FireyTech, Broken Arrow, OK
Fraud, Coercion, Unauthorized payroll deductions, Unsafe working conditions, Non-payment for work

Payroll Issues;
Owner/Boss could not make our payroll. He was supposed to do direct deposit for our paychecks. Our direct deposit started out happening on payday, which was every other Tuesday at midnight. This worked out for about the first month or two I worked there. Then my direct deposits were showing up late (1 to 3 days late) then Owner/Boss started paying us partial amounts of our earnings by handwritten or printed checks from the office printer. Once it took a week to get our full pay. We do not always get check stubs that show our tax deductions so I keep my own log, hoping I won't get in trouble with the State or Federal Government. We used a program that he had written on his computer to log our hours and mileage so I kept my own log for that as well. Last pay period, Owner/Boss explained that he had spent too much money from the company on personal interests (at least he was honest about his habits) informing that we would have to divide what money he had evenly between us and then we would get paid more later.

Company vehicle, transportation and mileage, other pay issues;
At the onset of my employment, the Owner/Boss did supply a reasonably serviceable vehicle for all employees to use. It was emblazoned with company logos and looked quite presentable. We were encouraged to drive it, as it gave the company free advertising. Due to his own financial difficulties, he had to remove the vehicle from company use so his wife would have transportation. I was then informed at that time (June 14) that I would need to use my own vehicle exclusively for travel to perform work for the company. This was not at all the agreement that was made with me when I was hired. Owner/Boss paid us $0.19 per mile for using our personal vehicles. The IRS says the rate is $0.50 per mile and increased it in July to $0.56 cents per mile (Ref; https://www.irs. Gov/). I printed out the mileage table and distributed it to everyone in the company. Owner/Boss dismissed it and said that he could pay us as he saw fit. He says he does not have to pay us that amount, his accountant "told him so". The law reads that either he pays the total amount or nothing of the IRS ruling (that way we could have deducted our mileage on our income taxes if he pays nothing). Since he pays part of the amount, we cannot deduct it on our taxes since he deducts this amount on his company taxes. We were required to log our vehicle miles on his electronic log and he keeps them on record. I keep a paper record for myself of course but it is useless, unless I want to be audited, since my employer already claims it. Just for the record, an average day of work can easily involve more than 130 miles of driving, not counting the miles to and from work. We were often asked to report directly to a jobsite from our homes, for which, our mileage was not paid unless we "manipulated" our odometer records. It was a no-win situation
Owner/Boss also deducted money, which he referred to as an "advance" in the amount of $45.00 USD from my paycheck (this was on my third week of employment) for what he referred to as a "missing" gas card, which was for use on the company vehicle only. At no time did I ever use this gas card! I neither signed any statement nor was offered any recourse for his accusation nor could I say no to him keeping the $45.00, he simply deducted the amount from my pay and that was it. Owner/Boss dismissed the other employee who had handled the card and charged him (deducted from his pay) half the amount of the card's balance ($45.00 USD) Strangely, I was not dismissed. If I had stolen from him, why did he not prosecute me or at least dismiss me? The dismissed employee was later allowed to return to work about a month later and as if by magic circumstances, funds were missing from our petty cash box.

Disregard for employee livelihood and safety;
We obviously have to pay for our own fuel for our personal vehicles. It actually costs me to work for his company on most occasions. I mean LITERALLY, my hourly pay does not cover the cost of fuel. Owner/Boss no longer provides a company vehicle (as of September 26) and I have been required to drive several hundred miles a week to travel and perform work for him. I seriously damaged my own vehicle while driving out of town in June 20 for a late night job (I hit a sheared re-tread semi-truck tire while traveling on the highway, damaging the front suspension on my vehicle - it is no longer roadworthy) I have night blindness, as Owner/Boss is aware and I am restricted from driving when it is not daylight (I have a restriction on my drivers license for visual impairment) I was/am unable to have my personal vehicle repaired due to the severity of damage and cost of replacing the damaged components.

Owner/Boss then supplied a second "company vehicle" which was a 1982 Chevy truck. This vehicle was is such poor condition that, if Oklahoma still had a safety inspection requirement, the vehicle would have never been allowed to leave the inspection facility. The truck did not have working signal lights, headlights or windshield wipers. The brakes on this vehicle worked only partially. I was required to use this truck to travel to and from my various jobs which involved driving from Broken Arrow, OK to locations over 80 miles away (often mileage totals of 120 miles per day sere common) often at night (again, there were no signal lights, headlights or windshield wipers on this vehicle) I used some copper speaker wire to connect the headlight bulbs directly to the battery, this is how I drove to and from many jobs for months. Of course, the electrical connections had to be manually performed each time the lights were used.
The provision of this second company vehicle lasted just over 3 months. Owner/Boss no longer provided a company vehicle (as of September 26) and I was told to use my own vehicle, irrespective of it's condition.

Illegal modification of contracts and falsifying documents;
The Owner/Boss also required (coerced me) to falsely identify myself as either himself or another employee, because the name on the service contract is not under my name. I know this is fraud! I cannot do it, this is illegal! It is also strictly prohibited by the companies that contracts the work to our company and I have had (been coerced) to impersonate my Owner/Boss and other employees on the telephone and in person when dealing with our contractors and customers. I have had (been coerced) to "cut and paste" customer's (end users) signatures on service and warranty agreements, liability releases and contracts under his direction. I have had (been coerced) to falsify financial records, bills of materials, alter photographs and electronic files/information transfers. If I was not available to do these things, he would do it himself or coerce another employee to do it.

Loss of employment and my redemption;
I am actually relieved that Owner/Boss laid me off, he was honest enough to admit that he could not pay me or my co-worker, who was also laid off on the same day. I could not bear the thought (or another day) of breaking the law, possibly getting arrested or getting killed (or endangering someone else's life) Everything I have told you is true and other employees can verify these facts. I need work BADLY but I am an honest man and I do value the lives of others! This company should be investigated thoroughly, it is the most convoluted, corrupt and dishonest organization I have ever been involved with.

Company: FireyTech, Broken Arrow, OK
Country: USA

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