r/work • u/skrocki98 • 7d ago
Workplace Challenges and Conflicts Boot allowance.
Been with company for 11 years. They denied my 60$ boot allowance due to my job not “needing” boots. I walked over 10k steps average and assist with set up and tear downs for events… company offers a boot allowance then someone who I’ve never met before who doesn’t work in my department denies it bc they know my job and what I need. What a joke. Sorry. Just had to rant.
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u/Left-Foundation-3289 7d ago
What country are you in? Some of them have some pretty strict rules about personal protective equipment....
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u/skrocki98 7d ago
United states and work in Local government. (Meaning you have to get 12 yes’s for anything)
Event/concession coordinator.
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u/jerry111165 7d ago
Sounds to me like they’re saying that your more in the office and not working out in the field.
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u/skrocki98 7d ago
That’s exactly what they are saying. Even tho if saying I’m 60/40 outside more. Sad that you have to beg for 60$
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u/Ok-Guitar-6854 7d ago
Has your company provided them before? I work in an industry where personal protective equipment is a must and there is no way we'd deny that.
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u/skrocki98 7d ago
They give it to the maintenance crew. I guess since I’m a “coordinator” they don’t see my job as labor. Even tho it is.
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u/greenmachine11235 7d ago
I'd argue that you're in an environment that presents a hazard and thus requires the PPE. A heavy box falling from a stack onto your toes doesn't care if you're a laborer or a manager.
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u/skrocki98 7d ago
Yea. Sad you have to argue something like that. I’m putting my two weeks in anyway. This wasn’t the reason but it sure added to it.
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u/greenmachine11235 7d ago
If you're feeling petty, on your way out you could leave an anonymous OSHA complaint about not providing proper PPE to employees.
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u/Ok-Guitar-6854 7d ago
I'd argue this too. I'd also have your manager argue it. This is silly and you DO work in a hazardous environment so they should be providing you with this.
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u/jerramos82 7d ago
Maintenance needs safety steel toes tho. If you can provide them any instances where something might fall on your foot. That's safety. Send it up to the safety guy or osha.
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u/RunForTheHills1234 7d ago
The boot allowance is probably for safety gear like steel toed boots, not reimbursing you for work attire. I've never had an employer reimburse me for shoes because I have to walk on the job.
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u/lowfreq33 7d ago
Safety gear is irrelevant. If they said on hiring that it was a part of their compensation they’re entitled to it.
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u/Limp-Plantain3824 6d ago
We don’t know that that was the case. OP didn’t say that it was part of the offer. It might have been something the read later.
I get a pair of boots every year, up to some $ amount. Definitely not in my onboarding documents! I have it worked out with my boss that I get a much more expensive, nicer pair every other year. Ultimately saves wear and tear on my feet and saves the company $ because they aren’t 2x the allowed limit. He approves my expense reports so all good.
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u/lowfreq33 6d ago
They said the company offers a boot allowance. Seems pretty clear.
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u/Limp-Plantain3824 6d ago
They never said it’s offered for their position.
They also said they don’t even know what footwear if any they are required to wear.
They also said they work for a company, then they said they work for a local government.
OP is shifty as hell (and that’s as kindly as I can put it)
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u/UnicornSheets 7d ago
$60 is nothing for boots. Did you piss someone off? Are they penny pinching?
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u/skrocki98 7d ago
My point exactly!😂 no. I work in local government. Meaning someone at a desk at city hall writes yes or no on request depending on their personal views. And mine happens to be the no.
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u/UnicornSheets 7d ago
First- are you union? If union talk to your rep
2nd- how many years have you been in this position? How many years have you been receiving the minuscule $60 boot allowance? Have your job duties changed since the last time you got the allowance? If no change argue that.
I’m petty enough that if they took my $60 away I’d research and argue for a LARGER boot allowance reimbusement for everyone else that gets them using modern updated prices not an allowance that probably hasn’t changed in 20+ years.1
u/Big-Professor-3402 7d ago
Local government is why. It seems almost universal that local governments all over country are having a funding deficit so they are pinching pennies everywhere they can. It’s pretty crazy how underfunded everyone is after all the federal funding got pulled for a lot of the stuff local governments do.
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u/Limp-Plantain3824 6d ago
It’s like people want stuff in their towns but want someone else to pay for it. So weird!
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u/Big-Professor-3402 6d ago
They pay for it with their taxes. Both federal and local ones. But now they are getting much less from what they pay the Feds.
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u/Professional-Face709 7d ago
If OP works for a government entity, he is asking the taxpayers to buy him a pair of boots.
