The difference a typo can make
October 27, 2009 by Sam NarisiPosted in: Communication, HR Tech, In this week's e-newsletter - Tech
Need another reason to make sure all communication is crystal clear? Just look at the chaos a typo recently caused this worker and her employer.
Sarah Gaspar, who worked as an event caterer for the University of Notre Dame, thought it was her lucky day when the school gave her a $29,387 tip. Skeptical about her good fortunes, Gaspar claims she called the school’s catering department three times, but no one returned her calls.
Gaspar “thought finally something wonderful had happened,” she told the Associated Press, and spent the money on a new car and bill payments.
Notre Dame didn’t get in touch with her until after the money was spent. As you can probably guess, the huge tip was the result of a typographical error — according to the school, Gaspar should have been paid $29.87.
However, Gaspar won’t budge, and now school is suing to get the money back.
Can you count the number of communication mistakes in this story?
Tags: Communication, Notre Dame, typo
October 27th, 2009 at 12:58 pm
Hey – a tips a tip. It sounds as if she tried calling them several times; something that should be easily ascertained using phone records. Additionally, if there isn’t a contract on how much tip they owed to Gaspar, she should be allowed to keep the money.
October 27th, 2009 at 1:03 pm
It would be nice if occasionally common sense would prevail. There is such an entitlement mentality in our nation without regard to how others will be affected. I’m sure the woman hasn’t considered all of the students that will now pay more for tuition or not receive a scholarship or jobs that may be cut in order for the college to recover that loss. Nothing comes for free, it always costs someone. I think that woman is being very selfish. If she had made the error paying someone, I’m sure she would expect the money back!
October 27th, 2009 at 2:16 pm
r-
I really agree with you on this one. However, are you forgetting the lavish salaries that these schools pay for sports coaches that will also cause tuition to rise. It looks to me like $29,387 is very little compared to these kinds of salaries. Also, if what she said is true about trying to call the school she did her part. If I were in her situation, I would have done the same…finally feeling like some miracle had happened, especially in these difficult economic times.
October 27th, 2009 at 2:52 pm
I agree with r also. We are all human and make mistakes. I recently did an audit of a stipend we pay to employees who meet certain criteria. We found 11 people who had received the funds in error, even though they were ineligible. Some admitted to seeing the error but decided to keep quiet hoping it would go unnoticed. Others didn’t notice the error until we brought it to their attention (scary that no one looks at their paycheck!) and were nice about it. Then we had the group who didn’t realize they had gotten the money but didn’t think they should have to pay it back. The caterer knew darn well that money wasn’t all hers and she decided to pretend otherwise. Besides being dishonest she lost out on what could have been a lucrative contract going forward if Notre Dame had need for another event. Bad business sense here!
October 27th, 2009 at 2:54 pm
how about something in between? If she had put the money in the bank, she would be earning interest, and then should she have to return the money in the end, she’ll still have extra from the interest…
October 27th, 2009 at 3:01 pm
I think she should have e-mailed, snail mailed or otherwise in “writing” contacted the school to give them the opportunity to confirm or deny that they really wanted her to have that kind of a “tip” – Puleeeese! That is some tip. I have worked in the event planning field for a large pharmaceutice company – I have never heard of a tip that large – especially in these economic times when even the schools are pitching pennies. I agree with ds in that she could have wisely put the money in the bank, drew interest until she heard back from the school – then gave the money back and kept the interest for her trouble. Would have been a better path to take. mmmm mmmm mmmm mmm
October 27th, 2009 at 3:08 pm
What about the person who actually gave her the Tip? Should’nt that person be responsible for the mistake! If I made a mistake like that, rest assure it will be taken out of my paycheck.
October 27th, 2009 at 3:23 pm
One would think that the University has an expense policy requiring dual-signature for large dollar amounts.
Additionally, I agree with “r” that NOBODY gets a 14,000% tip. This was not a “windfall from God”, it was an accounting error. This woman’s recessive entitlement gene obviously disabled her common sense. As a business owner, she should have known that this was a mistake and would be corrected.
“….something wonderful had happened….” GIVE ME A BREAK. “Wonderful things” don’t happen as part of a business transaction. Based on a $30 tip, I’m guessing the entire bill was around $200 — NOT EVEN CLOSE to meriting a $30k tip. She deserves to get her a$$ sued, and the University has every right…..
BUT, If I was the University’s head of accounting right now, I’d be seriously questioning which financial controls failed, to allow this to happen.
October 27th, 2009 at 4:00 pm
I agree that anyone would know this wasn’t “something wonderful” and I wonder how specific she was when she called. Did she just ask for someone to call her back or did she say, “I received a $29,000-plus tip for a catering job and I think that must be an error. Please call.”? Surely that would have gotten someone’s attention. She rationalized and now she’ll have to dig up the money plus attorney’s fees, if there is any justice.
October 27th, 2009 at 4:38 pm
Do you think that this student ever thought about the job of the person that made the typo? When the university couldn’t get the money back, I am sure they fired the person who did the typo.
You don’t get something for nothing, it bites you eventually.
The parents of this student should be proud, she is stealing which shows her poor upbringing.
October 27th, 2009 at 4:40 pm
If she did indeed atempt to contact them and they did not return calls within a reasonable amount of time, the ‘tip’ should be hers to keep – Now.. what about the IRS?
Did they get their $9000+ cut?
October 27th, 2009 at 4:59 pm
Wrong is wrong. When I use to be in Audit and Tax Law it was always discussed what would the prudent person do in any given situation. I would gladly yield to any sane person who thinks that she did the prudent action by cashing the check. Not a chance. Then to go out and spend it instead of returning the check to Notre Dame seems to show very poor and suspicious behavoir on her part. Come on everyone, did common sense die in America? I know, if it is so common almost everyone would have it
October 28th, 2009 at 10:28 am
Bonnie, this woman was an event caterer, not a student. I agree her ethics are in question but we have no way of knowing how her parents raised her.
If I get too much change back, or a cashier misses an item on the bottom of my cart I make them aware and pay what is owed. Most people would do the same, even in hard economic times.
Bottom line, she KNEW the tip was a mistake and kept it anyhow. It is exactly the same as not returning the overage of change at the grocery store. This makes her dishonest and is going to cost her in the long run. Who wants to hire a dishonest person to cater their next event?
October 28th, 2009 at 12:57 pm
Student? What student? I thought it was a caterer.
October 28th, 2009 at 3:57 pm
I cannot understand how anyone would agree that she keep the money, not even if the President of the University thanked her for her honesty and told her she could keep it. As several others noted, there are effects both financial and intangible when someone benefits out of an error like this. I would LOVE to have had $29,000 fall in my lap when I was a student at a University and working for the on campus catering department. I would dishonor myself, and my parents if I didn’t exhaust all ways of returning the money. I’ve made my share of mistakes (especially during college), not a single one of them includes selling my soul. Another sad example of morals in the 21st century.
November 3rd, 2009 at 4:06 pm
I cannot believe anyone would feel it was okay to keep this “tip”. Is this what has become of our society when people feel that they deserve something for nothing. My Lord she did a little catering job, does she really feel that she deserves 29K for it even if she made a couple of calls? Why didn’t she go to the college office and tell what happened? I can guarantee that she would do that if she never received her paycheck! She is nothing more than a thief without an ounce of morals or self respect.
November 3rd, 2009 at 4:14 pm
You can neither lose nor gain from a mistake. Need to give the money back – it isn’t hers.