Employer mistakenly deducted surcharge from paychecks but is refusing to pay me the money back

[William Higgs]

Jurisdiction

Georgia

When I signed up for corporate health insurance benefits last year, the process required that I provide proof of vaccination against covid 19 in order to avoid an additional surcharge being taken out of each paycheck, which I did. However, since the beginning of this year, my employer has been taking the surcharge for not being vaccinate out of my paychecks despite the fact that I was vaccinated and provided proof of that status. I have stopped the surcharge from being deducted from future paychecks, but, the way that I see it, my employer owes me money for each surcharge that they wrongfully deducted from my paycheck, but I find that I am having some difficulty in actually getting them to return those funds. I want to know what my legal options are. Can I file a claim in small claims court for the amount I am owed? Or do I have to file a full blown lawsuit against my employer? Any info would be appreciated.

 

[PayrollHRGuy]

Small claims court is a lawsuit. But problems with unauthorized deductions can usually be handled through your state or the federal department of labor.

But before you do that how about you tell us what actions you have taken to get your employer to repay the charges.

 

[adjusterjack]

Can I file a claim in small claims court for the amount I am owed?

Yes.

The GA small claims limit is $15,000. I'm guessing you are well within that limit.

Your local court should have forms and instructions.

It's unfortunate that GA's Dept of Labor doesn't have any facility for handling unpaid wage claims.

 

[Zigner]

You really need to think hard about whether or not you want to sue your employer. I would suggest that you remain polite but determined in your efforts to get any repayment due you. In other words, keep being the squeaky wheel. Of course, if you don't care about remaining with that employer, then feel free to sue. Just don't cut off your nose to spite your face.

 

[William Higgs]

Hello all. Thank you for your replies. So let me start by explaining what I have done so far to rectify the issue. I have notified my employer of the problem, obviously. I mean, it wouldn't be fair if I didn't inform them of the problem and give them a chance to fix it. The problem that I am running into on that front is that my employer outsources its hr, payroll, and benefits to another company (will refer to as "Bswift" going forward, as that is the name of the company in question), so, while my point of contact concerning this the issue also works for my employer, he has told me that he is not really able to do anything and essentially can only act as a middleman between myself and Bswift, as Bswift would be the company that would be responsible for refunding money. While it makes sense to me on the surface, just saying "this company will handle it." However, they are refusing to refund the money they wrongfully deducted because they are claiming that I did not upload proof of vaccination at the time I filled out my benefits, which is crap because I know I did, and even if I didn't, I still have the card I originally uploaded to prove that I was vaccinated. Believe me, I have thought long and hard about whether or not I want to sue my employer. However, I don't even want to WORK for this employer anymore, considering the grief they are giving me in returning money that they wrongfully deducted from me and, considering the fact that my employer is a global company worth billions, they are being very petty about an amount of money that even I consider to be a trivial amount (just over $300). So, yes, I do want to sue my employer, not just for the money. The money, as I have said, is trivial. I want to sue because I want my employer to understand that this kind of behavior (not returning money that was wrongfully deducted from an employee's paycheck) is unacceptable. Not only does it destroy any sense trust that the employee has with the employer, but that stupid decisions like what they are doing will cost them more in the long run, as not only will they have to fight my case, but they will also have to hire and re-train my replacement after I find a new job and quit.

 

[Zigner]

Such a huge company doesn't incur any additional costs in fighting a lawsuit such as this. They have attorneys on staff who get paid either way.

What PROOF do you have that you uploaded the card? Not just "I know I did it", rather, actual proof. See the problem?

In any case, if you want to sue them, then go for it. You may win, you may lose, or they may offer you something just to go away.

 

[army judge]

One needs to understand what transpires if one prevails in a small claims case.

Let's say you sue in small claims and receive a judgment for $500.

The judgment will be written on pretty legal paper, often with a sparkly, embossed, gold seal.

You walk out of court without the $500 you were awarded, just that pretty piece of paper saying "Very Big Company" owes you, Pedro Peon, 500 bucks.

Now you'll have to endeavor to "enforce your judgment".

A Georgia law firm explains the how:


How Do I Collect on a Judgment Lien in Georgia? | Georgia Construction Law Attorney

Other sources:

Collecting Your Small Claims Judgment


How do I collect a small claims court judgment?


Georgia Small Claims Court



Collecting on Small Claims Judgments



Good luck, mate.

 

[commentator]

All I have to say is that you will not be "teaching" this employer a darn thing, and whether you stay with them or not, you are wasting a serious amount of your time on what is, to the company, a tiny tiny amount of their time. I'd rethink this. Don't stop asking for your money back, but stay or go, don't hold yourself up as "I'm going to teach them a lesson."