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A second company planned to dock coronavirus relief money from its workers’ paychecks, but has since rescinded the plan, Fox News has learned.
Over the weekend, Fox News reported that a Texas-based company planned to pre-emptively take money from its workers equivalent to what each employee might receive from the government’s $2 trillion stimulus bill.
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The story sparked a strong backlash, and companies that planned to take similar measures have started to rethink their strategy.
As originally reported by the Lost Ogle, Oklahoma City-based company ImageNet Consulting intended to take this measure with its employees. As of Monday, the company issued a statement declaring that it will not follow through on that plan.
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ImageNet sent the following statement to Fox News: “As our company grapples with the massive business disruptions caused by this outbreak, our first concern was ensuring we could keep as many people as possible employed for as long as possible. We implemented a series of steps to cut costs, including asking our top executives to forego their pay and capping all salaries at $75,000,” said Pat Russell, president of ImageNet Consulting.
“While there was uncertainty about the federal government response, we also asked a small group of employees to reduce their compensation by an amount equal to any government support they received.”
“Our intentions were to serve the greater good and protect our most vulnerable employees. However, we understand our plan was ill-advised. We have rescinded the potential program, and we apologize for any pain or confusion it caused.”
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The stimulus bill, signed by President Trump on Saturday, seeks to alleviate the mounting financial pressure. Individuals making $75,000 or less would receive $1,200, with an additional $500 per dependent.
Following lockdown orders by various states in response to the coronavirus pandemic, many Americans have either lost their jobs or have seen their hours reduced, with 3.28 million Americans claiming unemployment last week alone.
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It is worth noting that, even if by coincidence, ImageNet had capped all salaries at $75,000, that would have allowed individuals who would have been unable to receive stimulus money to now qualify.
While ImageNet does maintain Texas offices, with locations in Austin, Dallas, Houston and League City, the company that first sparked outrage with this plan was unnamed by the whistleblower.
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Additional reports stated that a national restaurant chain planned to do the same.