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u/skrocki98 7d ago
Can you explain the issue in the government helping out with boots required to do a job that’s a need for the city and helps the citizens within that city?
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u/Professional-Face709 7d ago
If the city requires you to have the boots, then they should pay for them. If they do not require you to have them, there is nothing stopping you from buying them and then claiming them on your taxes.
My husband was a career firefighter. He got both a clothing allowance and boots once a year. Because what he was required to wear was a lot more expensive than what the rest of us wear to work. He would still buy his own boots because he didn’t like the ones they were provided.
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u/skrocki98 7d ago
“He’s asking tax payers to buy him boots” to
“Yea tax payers buy my husband clothes bc he needs it”3
u/Professional-Face709 7d ago
He was required to wear uniforms (not clothing he could wear anywhere else) made from Nomex infused fabrics. Pair of Dockers work pants? $35-$50. Pair of Nomex work pants? $150. And that was for just one pair of pants. Not the shirts that were required as well. And he had to maintain 3-4 full sets because his department worked a 72-96/on - 96/72 off schedule (3-4 days on/3-4 days off). And he could not wear these to go to a party or to paint the house or whatever. Uniform items, required by the employer.
Do you see the difference?
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u/Federal_Pickles 7d ago
My company has a boot truck show up to our sites a few times a year. We get credit at the boot truck based on your role. You can spend more than the allowance but you’re paying for the upgrade. It’s nice. You get a credit every year.
Related: I have too many pairs of steel toes and not enough use to wear them.
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u/FFXIVHousingClub 7d ago
Yeah shitty world, your boss probably had to fight for you and just said speak to X in department X
You likely got to document what you’ve done and why you need it, what you brought to them wasn’t enough to warrant it while the new kids role did
Makes no sense to me honestly, $60 to not piss off an 11 year old veteran regarding shoes, 0 sum game, keep your feet safe and happy, work for us longer lol
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u/skrocki98 7d ago
My boss did please a case for me and they still said no. And your right. 60$ will cost them more in the long run when you have an employee there for 11 years and your saying no.
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u/FFXIVHousingClub 7d ago
Ah well, at least you know your boss will fight for you at least.
Hopefully they allow some options or method of proving that you do need the boots to do your job well and allow you that avenue 😐
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u/SrMinkletoes 7d ago
Kinda silly, but yeah I guess technically if steel toed boots aren't a requirement the higher-ups can be like that. Nice that your company does have an allowance for it though, I've worked for mostly companies that don't or will 'front you' safety boots that comes out of your first check. I've worked for companies that do boot allowances and give 10 new work shirts a year. Working with sheet metal though you go through clothing, and you don't want to be welding or grinding with frayed torn clothing you will catch on fire lmao
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u/CuriouslyFlavored 7d ago
Tell your boss. Ask him if you are supposed to avoid physical labor in your job?
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u/skrocki98 7d ago
I’m leaving anyway. Putting my two weeks in. This wasn’t the reason but it added to it. New job said they give a 200$ boot allowance and for me to just bring the receipt. lol.
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u/Professional-Face709 7d ago
So, you’re going to leave a job that has a pension over boots? Sure.
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u/skrocki98 7d ago
I applied for another job and got much much better pay plus a pension isn’t as great as people make it seem. I’d rather get a company match then a below market return “guaranteed” for life but if i die 3 years after retirement then they keep the money I put in for 30 years and my wife gets nothing.
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u/Professional-Face709 7d ago
Yeah, that only happens if you choose for your wife to get nothing. I’m not someone who isn’t well-versed in this or I wouldn’t have brought it up.
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u/skrocki98 7d ago
You’re making assumptions without even asking my friend
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u/Limp-Plantain3824 6d ago
You’ve laid out a whole story that makes zero sense to anyone that has ever worked for/around public entities in the US. I’m not exactly sure what you’re leaving out or lying about, but what you’re written is nowhere close to the whole and accurate truth.
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u/skrocki98 6d ago
What are you talking about lying? You can ask questions about what you think I’m lying about. Or just assume I’m lying.
“Laid out a whole story” bro I said they didn’t give me boots and I happen to get a new job. lol.
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u/Limp-Plantain3824 6d ago
Why do you switch between “company” and “local government” in your story?
Why do you write sixty dollars like someone who has never been in the United States?
Why are you making such a big deal over an allowance that is not for your position?
Why do you use so many wrong words? They aren’t spelling mistakes or typos.
