss and I might be more likely to say something to the bank, but probably not. I would have a talk with the admin that what she did was wrong and illegal. I would understand if you do speak up, but personally I would not want to be in the middle of that shitstorm.
YES...i'd contact the bank. she can't forge a signature! i worked in a bank - that's fraud for SURE
who's to say she even put the $$ in the pot?!
Technically she didn't forge the signatures because she signed her name next to them. The situation gets a little muddy when dealing with children because many times children don't have their own accounts/IDs to deal with cashing or depositing checks. For example, a relative wrote a check to DS (2 weeks old at the time) for his baptism. Honestly, I could have been anyone depositing that check because banks don't require proof of the relationship, the teller had never seen me before, and my last name is not the same as DS's. I just had to put his name, sign my name, and indicate my relationship (parent of minor child). I encountered similar situations with my foster children, too.
Obviously, these children are old enough to have IDs/accounts, but banks encounter all types of odd situations when dealing with businesses. A fairly common problem is when a check is made out to an individual person instead of the business. Usually tellers deposit those checks without batting an eye. In this case, the teller and employee weren't trying to hide the situation. If that was the case, the only "signature" on each check would have been payee's name.
There's no great way to make sure that all of the money goes into the pot in this type of a situation. Basically, you have to trust your co-workers. In my office, we can pretty tell based on the amount of the gift that no one has skimmed anything. If the OP wanted the graduates to know how much she gave, she should have sent the checks herself instead of including them in the group gift.
I think you missed the point:
1) the kids didn't sign, her coworker forged their signatures and then signed next to them. So yes she committed forgery. Whether the teller knew that is for the bank to investigate but ultimately the coworker did commit fraud and should be charged.
2) The whole "you have to trust your co-workers" comment is absurd the whole reason she wrote the checks is because she was worried this person was untrustworthy and skimming off the top. She wanted to be part of the group gift so people would know she contributed, since clearly this coworker has no sense of decorum and is blabbing about who has and hasn't contributed but wanted to make sure the money actually got to the kids it was intended for.
OP for those who are just saying shut up about it. Don't! This is the kind of crap people let go because they don't want to make waves even though they know it's wrong. If you don't say something who will?
Thanks for summing this up so well, Numeria11. I'm probably not going to stir the pot too bad.
I know! You're right.
Yeah, I don't know about being fired for it. However, she would probably be treated like shiit in the office forever after that. As it often is with office politics, people tend to not like tattletales, whistleblowers. I'm not saying that that's acceptable. I'm just saying that, sadly, this happens all too often in office politics. You call someone out for doing something wrong, illegal, etc., and YOU are the one who gets ostracized.
If you're able to view the back of the check online, and it sounds like you are, you should be able to see both the name of the bank and the branch number where the checks were cashed.
In your position, I'd be much more inclined to report this to the branch manager of the bank rather than to your boss. Although you really should do both. But the teller's offense is the more serious problem IMO.
"Forgery is the process of making, adapting, or imitating objects, statistics, or documents with the intent to deceive." She signed her own name, in addition to the other names. Therefore, she wasn't trying to hide that she was cashing the checks.
This. She is not the parent or legal guardian of those children and should not have been able to deposit or cash those checks. Your complaint need to go directly to your bank, disputing that check, stating that it appears to have been cashed by someone not affiliated with the person you made the check out to, and that you consider it stolen.
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Not the point.
"We like nothing better than buffing our Zygoma. And imagining a horny time traveling long overcoat purple scarf wearing super sleuth nordic legend fuck fantasy. Get to work on that, internet." Benedict Cumberbatch
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But she is also not the legal guardian of the children the checks were made out to, and by signing next to their name she is indicating that she is legally authorized to make decisions for those kids.
Here is an example.
When having your ears pierced, you must provide an ID showing that you are over 18. For places that take minors, an adult must provide the ID and sign documentation stating that he/she is the parent or legal guardian of the child being pierced. Those doing the piercing may not check birth certificates or anything; however, the documentation is enough should there be a concern by a child's parent that a step parent or an older sibling took the child in for the piercing, and can be subpoenaed for legal proceedings.
In the same manner, signing the check recipient's name and one's own name next to it implies that one is legally authorized to cash those checks for someone, unless the recipient him/herself has signed it. In a similar manner, the bank and the recipient could both file legal charges against this person for fraudulently cashing the check.
Not that difficult people.
"We like nothing better than buffing our Zygoma. And imagining a horny time traveling long overcoat purple scarf wearing super sleuth nordic legend fuck fantasy. Get to work on that, internet." Benedict Cumberbatch
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But she hid the fact that the children's signatures were not actually the children's signatures.