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The original was posted on /r/maliciouscompliance by /u/markogreenway on 2025-10-31 13:26:18+00:00.
I am a maintenance tech at a food packaging plant. We used to have a petty cash tin and a shared company card for small parts, screws, zip ties, a tube of Loctite, random bits like that. New CFO arrives and sends a shiny policy, no purchases without a pre approved Purchase Order, every vendor must be in the system, no exceptions. Reimbursements without a PO will be rejected, in bold. Cool, I can follow rules. We cleaned the toolbox, logged every part, and I stopped grabbing stuff at Harbor Freight on my way in.
Friday, 4,32 pm, our shrink wrapper stops. Line light is dark, panel shows no fault, I pop the cover and the 5x20mm T2A 250V fuse is visibly dead. We used to keep a bag of ten, but stores got "consolidated", so the bin is empty. The part costs about 0.25 at the hardware store five minutes away, or 8 bucks for a pack of ten at Home Depot. I call procurement, nobody there after 4, phone goes to voicemail. I text my manager and the CFO, include a photo, part number written with a sharpie on the inside door, very helpful past me. Manager says use your card and expense later. I send him the policy screenshot that says "Purchases without a PO will not be reimbursed". He says he will talk to the CFO. I clock the line as down, send the crew home, open a ticket with exact times, cause, and a lovely pic of the roasted fuse for the file. Compliance achieved.
Saturday, 6,07 am, the CFO calls me, little bit of panic in his voice. "Just go buy the fuse, we are missing trucks." I say sure, please send me the PO number. He says he cannot issue one until accounting logs in on Monday. I tell him, happy to help once I have a PO. We had three lines idle all weekend because the shrinker is the last step, no wrap, no pallets. We missed 42 pallets to a grocery DC, paid overtime to re run on Monday, and got a chargeback for late delivery. Someone estimates the downtime cost north of 180k, I am not a finance guy, but the number had many zeros.
Monday, the CFO arrives with two coffees and a face the color of a ripe tomato. He hands me a small cash box with 200 dollars and a printed sheet of twenty pre approved POs for "maintenance consumables under 100". He says, please use judgment. I buy a 10 pack of the fuses, stock 8 in the bin, tape one to the inside of the panel with the part number, and keep one on my desk as art. I labeled it, "Price 0.25, lesson, alot more". Policy updated, headphones on, machines happy.