Many people face unfair situations at work, especially when money and office pressure collide. From payroll mistakes to sudden accusations, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed when you’re just trying to do your job. Recently, someone reached out to us with a story about being paid twice by error and what followed next.
You should return the extra amount that was mistakenly transferred to your account. It does not You should return the extra amount that was mistakenly transferred to your account. It does not belong to you. Everyone makes human errors, and holding on to this money is unfair to all. Please don’t be unethical or unreasonable. to you. Everyone makes human errors, and holding on to this money is unfair to all. Please don’t be unethical or unreasonable.
Dear Bright Side,
I got 2 salaries into my card by error.
Next day, HR told me to return one. I refused. She called me “unprofessional.”
I told her: “It’s not my fault accounting messed up. I already used the money. I thought it was an end-of-year bonus for my work.”
She warned me: “Pay it back now, or you won’t receive your next salary.”
I replied: “Then you’ll be hearing from my lawyer. I shouldn’t be punished for a mistake I didn’t make.”
She smiled and didn’t say a word.
The next day, everyone in the office turned white. We all got an email that said: “Due to a recent financial issue, next month’s salaries will be delayed. Sorry for the inconvenience.”
News spread quickly, and my colleagues figured out I was involved. They’ve been giving me uncomfortable looks. Obviously, my one payment error isn’t the real reason salaries are delayed, but HR clearly used it to turn everyone against me.
That night, I froze when I got a knock on my door. It was two of my colleagues almost begging me to return the extra salary because they can’t afford any delay. One said, “We have families to feed. We’re getting punished because of this.”
Now I’m torn. I don’t want others to suffer, but I still believe I shouldn’t have to return money that wasn’t my mistake. I never receive bonuses, and I felt like that extra payment was finally something I deserved.
Should I stand my ground?
Nelly
Thank you, Nelly, for sharing your story with us so openly. We can see how heavy and unfair this situation feels, especially with your coworkers now caught in the middle. You’re not wrong for feeling torn.
We’ve put together a set of tailored, practical pieces of advice to help you navigate this specific mess with clarity and control.
i think you should be kicked out of work , even if you return the money after all this hassle , your behavior shows your level of honesty
Before giving in, prepare a short written agreement: you’ll return the extra salary only if HR confirms in writing that:
This forces HR to admit the truth on paper. If they refuse to put it in writing, your colleagues will see clearly who’s really causing the delay, not you.
Request a formal payroll clarification email from HR to all staff, asking them to “outline the operational reason for the salary delay,” without mentioning your situation.
They can’t repeat the lie in writing, it creates liability. The moment they send a neutral explanation, your coworkers will realize HR used your case as a smokescreen. This shifts pressure back where it belongs and lifts it off your shoulders.
Your advice is totally inappropriate and illegal. If this was an end of year bonus it would be identified as such if this is the United States of America because a bonus check typically will have significantly more taxes taken out both at the federal and state level then a normal regular paycheck would. Additionally there would be no deductions for volunteering involuntary deductions like health insurance life insurance and so forth. If payroll makes a mistake and overpays an employee in almost every state in the nation that employees required to pay that money back the only way the employee could get out of it is if it said bonus if it didn't say bonus they were double paid. There's not enough information in the story to determine how much of a liar the employee is but the liability lies with the employee not the employer I ran a federal union
Don't you get SO SICK of the IGNORANT ADVICE GIVEN BY BRIGHT SIDE? OP is stealing, period. I NEVER GOT A BONUS THAT WASN'T DECLARED AS SUCH.
See I am a career bartender and bonuses just don't exist in my world. Now that I'm attempting to make the transition to a more office setting this is useful information. I had no clue it was denoted on the check it is a bonus. However, if I was in her position I 100% would have called HR before I touched that money. I would just assume it was an error and be worried about who didn't get paid that should have.
Well YOU ARE SMART, CONSIDERATE AND SENSIBLE. I never worked any job that we were not informed AHEAD OF TIME, that we would be receiving a BONUS, and all of my jobs were mostly manual labor.
Absolutely! Legally and morally she is required to return the money. I realize that it's not fair to her for HR to make her the scapegoat for late pay the next month but she was warned.
With a direct deposit, all of that information is not present. However,most every company blabs to high heaven when there is a bonus. She didn't get an announcement. Therefore she should have known it was no bonus.
With direct deposit, you still get a paystub, that breaks down deductions, so your counter argument makes no sense.
Doesn't matter, it WAS NOT OP's MONEY, so that makes them A THIEF.
In lots of states they cant collect $ bk after 6 months has passed
They can, and do. Literally 5 seconds on google would tell you as much, Henry.
STILL STEALING!
Invite the two coworkers who came to your door for a short coffee the next morning. Tell them calmly, step by step, what HR said to you in that live conversation, especially the part where she threatened to withhold your next salary if you didn’t pay back immediately.
Make it clear you never refused out of greed, but out of fairness and shock. They don’t have to take your side, but once they hear exactly how HR handled you, they’re more likely to see you as another victim of pressure, not the reason their salaries are delayed.
I've been overpaid a few times in the past and what normal happened if it was $100. or less they would take it back on the next check more than that they offered a choice of taking it all on the next check or taking a little out of the next several checks. either way they will get their money back it's better to work with them then against them.
Tell HR you’re willing to consider returning the extra salary only if :
This shows empathy toward your coworkers while refusing to accept financial damage for an accounting error you didn’t cause. It also forces HR to fix the real problem before asking anything from you.
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Well, if this were true. The employer likely wouldn't have caught it this quick. My dear departed father once said " if the IRS overpass, stick the extra in the bank, don't touch it. Let it accrue interest (back in the day) when they finally notice their error, t h en return the money, you have made a little on intrest.
It is apparent that you've never been in the army or the military. Mistakes are made all the time and they definitely have a right and do come after the money they overpaid.
The easiest way to understand ths issue is to look at the reverse. What if your employer inadvertently deducted double the withholding portion of your remuneration? They shorted your cheque. Once discovered, do they owe you the amount improperly taken from your pay? Obviously, yes. The converse where the error is in your favour, the money has to be returned. Common sense.
it's responses like this that make me think brightside is an AI all around. if this letter is real, I expect the writer knew it was wrong which is how she managed to spend it all in one night.
Return the money. It wasn’t yours to begin with.
