When you have to travel for work, you will typically be given a corporate card to put the expenses on.

What would you do if a new finance guy came to the office and made changers that made it much more difficult to manage your travel expenses?

That is what happened to the nursing staff in this story, so they found a way to game the system to get what they needed and help the less fortunate.

Check it out.

Change our expenditure accounts? The food bank will have a feast!

This happened about 10 years ago, when I worked for a company doing community nursing.

We were provided with company cars and a prepaid cards for expenditures (fuel and food).

The card had a limit of 400 euros per week, the card resetting to the 400 limit every Monday morning.

Despite the 400 euros limit, the usual amount any of us spent each week was around 150 to 200 euros, depending on travel.

This seems like a pretty good system.

The usual was to get a full tank once a week, which was around 55 to 60 euros and the rest was coffee and lunch.

Enter Chad.

He was the the financial officer and had some pretty “unique” ideas about changing the finances of the company.

One of the ideas he instituted was a change to our prepaid cards.

He dropped the limit to 50 euros a day, with the card resetting every day.

As you can understand, this was a problem, especially if you consider that a full tank costed 55 euros minimum.

If you used the card for fuel, then the rest was paid out of pocket.

We couldn’t be reimbursed for the money, because “you have a company card, learn to use it more efficiently”.

What a waste of time.

Initially, most coworkers were spending 30 euros on fuel and refueled two or three times a week.

But not me.

While my malicious compliance tendencies were natural, during my Navy service they were honed to perfection by a couple of Master Chiefs.

So, enter Malicious Compliance.

He found a way to get the most out of the new system.

I decided to spent each day 20 euros for fuel (somedays less), pay for my own coffee out of pocket and spend the rest at lunch.

I used to patron a grill and bbq place that had a catering side.

They also volunteered for a local food bank and kitchen (the owner had grew up dirt poor and liked to help).

A lot of clients would by something and add a little extra to an open tab for the food bank.

Then, the catering will go each Sunday and provide food for the homeless and the poor using the tab and funds from the owner.

So, I went there every day, got something to eat and rest of the amount until 50 euros would go to the tab.

Wow, I bet the food bank was thrilled.

I started rising at least 90 euros a week for the food bank. I hit the limit every day, costing the company 250 euros a week (from 150).

Chad was furious.

He was trying to save money and I was costing him more.

He asked me to explain my expenses.

Food and fuel.

He asked for receipts.

I provided them (the receipt said food, nothing else).

He finally said I should eat cheaper.

I told him the company couldn’t force not to eat whatever I wanted.

Now everyone is going to get in on the game.

After that meeting, a couple of coworkers saw me coming out smiling and inquired about it.

I explained what I was doing.

The smiles on their faces.

Soon afterwards, six nurses spent all their expenses the same way.

The Aftermath:

This went on for two months.

Chad was livid, because now he was loosing even more money.

The solution came unexpectedly.

Unbeknownst to all of us, the owner the company was a major contributor to the food bank.

He knew about the restaurant helping out and had seen the richer buffets.

He asked the owner of the restaurant about and he said a few nurses had started coming, raising the tab (at that point 600 euros minimum).

The owner put two and two together.

Yikes, will the owner be upset?

I was called in for a meeting with the owner.

I was anxious, because I didn’t know what it was about.

When I got there, Chad was there also.

During the meeting, Chad explained how he was losing money, but he couldn’t do anything about it.

I explained what our grievance was and how we took advantage of it.

Chad replied we shouldn’t game the system for something SO stupid as a food bank.

The owner stopped the meeting right there.

He reinstated the old system for expenditure.

He reprimanded both of us for the whole mess (me a bit less) and informed me, that if I make a donation for the food bank to notify him and he will match it!

This worked well for everyone…except Chad.

The final result was getting our old system back (which we didn’t abuse), a weekly donation to the food bank and a major Easter Sunday BBQ for the food bank sponsored by the company.

Chad lasted only another three months, because his penny saving ways dropped the quality of care we could provide.

I stayed with the company until it was sold to new owners who were more like Chad.

This story comes with a truly happy ending, I love it.

Let’s see what the people in the comments think about it.

People learn to take advantage of any system.

This person experienced something similar.

This is a much better way to do it.

So many stupid decisions.

This would have made a lot more sense.

Stepping over a dollar to pick up a dime.

Too many stories are like this one.

If you liked that post, check out this one about an employee that got revenge on HR when they refused to reimburse his travel.