I think lesson number one here is to never go on disability leave at work. I think lesson number two is that you need to realize that you are going to be kicking yourself for the rest of time for doing so and will probably never sleep again. Oh, it would probably help to know what I am talking about and why these lessons apply.
There are a group of workers in Ohio who all contribute to a monthly pool to buy lottery numbers. That seems to happen a lot between factory workers and teachers. I wish they would do that at my work. The group has 22 members and they pay a monthly amount and then someone goes out and buys lottery tickets for the month with the proceeds. Well, on August 5th, the group hit it big and split $100M. Goodbye factory!!
I love when people say they are going to keep working. I mean at $5M before taxes it probably would not be a bad idea to keep working if you are younger, but you just know that if a boss or manager yells at you than you are going to walk out the door. Yelling and other things to try and show you who the boss is only works if there is some type of leverage over the employee or they are committed to doing a great job. I am guessing if someone just won $5M, you have zero leverage.
Anyway, one member of the group who did not share in the winnings was Edward Hairston who had been on disability for three months and did not pay his monthly dues. So, of course the other 22 members told him that he was not going to get piece of the pie. Seems fair to me. Edward says it is unfair and is suing them.
Well, what if I gave you a little more information. The monthly dues are just $5 a month. Make any difference? No. What if I told you the policy of the group was to pay the monthly dues for everyone out of the smaller amounts they made. Any difference? A little bit. What if I told you the group had previously paid the dues for someone who had been on medical leave for six months? Oh, that makes a difference. A judge has ordered the lottery to set aside a portion of the award in case the worker wins.
Here is what I say. All of that above is nice and all, but the fact is they were unwritten rules and the guy did not pay his $5 a month. How did they know he was coming back to work or when? Why should they pay for his share? I think he loses. What do you think about this? Would you have paid the guy or paid his dues?