I live paycheck to paycheck, and rely on being paid on time so that I can afford necessities – food, rent, etc. I recently started a government job where I am supposed to get paid every 2 weeks.
Due to an error on the part of the payroll department, my chosen name was put on my first check instead of my legal name. (I am transgender, but I made very clear to my managers and the HR department that my chosen name was different from my legal name. I also filled out all financial paperwork with my legal name.)
I let them know about the issue the moment I received the check. They then said I would have to wait a week to be paid — when I needed to pay rent two days later. I ended up having to borrow money from my boyfriend, it was very stressful and embarrassing. A week later, they hand me my check and it still has my chosen name on it.
I had to wait a full two weeks past my first pay date to finally receive my first check. Not a great situation to be put in, especially when the government cut food stamps severely in March of this year. I worked for a solid month before seeing a single penny.
During and after the situation, I attempted to seek legal recourse. Everywhere I called, they said the paycheck had to be delayed by at least 30 days before I could take legal action. The government agencies devoted to this said the same thing. So I guess delaying an employee's paycheck is only a law in writing, and an employer can do this without facing any consequences? Even making a claim for added fees would apparently take several weeks, and if they paid me at any time during those weeks the claim would be marked “void” and no further actions could be taken.
How can people possibly stand by a government where even GOVERNMENT EMPLOYEES cannot afford food and shelter? My food stamps have also been cancelled without notice and no phone number will lead me to a human being to speak to, and trust me, I have been calling around town for several days. The website is “under construction”. I have resorted to just eating shredded cheese as a meal. Jesus christ