Well, this is Giving Tuesday

From Vice: UCLA Paid Student Workers With Amazon Gift Cards

A payroll error led UCLA to deduct more in taxes than it was supposed to. Rather than reimburse the student workers, it gave them Amazon gift cards.

The University of California at Los Angeles paid at least 15 graduate and undergraduate student employees with Amazon gift cards after it discovered an error in tax deductions created by its payroll system on November 20. 

"The University of California's central payroll office (UCPath) recently discovered an error in OASDI and Medicare withholding for some employees," a letter received by the UCLA students from the University of California's payroll office on November 20 said. "To reimburse you for your overpayment in taxes, we are enclosing a $10.00 gift card." ...

“The University of California's central payroll office recently discovered an error in tax withholding for some student workers during a portion of 2019. For those cases where the error was greater than $10, the university issued a check for the correct amount,” Katherine Alvarado, a spokesperson for UCLA, said. “For those cases where the error was $10 or less, with the average amount over-withheld being $4.36.”

Concerned UCLA student workers and their union UAW Local 2865 are already filing a grievance as students worry that UCLA and other universities on the UCPath payroll system could continue to rely on Amazon gift cards for payment or reimbursement for larger amounts. Getting paid in Amazon gift cards allows the university to dictate where workers spend their earnings and would make it more difficult for struggling students to pay for basic necessities like rent...

Full story at https://www.vice.com/en/article/g5bvex/ucla-paid-student-workers-with-amazon-gift-cards