Office Supplies form Work

[PRICEPLUS]

How many folks here take pens, pencils, paper clips, etc. from work? While it saves money is it ethical? Studies say that the great majority of us do it.

Do you do it? Why or why not?

[boefixepa]

I do, all the time. I use their ink to print personal stuff and their paper. I even use binders and stamps sometimes. I just tell the office manager to take XX amount of money from my check every once in a while to cover it. That way I am being fair. It would be a hassel for me to go to the store and it's more convient. But I make sure I do pay for it.

[tinapbeana]

in college, i was in charge or ordering supplies for the IT office.... i was like a kid in a candy store!

they told me to max each purchase out so theybudget would get used (otherwise it would get cut the next year). anything that they did use got shuffled off to me. i've got so many office supplies i couldn't even tell you

[JanH]

Hubby spends a lot of time tracking costs and budgeting equipment in the plants so I am aware of how some companies are having harder times with costs. We try not to use anything that belongs to the company, buying our own supplies. However, since Hubby does a lot of work at home and on weekends and extra hours per day, occassionally we do use their fax machine to send things--but not very often. Just a thing with us. Now watch, I'll find something we brought home...and shouldn't have.

[fairy74]

I do it (with boss' permission). I took a lower paying job so that I could get more time in the court room (working in a smaller firm). I think my boss feels guilty that he is not paying me the going rate, although a few years down the road I will make a lot more because I have more court experience than most of my collegues, however I think he tries to throw me a bone wherever he can! Stamps is probably the biggest money saver for me, he doesn't even mind if I send DH tattoo business stuff from the office! Yeah!

[tinapbeana]

i think there is office supply kharma, in a way. in addition to working somewhere that literally gave me office supplies, i have worked 4 years at a internationally known telecom company that asked their CSRs to provide their own office supplies. even exempt sups & trainers had to bring their own pens, highlighters, scissors, etc. WHAT?!?

[Bookie]

I confess to taking pens from the office. Guilty, guilty, guilty. I don't mean to take pens. I don't want the pens. The office has lousy pens. I just mindlessly stick them in my shirt pocket and discover them when I unload at home.

Then about once every few month, I do a sweep and gather them all up. Back they go to the office, and the process begins anew.

[rob62521]

I work at a school and I don't filch stuff. First, it's a moral issue and against my beliefs. Second, we don't have enough stuff to work with as it is with a small budget so taking stuff home would strain the budget already. Most teachers purchase a lot of their own things to work with from decent pens to grade books, to all those stickers and incentives they hand out to the kids.

[ren]

When I started with my current employer, I was a file clerk and would put paper clips into my pants pockets as I filed and forget to empty them during the day. I eventually had a quart jar full of them that I sheepishly sneaked back in to the office.

Other than that, I occasionally print something personal on their printers (directions usually), but my employer has been wonderful about paying for my classes and I wouldn't feel right taking things.

Edited because me no gud at English.

[frugalmomof1]

I have accidentally taken several pens home from work....I have to travel between buildings for meetings, audits, etc., so I am always tossing a pen in my pocketbook...sometimes they end up at home.
But whenever I find that I don't have a pen to use at my desk, I always look through my pocketbook first before I take another one...right now I am using a pen that I took from home, so it probably evens out.

[aurielle]

I use the copier and the color copier occasionally for personal stuff, same with the fax machine. I may have ended up with a pen or two, few paper clips, manila envelope but thats a rare occurrence.

[PRICEPLUS]

It sounds like we have a very ethical group of people so far!

[tinapbeana]

my problem is i'm an office supply snob (heheh, it's like coffee: addictive!). anyways, i only like certain pens, the super-sticky post-its, etc., so now i have such a stockpile at home i just bring my own.

aside: few things in life can rival the joy to be found in the office depot clearance aisle. yes, i actually said that! DH has issues w/ office supplies too, so now we're not allowed in the office store together and with the checkbook: it's dangerous.

[PRICEPLUS]

I always buy stuff at the office depot whether I need something or not. I am also dnagerous at sears and at the Tool Depot. I am also not allowed near Dept. 56 Dickens Village by myself.

I have ended up using pens, pencisl, and other such stuff from work at home. In the end I don't look at it as stealing as I was doing work at home!

[amberfocus]

Little things such as pens, post-its, paper clips, etc. I don't have a problem taking (although I'd just take one or two, never a whole box, and only when I need it). I feel justified since I don't get paid for the hours and hours of overtime I put in each week.

My roommate, however, will buy (on our boss's dime) and BRING HOME liquid soap, saran wrap, aluminum foil, packing tape, kimwipes (wiping tissues), and other 'household' supplies from our laboratory stockroom. I think that's going too far, but he's totally nonchalant about it and thinks he's being clever. He's also taken lab-grade 100% ethanol... to drink, and laughs at the people who tells him that it's horribly toxic.

I guess different people draw the line different as to what constitutes petty thievery.

~mimi

[JanH]

Oh, I do so love the office supply store. Move away from the office supplies...move away from the office supplies.....

[boefixepa]

I am so with the addication to office supplies...I couldn't wait for school to start...just so I could go school supplies shopping....now it's offive supplies...what is it...I love it...have to have it...must have stickies...must have binders with many pockets...must have mechanical pencils...addictive YES!

[tinapbeana]

sadly, i can actually sit down with quill or office depot catalog (you know the one, the size of the old sears book!) and be entertaining for hours! gosh, i'm such a dork...

[dossin1]

At my office, we bring our own stuff because people keep walking off with the supplies the company buys. I used the office fax, before we bought one for home use.

[MonkeyMama]

No I never have. I guess I don't need the stuff.

I have actually stolen a few enevelopes and felt guilty - LOL. Maybe I Am too honest - hehe.

At my old job I worked a lot from home though so I took a lot of office supplies as we were expected to - to work from home and out of the office. I just can't really think of needing any office supplies lately. I read this thread and thought I should grab some pencils - thought never crossed my mind before for whatever reason. Honest or just too stupid. As long as I Am not hoarding supplies I wouldn't really feel guilty. A pencil here and there, eh...