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Admin
I don’t think it’s necessary to hide the topic if it’s created right when the article goes live...
Admin
I think @PaulaBean may still have a few kinks...
<!-- take that how you will... said the actress to the bishop... -->Admin
Hi Paula, we missed you
Admin
If I had to live a situation like that, me reward would be a recommendation letter, because I would be leaving the next day.
Admin
Shares in a company recently visited by bailiffs doesn't sound to me like much of a reward.
Admin
welcome back Paula!
Admin
Maybe someone could make Paule a welcome back bean cake?
Admin
ok.
[image]Admin
Nothing wrong with a kinky girl ;-)
(Feature request: a ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°) emoticon)
Admin
That looks brillant!
Admin
I knew it! The cake was NOT a lie!
Admin
A company that has to wait until the funds are available Friday to write a check for 15K eur, at that. How do they make payroll?
Which is the question our hero should have asked his boss before he committed to action that could land him in contempt of court at the very least.
Admin
Hiding property from bailiffs?
I think its a crime! If police gets the phone call, it could lead him to the prison. I would not risk that for any employer!
Just do not do anything illegal in your job! It's better to quit.
Admin
This story actually made me smile.
Admin
The sign should have read "Beware of the Leopard"
Admin
An office worker from Texas was present in the mens’ room. Drew tore down the “out of order” sign, forced open the lock with scissors, and entered the stall.
"Hey Partner, have a good one," said the Texan.
"Who does Number Two work for?" asked Drew.
"Hey, just grab a hold of something, bite your lip and give it hell, come on. We're gonna get through this," replied the Texan. He added, "Hey, that sounds pretty nasty, how about a courtesy flush over there?"
One noisy automatic flush later, Drew walked out with one of the desktops propped on his shoulder.
"Jesus Christ, boy! What did you eat?"
Admin
Not really wanting to spoil the story, but...
There is another solution - don't let the bailiffs in until they've been to court to gain access.
If the real situation had been:
I wouldn't have thought they'd have been that far...
Admin
So: Not resolved.
So not resolved!
Admin
Did you miss this part?
I'm betting that meant court orders, or the company would have refused them access.
Admin
Well written, would read again. Especially liked "relics from a clunkier, floppier era".
Admin
I'd be more inclined to believe it's an embellishment, hence my bit about not wanting to spoil the story...
Admin
???
Admin
To the article -- whoever sic'ed the courts on them out of the blue over a minor delay in payment is a deranged lunatic infant! Are there any werewolves around to gobble them up and do human society a favor in the process?
Filed under: edible smiting
Admin
Hard to say. That minor delay might not have been so minor, it was probably a year.
We also don't know if the vendor ever really agreed to Friday, or if the company just decided it would wait that long before it put the check in the mail. I have seen this sorta thing at small businesses.
High strung CEO gets involved in some dispute. Neither party ever really reaches any sort of agreement. CEO decides to short pay vendor, what he feels is actually owed. Theoretically this legally shows good faith, but in the mean time CEO guy just stops taking calls from the vendor; and tells the staff its "resolved".
The vendor having no other recourse and wanting to get paid goes to court.
I suspect this organization is a bit on the shady side, they obviously have multiple employees but can't cut a check for 15k? Then proceed to hand out stock without any discussion amongst the other ownership/investors? That all reeks of someone running a house of cards due to collapse at any moment.
Admin
I'm guessing neither of you have ever worked for a startup? I worked for one for 3 years, was paid a good salary, and during none of that time period could we afford to spend an "extra" (as in unplanned) $15k.
Payroll very likely could have been the reason they couldn't pay the fine.
A little added conjecture just for fun: If it was in fact a revenue constrained start up, it's also understandable for the situation to go unresolved so long. Sure, whatever they did to get fined in the first place shouldn't have been done, but you have to understand that if paying the $15k sooner meant the business failed.... the worst case scenario of having your means of making money seized is the exact same outcome anyway.
And yes, receiving shares in such a constrained company isn't much, but if it's the right kind of shares it's also not a bad thing. Would you rather have your salary, or your salary + shares? Personally, I'd take my salary plus shares, because you never know... and if you don't have faith in a business like that, why are you working there? Go get a cushy corporate job.
