Making Ends Meet

For the past weeks, I've been preoccupied reorganizing my staff, streamlining other departments,  reviewing policies and procedures in preparation for a bigger project next year.  It seems like, I'm earning one wrinkle a day.

One of the many problems I encounter is to manage other people's financial problem.   How do you actually help your people trying to make ends meet?  When they do not know what savings is all about.  All they know is borrow money now and tomorrow will be another day.  Oftentimes, I became the evil one disapproving their application for loan or cash advance;  it can be heartbreaking sometimes but I have to do what I think is right.  I recently signed a memo outlining new policies for loan application to make sure their net take home pay will be enough to sustain them until the next payroll period.  Some will understand but many will say, "I have no other choice."  Today,  I am faced with:

• a call and a message from an employee asking for favor not to deposit his loan to his ATM because it is mortgaged to a lending firm; 
• a worker personally appearing before me asking for reconsideration to renew his loan to payoff tuition fees;
• another renewing his unpaid loan to send some money to his family in the province;
• one trying to renegotiate the amortization of his loan after owing from four other different institutions
• another renewing his barely half paid SSS loan for tuition fee when after all his existing loan, his net take home could not even feed him for a day.

Because of this, I'm compelling myself to read more about the benefits of mandatory government contribution like SSS, HDMF and Philhealth.  To make sure they get what they deserve and I won't be in hot water if I disapprove one.  I'm posting what I've learned on my blog http://philippinetaxation.blogspot.com/ .

If only I could rub off a lamp and ask genie to grant them all the cash they need.  Lord, help them!  Unfortunately, trying to make ends meet, has become a way of life.