Q: My brother works for a City. He is given a bi-weekly allowance to purchase tools.
His allowance should be $7 bi-weekly, but his work made a mistake when he was hired and has been giving him $20 bi-weekly for the last 4 years. He did not know he was being overpaid. The City wants him to pay back $1,300. Can he fight this?
A:
An employee has no right to retain money mistakenly given to him by the employer. The law allows the employer to request the money back, and if the employee does not do so, the employee can be fired and then sued for the money, plus interest.
Your brother would be smart to negotiate some kind of affordable repayment plan with the employer.
Good luck to both of you.
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