Should I pay for error made at work?

[LolaTheShowgirl]

The other day we were very busy at work and as a colleague was just ending her shift she passed on a job to me which was to top up everyones money. We work in a customer sales, kind of retail environment, just to set the picture. So the day was passing on, very busy with callers but I eventually managed to get it done but then today of of my colleagues (one I dislike, incidentally) told me her cash is down. It is only a small amount. I have to talk to the finance dept on Monday and he will say it is not an error on his part, that he gave me enough cash because he's a smarmy know-it-all kind of person, but now i'm wondering, should I offer to pay or even if I made the error, should the finance dept pay?

Don't pay.

of course not. Are there any procedures to verify the floats and top ups?

It might not be your fault anyway - colleague could have given someone too much change? Don't offer to pay!

I won't pay but just thought I would offer. I am pretty pissed off that the job was pushed onto me in the first place given that I was snowed under with work on that day. The woman I was on with that day also had the opportunity to do it but simply sat there with nothing to do while I was working so quickly and stressed to get everything done. I heard my colleagues talking afterwards about it and they were rolling their eyes and saying how dumb I was. Ah well, they can all f*ck themselves!

Thought you loved this job ? Maybe the others have had issues before with it so now avoid the task. The auditors must have a field day with such cr@p financial controls.

Hey Lizs, I did love this job but lately it is really bearing hard on me. Are you able to suggest something that I could maybe suggest to the financial dept to keep a tighter rein on no mistakes being made because as it is now, the money is given to us (the assistants), and we're talking hundreds of pounds here, and then we change the notes for coins etc.

Surely each person should sign for the money they receive as checked. If they are n't doing this routinely they cannot really be held individually responsible for any errors. Presumably your finance team has an accountant whose role financial control is and the company's books and procedures are audited.

how did it go today?

So a task involving responsibility for hundreds of pounds can be passed on by someone ending a shift, and is then expected to be done at the same time as serving customers etc?

I certainly don't think you should have to pay, or that it's reasonable that you're assumed to be to blame for the problem.

How did today go?

Hello all, today went ok. I have not paid myself, just going to wait a few weeks to see if it turns up. I suggested to the finance dept and my own manager that tighter rains are kept over finances in future and that perhaps finance could set say 20 minutes aside per week to sort our cash out but both my manager and finance refused the idea on the grounds of it being 'too much faffing around after we have done it ourselves for over 15 years now'.

it sounds like thewy are sticking their heels in and don't want to take responsibility, even though they don't mind passing the buck to you.

when work is like this it pisses you off doesn't it, my work is a bit like that, everyone passes the buck and the shirkers and smart asses get away with it.

What happened to the previous post holder ? Are you sure they aren't looking for a scapegoat for their casual attitude? Any offer, whether now or later on, could be seen as an admission of guilt.