Getting screwed out of money...

is something that we all try to avoid - with varying degrees of success. I fear though, that I've been seriously lacking in success lately.

My EI claim back in December is the first example. They sent me a letter saying "...we cannot consider the Small Weeks provision when establishing your benefit rate because the small week(s) you indicated are not within the rate calculation period...". It seemed harmless enough, by my understanding all they were saying was "This set of information is irrelevant, and thus your benefit rate will not be affected by the aforementioned week(s)". So I waited for my benefits, and they never came.

I wasn't particularly concerned though, because I went back to work after only 3 weeks off, and the work was steady up until the start of February. So at this point I revisited the EI office, and at the same time as I applied for benefits again I inquired about this "Small Weeks" Provision. The lady said that because they didn't have the exact dollar amounts for the "Small Weeks" included in my claim, they couldn't process an exact rate. Because I would have "deserved more money". Their solution? Give me nothing! It makes all the sense in the world.

Perhaps the most amusing aspect is that they had the information the entire time. The Small Weeks she was referring too are from back when I worked at FLR - and since I was paid weekly, my ROE listed the exact sum I was paid every week. So, my benefits were cancelled because they didn't have the information that was right in front of their faces.

I'm just waiting to see if they give me any problems with this round of benefits. I honestly expect it.

The second case I wanted to bring up was this years Profit Sharing. In my years working for PF I, along with everyone else (who meet the requirements) have been recipients for a yearly profit sharing cheque for a few hundred dollars. A very welcome bonus for the hours of toil in a ball-sweat environment.

So I worked for the company for over 6 straight years, before I quit when I moved to Ontario. It was approximately 11 months between the time I quit and when I was asked to return, so I did (A portion of the intervening time was spent at FLR, another portion spent in Europe). By now, in total, I've logged about 7 years of service to this company. But did I get profit sharing? Not a chance.

The official reason is that I "haven't amassed the necessary hours" to qualify. I suppose being gone for 11 months negates any hours put in over the previous 6 years.

I get the feeling I'm being played the sucker here. And it's not like I'm flat broke without enough cash to put food in my mouth - obviously not. But things like this are just frustrating.