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No Interest Loans

Amber writes: I work a demanding job for a family with three children. In addition to caring for the children I run a lot of errands. My employer has gotten in the habit of asking me to pay out of my own pocket for expenses incurred while I am with the children and then adding the amount on to my paycheck at the end of the week. At first this wasn't a huge deal to me; an occasional trip to the coffee shop or lunch with one of the kids, and it was always added on to my paycheck without a problem. However, the family now routinely asks me to do their weekly grocery shopping and expect me to cover the tab with my own money. They always pay me back at the end of week, but we're talking a grocery store bill of about $200 a week. I pretty much constantly have about $200 of my own money tied up. I feel like I've let this go on too long without speaking up. How do I approach this issue with them now?

Answer: It's not too late. Tell them the truth. It's unreasonable for you to be expected to front that kind of bill for any length of time, let alone an entire week. An easy remedy to this would be getting you your own credit card linked to the family's account. If you're full time and they are planning on having you stay on for a considerable length of time, it'd be worth the extra effort for them to get a card in your name. It's less work for everyone. Not only can they track your spending online but they'll never have to worry about having cash for you or adding extra to your paycheck every week. If they don't want to go the credit card route, try suggesting that they go to the bank once a month to get enough cash for you for the month (it sounds like $1,000 might be the ideal amount). If there are any minimal "cash only" expenses incurred during the week, those could still be added to your paycheck. You shouldn't have to act as their personal banker. We get it, making time to get cash from the bank is a nuisance, but you should be able to budget your money in the way you see fit, without having to factor in your employer's personal expenses.


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