Admin
Ahem:
Not a fine, just a bill. Maybe they shouldn't have bought whatever it was, but after that much time, the bill shouldn't have been "unplanned."
Admin
Said bathroom apparently uses stalls with keyed doors. Aforementioned keyed stalls contained one among their ranks that sported a broken lock that was.... upgraded to no longer be compatible with the previously mentioned keys. Therefore, the key Drew had (heretofore known as The Master Key) would be the only key that would open said upgraded door. Hence, The Master Key was used to open and lock said upgraded door, after which The Master Key would return it's multiple uses as a directed paper-separation device.
Admin
Hah! I get it.
Stalled.
Admin
Need to merge this with the "Paper, please" thread.
Admin
I emerge from lurk to observe that I have worked for 2 startups. In the UK, a major reason for cash shortage is that large companies simply do not pay their bills, sometimes for many months. It is all too easy for a small company to reach its overdraft limit through no fault of its own. Also, the story stinks a bit. If the supplier was given permission to seize all the computer assets, that would close down the business. The law is not supposed to work like that. If the supplier believed the business was very non-viable, they could apply to have it compulsorily wound up. I find it hard to believe a crown court would act like this without the other side being represented, so perhaps the boss failed to put in an appearance in court, and summary judgement was obtained. Hiding stuff from bailiffs is common practice, as is labelling equipment as being personal belongings. Bailiffs are not allowed to steal (as it would be) the personal belongings of employees, though the correct procedure if they demand them is to demand that you be allowed to photograph the equipment and the bailiffs, record serial numbers, and get them to sign a declaration that they know what they are taking is disputed property. Not to point scissors at them.
Admin
UK:
US:
Admin
A few years ago, maybe....
These days you get shot for carrying table legs, or being foreign.
Admin
I was just quoting the article. If the front page article wasn't accurate, well, I dunno; how could that be possible? :D
Admin
... with a view to pointing out there was a difference between the UK and US, yes...
Admin
Goodness gracious, can someone get Accounts Payable on the line please?
Admin
All bills shall henceforth be paid on the second monday of the month, at least ninety (90) days after the bill was first received.
Admin
Payroll funds might be sequestered. If you are using a 3rd party to do your payroll (like ADP in the US) you pay them ahead of time. If you forget, your employees won't get paid.
This actually happens, too: a city here in Dallas has done that twice I'm aware of, and I believe it happened in Fort Worth proper a few years ago. As you can imagine, bad things are likely to happen to the person responsible.
Admin
In the US, if it gets that far, they've already been there. There was a story a few years ago about a guy whose house was mistakenly foreclosed. The bank blew him off repeatedly, so he took 'em to court, and they ignored that, and he got a default judgement, and showed up at a bank branch, warrant and police in hand. Some hasty conversation with the branch manager got everyone to leave, and the bank suddenly started working with him.
I remember a story of a guy doing that in England once, too. And an apocryphal story of a guy doing it to a Dell kiosk in a mall. The employee who found the letter warning them to show up in court didn't know what to do with it, the story goes, so he threw it away, and the guy got a default judgement and some free merch from the kiosk.
Admin
If the UK is like the US, the order would be for "15K worth of assets." A couple of rackmount servers could theoretically fulfill that.
Admin
this reminds me of a book, "the hacker crackdown": after a major disruption of the telephone service, a special task force (i think it was FBI) was formed to hunt down hackers. someone in the task force, knowing NOTHING about computers, thought that a Steve Jackson "cyberpunk" board game was hacking and confiscated all of their computers... later they tracked down someone who had stolen a "secret" document from the phone company (which was entirely bureaucratic gibberish that had nothing to do with computers) which, according to the phone company, was worth $70,000...a figure which included the cost of the mainframe computer and printer and the monthly salaries of the entire department... their case was pretty much ruined when a defense attorney pointed out that ANYONE could have used the company's FREE catalog to buy that supposedly "secret" document for THIRTEEN DOLLARS.
Admin
I just came here to give Ellis another +1 for "...a clunkier, floppier era." Nice turn of phrase, Ellis! It says so much in four words; that's what great writers can do.