With too-low mileage reimbursement rates a hot topic again, a Gannett Blog reader at one of the Northeast newspapers says: "VPs, and I'd assume the publisher as well, have a 'perk' allowing them to fill the tanks of their private cars at the company gas pump. Isn't that nice? Meanwhile, like everyone else in Gannettland, our mileage reimbursement rate has not budged an inch. The price for regular topped $4 yesterday at some stations."The reader asks: Are other executives around the company also pumping free? Leave a note, in the comments section, below. Or use this link to e-mail your reply; see Tipsters Anonymous Policy in the green sidebar, upper right.
As much as I like to point out the disparity between the privileged few and working masses, I'm not sure we can claim anything illegal is being done, as long as it is accounted for as non-cash compensation for tax purposes. The publisher at our location had our staff fill his company car everyday from the company pump (even though the needle barely moved, he always topped off the tank). There was a meticulous record kept in a log book of mileage. I wonder if the IRS got its’ piece??
ReplyDeleteWhile it may not be illegal, when everyone else is getting .26/mile, it is certainly immoral.
Just where is this pump? it's not in McLean or I would've seen it...
ReplyDeleteWhy is that poster afraid to tell which Northeast paper it is. I work in Westchester and drive by the gas pump and see the VP's filling up. Most be nice to get a golden parachute and free gas
ReplyDeleteYou guys just don't get it. Without outlandish salaries and ridiculous perks, we wouldn't be able to retain the highly skilled managers who have lead the company to such peaks of profitability and shareholder value ... what's that? My stock is worth what?!!!!
ReplyDeleteOn second thought, shut off the pump and give them a rusty bicycle.
@7:43 a.m.: The reader told me the name of the newspaper; I'm withholding it, pending confirmation. And I believe I may now have it.
ReplyDeletemost likely these are company cars being filled up anyway ... so, this is a cost-savings move since the gas is at the wholesale level, not the retail price. certainly, this is calculated and used in determining how much money the unit "saved" ... at my paper, the company gas pump didn't dispense the high-test that was necessary for the fancy car, so we had a FT employee take the car to a specific gas station and fill up several times a week. not to mention the car wash at the same time ... priorities
ReplyDeleteIf the 7:43 reader said it was the APP...he won!! Bob Collins did not hide the fact that he had us fill up his Caddy or Beemer at the company pump. It was a company car. So all that's left to wonder about is the accounting and the IRS. And we all know there were stringent financial watchdogs at the Press to oversee this kind of thing...uhh ...right?
ReplyDeleteAnd yet, @7:43 p.m., my original post wasn't referring to the Asbury Park Press. Hmmm...
ReplyDeleteOhhh well...why should employees care? Shareholders and executives are the only ones that count...wait a sec...employees ARE shareholders! Remember to vote next year. Maybe we can get a shareholders proposal forbidding these kinds of bad perks....
ReplyDeleteNot too long ago, the Courier-Post did away with their on-site gas pump used for the fleet of delivery trucks. Now the trucks go to local gas stations to fill up. So, if buying wholesale was the justification for on-site gas supply, it's gone. Maybe the Courier-Post is planning to get rid of their local delivery fleet or something else more sinister. By the way, the publishers at the NJ papers have company cars and have been filling up at the company gas pumps. Meanwhile, reporters and sales reps get peanuts for travel expenses. They are indeed subsidizing the company in this way. When staff complain, the brilliant management says staff can write off the difference on personal income taxes. What a load!
ReplyDeleteWhy does a publisher need a company car, anyway? Going on sales calls? Redelivering missed papers?
ReplyDeletePublishers need a company car to get to and from the County Club which is another perk from CGI for some publishers.
ReplyDeleteThey don't need a company car or country club. They don't need an office. They should just be eliminated and let the newsroom run things.
ReplyDeleteOh, they already do.