New micromanager scolds employee for using the company credit card for meals while working overtime, employee decides to write individual expense reports for everything they buy moving forward: ‘By week two, Dave's inbox was flooded’

Author image for Lana DeGaetano
Lana DeGaetano • "Show me to me please."
Jan 8, 2026 5:00 AM EST

The perk of being a corporate employee is that sometimes, they'll give you access to a company credit card for you to use within reason. The company expects you to use your discretion to make responsible purchases, and only purchases related to work are covered. Sounds like a good deal to me. Pens are pricey nowadays, and those work lunches add up. If my company is paying for my Chipotle bowl after 6 PM, then I'll probably never leave. That's just me, though.

Unfortunately, having access to the golden company credit card isn't always what it's chalked up to be. Some higher-ups prefer to micromanage your spending because they distrust you, which, in all fairness, isn't abnormal. Surely, many employees wrongfully use company funds for personal reasons, but since we're almost always on the side of the small guy, we'll have to turn a blind eye to those tales…

In the next story you'll read, you'll meet an employee who uses their company credit card to cover dinner meals when they are stuck at the office after hours working overtime. The employee explains that they don't use the card for meals every day, but within reason, they feel that the company should cover these one-off costs when they and their colleagues are expected to work beyond regular working hours. Whether you disagree with employees having access to company cards or not, you have to admit that the company should, at the very least, be covering employee dinners when they are forced to remain in the office. It's only fair.

A newer higher-up wasn't a big fan of this behavior, so he told the employee to use their own card, then write up an expense report so they can be reimbursed instead. Challenge accepted. The employee proceeds to write up expense reports, alright. An individual one. Every time they purchased something. Sent directly to their boss's inbox. Good luck reading all of those reports, Dave. Scroll to read about the fallout, which includes colleagues following in this employee's footsteps en masse.

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  • businessman using calculator to calculate costs at work
    via Getty Images For Unsplash+

    Image is representative only and does not depict the actual subjects of the story.

  • "Don't want me using the company card for lunch? Fine, I'll expense every single receipt instead."

    This happened a couple weeks ago at my job in marketing. Our team had a company credit card for "business expenses", which included client lunches, travel, and the occasional team meal.
    via TwitchFamous
  • The policy was loose, as long as it was under $50 per person and work- related, it was fine.
    via TwitchFamous
  • I'd use it maybe once a week for a quick sandwich while working late, always with a receipt uploaded to our system.
    via TwitchFamous
  • Enter my new micromanaging boss, let's call him Dave. Dave decided he didn't like how "casual" we were with the card.
    via TwitchFamous
  • During a team meeting, he announced that from now on, no one could use it for personal meals, only client-facing stuff.
    via TwitchFamous
  • When I asked for clarification (since my lunches were during overtime), he snapped, "If it's not with a client, pay for it yourself and expense it later.
    via TwitchFamous
  • Follow the rules." Okay, Dave. Malicious compliance activated. For the next month, I stopped using the card entirely for anything small.
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  • Instead, every single expense, coffee runs for meetings ($4.50), parking fees ($12), even a pack of pens from the office supply store ($3.99).
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  • a pen and sticky note sitting on a desk next to a keyboard
    via Frank van Hulst For Unsplash+
  • I paid out of pocket and submitted expense individual reports. Our system required scanning receipts, filling out forms with justifications, and getting manager approval for each one.
    via TwitchFamous
  • Normally, we'd batch them monthly, but the policy didn't specify, so I submitted them daily. By week two, Dave's inbox was flooded.
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  • He had to approve 5-10 reports a day from me alone. Other team members caught on and started doing the same for their stuff.
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  • He'd grumble about it in emails: "This is unnecessary bureaucracy." But hey, following the rules, right?
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  • The breaking point came during a big client pitch. We were hosting them at the office, and I was in charge of snacks.
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  • Instead of using the card for a $200 catering order, I paid personally and submitted the expense right after.
    via TwitchFamous
  • Dave, swamped, didn't approve it in time, so I politely informed him during the meeting (in front of the clients) that "per policy, I can't provide the food until the expense is cleared." The clients were confused, the meeting stalled, and Dave had to awkwardly approve it on his phone while everyone waited.
    via TwitchFamous
  • After that, he called an emergency meeting and reversed the policy: "Use the damn card for small stuff, just keep receipts." Victory.
    via TwitchFamous
  • TL;DR: Boss bans company card for non-client meals, so I expense every tiny purchase individually, burying him in paperwork until he caves during a client meeting.
    via TwitchFamous

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Tags

employee petty revenge Horrible Bosses workplace malicious compliance
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