Everyone (except consumer advocates like us) seems to love prepaid debit cards. You can get student loan fundage on them, unemployment benefits, and even federal and state tax refunds. And now they’re handling your paycheck. Christopher just took a job as a pizza delivery driver for a major chain, and he has only one option for receiving his pay (other than tips): a prepaid debit card. He doesn’t like it. [More]
62 DFAS Employees To Be Terminated For Bad Credit
By March 22, 2010
The Defense Finance and Accounting Service (DFAS), a military payroll facility in Ohio, has told at least 62 of its employees that they will be terminated for having bad credit, reports WKYC. Troy Marshall, a 17-year veteran at the DFAS and one of the people being fired (incidentally, he’s also the president of a union that expanded jobs at the DFAS five years ago), told WKYC that he handles Social Security numbers and maiden names, but nothing else. “We are people. We are not just numbers. We are not just credit reports… Look at the whole person.” [More]
Walmart: No More Paycheck Here's Your Pre-Paid Debit Card
By September 9, 2009
Walmart, our nation’s largest employer, has eliminated paper paychecks. Now employees can choose to sign up for direct deposit or have their wages added to a pre-paid debit card. ABCNews says that only about half of Walmart’s employees use direct deposit — the rest either prefer a paper paycheck or, in some cases, don’t have a bank account.
New Withholding Rules Mean You Might Owe The IRS Next Year
By April 17, 2009
New tax laws designed to boost the economy by giving you a bit more cash in your pocket might lead to problems for you next year if you’re in a dual-income household. The new payroll tax tables mean you could end up withholding too little without even knowing it and, though you’re welcome to take that long-awaited trip up the Zambezi, you probably won’t enjoy writing a check to the IRS come April 2010.
GameStop Pays Its Employees In Hidden Fee "Cash Cards"
By February 10, 2009
Remember our post on student loan debit cards? The cards are pitched as a great convenience, or less expensive to distribute than paper checks, or more secure, when in reality they’re germy with hidden fees that slowly nickel and dime your balance. Turns out, GameStop uses a similar system to pay its employees.
Dallas School District Caught Using Random SSNs For Foreign Workers
By November 14, 2008
The Dallas Independent School District has been making up fake Social Security Numbers for foreign hires for years, even after being told in 2004 by the state’s education board to stop because it’s illegal. The numbers were meant to “expedite” the hiring process and get the employees on payroll, but they found their way onto Department of Homeland Security and IRS forms (which are kept in-district but shared with feds upon request), were used for criminal background checks, and in at least 26 cases were numbers in use by real people.
