Anger As Ex-Employee Invoiced $0.08 After Leaving Company: 'Insane Charge'

The internet has slammed a company after a former employee revealed how they had received a bill for 8 cents in the post because it should have been taken out of their final paycheck.

Shared on Reddit on Tuesday by Jordan Tanner who is from Boise, Idaho, the post included a picture of the bill alongside the caption which read: "My former employer just sent me a bill for 8 cents that they were supposed to take out of my last check. How do I make it as painful as possible for them to collect?"

With more than 26,000 upvotes and thousands of comments, the mean-spirited demand from the former employer sparked interest online.

The invoice shows the outstanding payment required and states: "This invoice reflects an outstanding amount due to IBM Benefits Center for IBM or Kyndryl benefits coverage."

Tanner, who used to work for Taos, an IBM company, told Newsweek: "The letter is saying that they will cancel my health insurance if I do not pay this balance. But this is a former employer so I have already been off of their insurance for several weeks now."

In a statement, IBM told Newsweek: "We appreciate you bringing this matter forward. The invoice in question was the result of an administrative error and has been canceled."

Tanner posted a picture of the bill on the Reddit community r/antiwork, which offers support with work-related struggles and a space to discuss a work-free lifestyle. The forum features stories such an entitled boss refusing to speak to an employee who resigned or workers walking out after their bonus was halved.

"The sheer gall that they would try to collect 8 cents instead of writing it off as too little to collect is what inspired me to make the post," explained Tanner. "The 8 cents was the amount they were supposed to take out of my last check but forgot for some reason."

In more than 2,700 comments, Redditors shared their thoughts and tips for how the ex-employee could handle the bill.

"Send a cash payment for 1 cent. In a month or so when they send you an updated invoice for 7 cents, send another cash payment for 1 cent," suggested one commenter.

Another commenter suggested: "Just don't pay it and watch and see how much they spend to get you to pay it."

"Send them one of those giant novelty checks," joked another reply.

One commenter suggested that there may have been an error on the company's part.

"I wonder if s*** like this is ever just an admin error," they said. "Like if I was at a new job and my boss just said, 'bill all past employees who owe money.' You'd bet your ass I'd waste my time sending out an 8-cent statement."

After seeing all of the comments and suggestions, Tanner said: "I plan on calling them and contesting the charges. The more time they spend on this insane charge the better. I hope they ask themselves in the future... was it really worth it?"

UPDATE 07/21/22 02:10 a.m. ET: This article was updated with a statement from IBM.