Man, I wish that was the case at places I worked at. My last company would give you stipends for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Try to spend that stipend at a convenience store because you don’t eat breakfast and just want some coffee and a snack for later? Screw you, we’re deducting from your paycheck for that.
I had a coworker who got caught on the wrong side of that policy. Since then, he’d always max out his stipend at every meal. Apps, desserts, etc. He’d get a second entree just to take back to his hotel as long as it wouldn’t put him over the limit.
He probably cost the company hundreds extra because they wouldn’t reimburse him for a bag of chips one time.
I’ve done similar as well. My work gave me a real hard time with a grocery receipt, because there was a grocery store an easy walk from the hotel and I bought some deodorant or something along with some snacks and sandwich ingredients. It was maybe $30. My choices were don’t claim it or recalculate the cost without deodorant including tax from just the deodorant and write a memo detailing what meal(s) I was charging. I Also had to say why I wasn’t claiming certain meals (because leftovers, etc., I even had to have a meeting with the refund person because the company putting on the training fed us and I didn’t have receipts). After that I made sure I ordered as close to ~$43 as I could (meal plus 15% tip maxed out what I could claim) three times a day.
I also couldn’t order two appetizers or entrees without needing a memo and/or showing it was for the next meal because we couldn’t buy someone else food. Pizzas were never questioned beyond “you ate it all yourself?” though. I really like expensive pizza parlors when I’m traveling for work.
Man, I wish that was the case at places I worked at. My last company would give you stipends for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Try to spend that stipend at a convenience store because you don’t eat breakfast and just want some coffee and a snack for later? Screw you, we’re deducting from your paycheck for that.
I had a coworker who got caught on the wrong side of that policy. Since then, he’d always max out his stipend at every meal. Apps, desserts, etc. He’d get a second entree just to take back to his hotel as long as it wouldn’t put him over the limit.
He probably cost the company hundreds extra because they wouldn’t reimburse him for a bag of chips one time.
Malicious compliance is a form of art.
I’ve done similar as well. My work gave me a real hard time with a grocery receipt, because there was a grocery store an easy walk from the hotel and I bought some deodorant or something along with some snacks and sandwich ingredients. It was maybe $30. My choices were don’t claim it or recalculate the cost without deodorant including tax from just the deodorant and write a memo detailing what meal(s) I was charging. I Also had to say why I wasn’t claiming certain meals (because leftovers, etc., I even had to have a meeting with the refund person because the company putting on the training fed us and I didn’t have receipts). After that I made sure I ordered as close to ~$43 as I could (meal plus 15% tip maxed out what I could claim) three times a day.
I also couldn’t order two appetizers or entrees without needing a memo and/or showing it was for the next meal because we couldn’t buy someone else food. Pizzas were never questioned beyond “you ate it all yourself?” though. I really like expensive pizza parlors when I’m traveling for work.