Husband Wants to Loan Co-worker $

I agree with you Mom. SHe has to have family member who will assist her financially. I think this would be poor judgement to give her the $ besides, Where does he draw the line when word gets out that he has done this?

Dave Ramsey would say if you have the money, give it as a gift and never expect repayment, from someone in need.

I love his advice. Loaning money taints the atmosphere in work and family environments. Helping out does not!

We did this 4 years ago for one of my co-workers.
She had just had hours cut at work, had 2 daughters in college and her furnace went out in the middle of winter.
We found out there was a problem AFTER she had been living in her freezing cold house for a week.
All of us at work chipped in to give her cash toward the repair.

No repayment expected. When that is part of helping someone out, you would be amazed how much clearer the air is!

It's good that he is checking with HR, but he also needs to think about how he will handle it when another employee who hears about this suddenly needs money for their own emergency. Is he ready to be this generous with all of his employees? It's nice that he wants to help, but as they say, no good deed goes unpunished :-).

Good luck,
K.

I wouldn't have said no, because no one has ever denied me help (financial or otherwise when needed). Having said that, I dont think you were insensitive at all, I think you have great insight into things that might be inappropriate in a work environment, that I do not have, also I think it was a great idea to have him check with human resources.

If you can afford it, gift it. Otherwise, no loans.

Is there any way that he can give this lady extra hours so that she can earn the $200 she needs for her visa or immigration matter? It's such a small amount of money that it shouldn't take her too much time to earn that extra money if she has the opportunity to work the hours. I'm not opposed to giving a friend a loan (best to consider it a gift and if it gets paid back, all the better) and it probably wouldn't be much of an HR concern, but it would probably be best for everyone concerned if this woman were able to earn the money on her own.

I agree that he should definately check the policy manual on this one. Also, he should keep in mind that his kindness to one employee may be considered unfair to the other employees. If you do go ahead with the loan, make sure the terms are clear, like when and how she will pay it back. That's a good practice no matter how small of an amount. If it's not against company policy and she can and will pay it back, then I don't really see a problem if it's not putting your family out any.

Hi L.! I think it's wonderful that your husband is so compassionate, but you are right about this. It DOES cross the employee-supervisor line and I think you gave him the right advice to check with HR.

I'd leave HR out of it and it's great that your hubby discussed it with you prior to the transaction. I would consider it a "gift" and that way if she pays you back it's all good if she doesnt... it's not that bigga deal.

A lot of companies have a 'cash advance on paycheck' option. Where the payroll office can loan the money in advance and then take it out of their next paycheck. I would ask him if his store has this first. Has she worked there a long time? If she's fairly new, I would be hesitant also. But if not, and if it's ok with company policy to do so, i don't think it's a big deal for him to loan it. Especially since she cannot avoid paying it back since they work together.
Oh and points to your hubby for checking with you first!!

I'm with Susan O. Gift it. If she's dealing with immigration and working the lower totem of retail, and especially if she has children, $200 is a huge amount of money and she might not pay it back. She might surprise you, but if you go forward it is a good idea to prepare to be surprised by good news instead of disappointed by bad.

I think your husband is a kind and generous man. I wouldn't ask HR because it's not a work related issue. If it's a gift, there is no reason it would come back to haunt you.

You might be saving her from a terrible fate. Good luck.

Susan O nailed it! Gift her the money. She just might not have any other resources and this gift could be life changing for her. I'd send it to her/get it to her anonymously.

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Susan O nailed it! Gift her the money. She just might not have any other resources and this gift could be life changing for her. I'd send it to her/get it to her anonymously.

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A few things I would consider...

If he is a supervisor, lending an employee money, then he should make sure there is nothing in the company policy about this that would reflect negatively on either hubby or the lady. IMO, if it is a personal loan from one friend to another, then it's none of the company's business. But I'd review the company's policy just to be sure.

You indicate you have the money. What if she doesn't pay you back and you're out the $200, is that ok with you?

Whenever you loan money, you should sign a promissary note.

I'd say if you're both comfortable with it and it's not a hardship for you financially, then do it. And do it on the terms that you don't expect to get the money back, but if you do then great. I'm guessing if the co-worker doesn't have $200 right now then it's probably going to be difficult for her to be able to pay it back. Just be sure you're comfortable with whatever decision you make.

He should consider lending out of his own money versus employer-related expenses. If that's the case and he/she is in need, I don't see why not. Just make sure if it's visa/immigration related, that it is not used for anything illegal.

You were right to have him check with human resources first. There may be a policy that prohibits it. I've always heard that if you plan on loaning someone money don't plan on getting it back. You have to be ok with never seeing that money again.

We loaned a neighbor money ($600) and were very hesitant to do so. We knew the chances of getting it back were slim, but it still added tension to the relationship. He did finally pay it back like a year later and we were happy we did it, but we found out the real reason he needed money was a gambling debt he was hiding from his wife (who was my friend). He had lied to us in the beginning telling us it was to get his car repaired. Money always screws relationships up and it's best to steer clear.

The only thing I can add is - is this woman legally working for his company? If she is not legal, he could get in a lot of trouble for knowingly employing her, and by lending her money for her visa, he'll admit it. If, however, she has a green card and is needing money for the next step, then I think it should be a personal loan (or better yet, a gift) and unrelated to work. If she's working retail, she's obviously at the low end of the pay scale, and he should not expect repayment - just leave it loose, "Pay me when you can."

If it was $2000 I could understand your protests. $200 however is not that much money that could really make a difference in someone's life and your husband is most likely astute enough to know if this person can repay or not and not to worry if there is an outside chance that it has to be written off.