I once worked as a data entry clerk for a keypunch firm. The boss was an acquaintance of my father, and offered me a part time job. I was to work from 2pm to 6pm 5 days per week. Since I didn't have very good typing skills at the time, I took it even though the hours weren't ideal. My son had just started school, so I had arranged for him to stay at a neighbor's until my husband got home from work.

The job was in a small office with about 18 desks with computers. Clerks would key in the information, which was then recorded on tape on the office's main computer. First shift was 8am 4pm. Second shift was from 4pm until 10pm. Hours were relatively flexible so if someone wanted overtime, that clerk could stay later to get more hours in.

The problem was that there were 18 workers on day shift. If one of them wanted to stay later, that meant 1 less desk for second shift, and more than one time, I was left sitting in the lobby waiting for someone to leave so I could work.

Of course I wasn't being paid to wait I asked the boss about it, and he said that I was "waiting to be engaged, not engaged to be waiting", so he would not pay me for waiting for a machine. I filed for partial unemployment. He called me in and asked why I filed for unemployment when he had more hours for me. All I had to do is stay later than 6pm to work. I told him I wasn't available after 6 but that I could work from 8am until 4. He told the unemployment office that I refused to work full time hours.

While all this was going on, he'd walk up and down the aisles as we worked. From time to time, he'd stop behind someone, stand right up against the back of their chair, and bump the chair with his knee. When the clerk stopped working to look at him, he'd say "why aren't your fingers moving?"

He also kept a bullwhip in his desk and sometimes he'd crack it as he walked up and down the aisles. If you didn't jump when he cracked it, he'd stand there beside your desk and crack it until you reacted.

One day, I had feminine problems' and had to run to the bathroom quite frequently. He asked me why I was doing in the bathroom every 15 minutes. I was already in a bad mood, so I said "why don't you install a camera so you'd know?" He said he already checked into it and it was illegal.

He had us keying in data from little slips of paper with Social Security numbers on. There was sometimes only one number per slip, and they looked like they'd been cut out of a larger page. We were supposed to verify everything by giving our work to someone else to re-key. If both records were the same, they knew there were no errors. There was no way to verify the Social Security number job. We couldn't keep the little slips of paper in order. So, the job was not verified.

I was still collecting partial unemployment, which galled him, so he got me a full time assignment through his other company in an office at a steel mill. I worked there a year before he lost the contract and I was picked up at the same assignment with another agency.

He eventually was audited by the Federal and State governments for billing for work not done, keying that was not verified. All the files in the office were confiscated and his assets were seized including the business and 2 boats.

It doesn't end there.

On my Social Security record for the year 1985, there are no wages reported. I worked on the temporary assignment for this man that year. By the time I found it, I didn't have any proof of the wages and when I called him, he said his accountant did it and the accountant had since died and he didn't know where the company records were.

Learn more about this author, Liane Laskoske.
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