sackable offence?

melysion

I'm completely lost. Lol. Obviously need to have a chat with accounts!

theoretica

Is the problem and overcharging because the VAT was added (I don't know if this is right, but presumably the accounts department have responsibility to know) or because the dollar prices are higher than just the exchange rate on pound or euro prices?

melysion

The VAT was added at 20%. I don't know if the US dollar price is higher to accomadate the loss of VAT or not. I'm an editor and I just give the accounts people the details after I've done the job in hand.

bugslet

It's a minor error, we all make mistakes. Fess up, it'll get sorted. As an employer, I'd certainly not be dismissing anyone or even giving them a hard time over it, especially as you are fairly new to the role.

kwmlondon

If you worked for me and you came to me with this problem and a proposed solution I'd be more inclined to keep you on as I'd know I could rely on you to spot mistakes and sort them out for yourself. A much easier person to manage than an idiot who never takes responsibility and a useful person on the team to boot.

RuthnJasper

Definitely own up. Innocent mistakes happen to everyone (including your superiors). However, you could be in serious doo-doo if it rears its head in the future and somehow it comes out that you knew about it and did nothing.

In a previous job, the company owner told me himself on my first day that he had once inadvertently shipped a £10k+ machine to a customer in Switzerland instead of the customer who'd actually ordered the machine... in Spain! He said he was telling me this to prove that anyone can make a mistake; it's how we deal with it that matters. After his gaffe, he could never get cross about an error - but he WOULD be angry if we lied or tried to conceal it from him.

It'll be OK, OP. Just come clean, and try not to beat yourself up too badly. We're all only human. x

BillJones

melysion wrote: »

Thanks for the advice. Feeling slightly better about it all now. The job is so different to what I've done before I guess I should expect to make some errors. But I am a perfectionist by nature and it's not easy knowing you can be given a weeks notice for just about anything. Horrible.

That's the nature of work. It's an ongoing deal whereby you can leave if you decide you don't like it, and the company can dispense with your services if they feel the same.

On the other side, though, companies are not generally interested in sacking someone the moment they make an error. Mistakes happen, and as long as people own up to them, work out how they happened, and put a solution in place to make them less likely in future, then there's no reason for anyone to be let go.

However, if someone made a mistake that cost a client, and decided to hide the fact, I'd probably launch formal disciplinary procedures, with a view to moving to dismissal. I don't expect any of my staff to be perfect, and mistake free, but I absolutely do require that they are scrupulously honest and open.

Jitterbug123

I agree with everyone else. If you own up to your mistakes firstly you'll learn what the correct thing is so you won't make the mistake again. Secondly, you'll be known in your company as an honest employee, which means people won't doubt you.

IYKWIM

Used to work in billing and mistakes happen on £100k+ invoices quite often, especially with newbies. Just own up, you won't be the first who has sent an incorrect invoice.

melysion

Its sorted now, thank goodness. Found out the invoice, talked to accounts, got the VAT code from the customer and a new invoice will be sent out.

Phew. Wont be making that mistake again though, thats for sure!