SINGAPORE: Think your boss is petty? Well, it’s probably nothing compared to this employer, who made one employee’s departure truly unforgettable by paying her final salary entirely in S$2 bills.
The employee, frustrated by the incident, took to Reddit on Friday (Sep 6) to share the whole story. In her post, she stated that she fulfilled her end of the agreement and completed the one-month notice period after resigning from a ‘design company.’
However, when it was time to receive her final salary, her employer refused to pay as she purportedly ‘mishandled projects’ and because they also had an ‘issue with collecting the funds.’ This resulted in her salary being withheld for four days.
Growing impatient, she reminded her employer that, according to Ministry of Manpower (MOM) guidelines, they’re supposed to pay the final salary on the employee’s last day if the notice period has been completed.
After she brought this up, her employer agreed to pay her, but only “under very strange conditions.” They instructed her to come to the office precisely at 5:30 PM—not earlier and not later.
When she arrived, she was surprised to see what was waiting for her. “They handed me my entire salary in $2 bills, she said. “I also suspect the timing was deliberate to prevent me from depositing the money the same day.”
At that moment, the employee felt that she was being bullied, as they were clearly trying to make the process as difficult as possible for her.
To make things worse, she also found out that another employee who resigned on the same date as her received their final pay directly into their bank account.
“This disparity seems incredibly unfair and makes me question the intentions behind my treatment,” she expressed.
She then asked others in the Reddit community, “Has anyone experienced something similar? Is this kind of behavior legal, or is it just plain unprofessional? Any advice or insights would be appreciated.”
“Very petty, but not illegal.”
In the discussion thread, several Singaporean Redditors weighed in, letting her know that while paying the final salary in S$2 bills is technically within the bounds of the law, it’s certainly not the kind of practice you’d expect from a decent employer.
One Redditor said, “Very petty, but not illegal. Atleast you got the salary, just deposit using those banknote machines. Keep some for CNY, very useful.”
Another commented, “Imagine how petty you have to be to spend all the extra time to get the bank to order those bills.”
A third Redditor added, “Not sure why the boss is so petty but I’m sure there’s beef all around you with the boss for them to go that far. The time they waste to reserve the $2 from bank also don’t make sense.”
Some Redditors, however, encouraged the employee to retaliate in a petty way.
One Redditor playfully advised,“Tell them you counted, and it’s not accurate. Missing $50, don’t believe can ownself count.”
Another recommended, “Post in on linkedin and socmed. Thank them in a sarcastic tone.”
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