May 12, 9:09 am
Home Depot gets slapped, but it’s us who will pay.
An article from the Palm Beach Post informs us that Home Depot is getting slapped with a damages fee to the tune of $25 million for cheating a vendor. Sadly, this didn’t need to happen if their management was thinking “honesty” and “fairness.” And the real tragedy is that it’s people like you and me who will be paying the judgment.
Some quick facts:
The US District Judge hearing the case said “Home Depot knew exactly what it was doing,” and that they “pushed [the vendor] away” for “their own economic benefit.”
The vendor’s share of that $25 million judgment is $15 million. (His original bill would have totaled only $4 Million if Home Depot had played by the rules.)
Some will say “Yay for the vendor.”
Others will say “Bad on Home Depot.”
But I say it’s “Sad for us.” Why? Because none of the players at Home Depot will take a pay cut to cover this $25 million. They will simply pass those fees along to you and me and the other home improvement weekend warriors who shop there.
Business owners and managers, please take note: People who provide products and services to your company need to be compensated in whatever way you agree. Call it Karma or whatever you like, but unethical practices have ripple effects. You may see a short term benefit for choosing them, but the rule of “you reap what you sow” will come back to bite you, and sadly, it also affects others along the way.
Perhaps part of the reason the golden rule is golden is because by following it, you’re likely to get more gold.
Filed in Business, Management, Corporate Culture
Discussion
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