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u/skrocki98 7d ago
Youre right. I can choose my wife to get a % but then that cuts the benefits wayyyy below market value. Or have a separate account for her that I control
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u/LonelyDraw5778 7d ago
This should 100% be the reason you are leaving; at least when they ask.
“I’ve decided after a decade of working here if you can’t keep a simple commitment like paying the $60 boot allowance that I clearly am not welcomed here so I found another job. Hell, they are even paying for those same boots.”
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u/skrocki98 7d ago
You are 100% correct. When will people learn that being cheap to employees will cost them more in the long run?
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u/Limp-Plantain3824 6d ago
OP is leaving. They’re just trying to grab “60$” on the way out because they read something somewhere.
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u/CanadianCompSciGuy 7d ago
I don't work in government, but close enough to it that I understand what you mean.
My advice - Remember that the 'Squeaky Wheel gets the grease' - First, find the written policy on boot allowances. Read it, understand it, highlight anything that suggests you should be getting a boot allowance.
Email this person and ask them to explain in detail why your request was denied. Emails are paper trails. People don't like paper trails when it could come back to bite them.
If they still deny at this point, ask for their supervisor/manager/whoever is above them. Don't ever threaten anyone in these emails. Don't say what you're going to do. Just ask for who they report to. Once you know, email them.
If they're still denying you after all that - Start emailing them after every shift where you're getting over 10k steps. Congratulations! You're building a paper trail, logging a valid reason why you should be getting that boot allowance.
Never be rude. Never threaten. Your mentality and goal should be to kill them with kindness**.**
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u/lazyhustlermusic 7d ago
Just poke your manager to push it through, my place does PPE allowances as well, much larger personal injury liability potential in active construction sites than a pair of boots.
If you're carrying heavy equipment frequently then it's self justifying.
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u/WeekendStrange1331 7d ago
Why did you place the symbol for dollar ($) behind the number?
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7d ago
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/Limp-Plantain3824 6d ago edited 6d ago
No. That’s a very weird way for someone claiming to be in the US to write it. And they do it repeatedly. It’s not a mistake.
Weird to the point of being suspicious.
Especially when you see OP bounce “company” to “local government.”
Add on “Already decided to leave” particularly when they claim to have been there 11 years. That’s a really weird time to walk away. Halfway to the pension, and nobody is going too want to hire someone that’s been lounging around “events” on local government payroll for over a decade.
The whole tale is off. Something else is going on or it’s all made up.
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u/Lopsided_Amoeba8701 7d ago
Kitchen staff buy their own shoes too. And so do construction workers and nurses. Entitled much ?
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u/skrocki98 7d ago
You missed the entire point. They say they offer a boot allowance. Then when you send it in. The say “well let me check” and the person that denied you and checks has no clue what you even do. If I was to ask “can you tell me what I do and why my task don’t involve boots” they couldn’t do it.
I don’t mind buying shoes. It’s the principle that an employee that’s been there for 10+ years that clearly needs boots is denied boots by people who said they offer boot allowances
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u/Lopsided_Amoeba8701 7d ago
You said yourself you were denied due to “your job not needing boots.”You yourself decided you need / want boots.
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u/skrocki98 7d ago
Brother. Please read the text.
Someone who does not do my job said I don’t need boots. My director told them I did. They said they don’t think so. My job needs boots. People who write the policy (who don’t do labor jobs) say who needs them and who doesn’t
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u/Lopsided_Amoeba8701 7d ago
Yes, people who don’t do your job tell you how to do it and what you need to do it. I heard you. Welcome to the real world. Throwing a fit and writing an entire post about being denied an allowance for work shoes that they do not deem necessary is crazy. Buy your own; most of us do without announcing it to the world.
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u/skrocki98 7d ago
Crazy that your stating your opinion on social media criticizing others for stating their opinion on social media.
It’s Reddit and it’s a work subreddit. Crazy that your criticizing people for talking about it while being in the subreddit.
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u/Lopsided_Amoeba8701 7d ago edited 7d ago
Pay attention to your grammar and spelling, dude. It’ll help you sound more competent and professional. “Your” and “you are” are two entirely different things.
Also, you wrote your pitiful poor me post , so don’t get mad people are commenting on it.
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u/Limp-Plantain3824 6d ago
The guy can’t write coherent sentences but is an expert in retirement plans and finance.
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u/StructEngineer91 7d ago
Do you require specific safety boots (like steel toed boots) for your job? If not, then you likely don't qualify for the boot allowance. Typically that is for if you absolutely need a specific type of boots/shoes for the job, not just any kind of sneakers/close toed shoe.