The Friday Lowdown ⬇️

If you're new around here, every day or so I share the 4-5 best accounting insights I saw in the past 24 hours.

I scroll. so you don't have to.

🤯 WTF of the Day

Hostile Workplace Claim Collapses at BDO

A legal secretary at BDO Australia said she was pushed to resign because of a hostile work environment. She claimed the firm broke trust, ignored fairness, and made her job unbearable, leaving her no real choice but to quit.

The regulator didn’t buy it. BDO raised performance issues, put her on a warning and improvement plan, and required more in office work. That was allowed. The ruling also noted she accessed a partner’s emails without permission, which hurt her case. Bottom line: she resigned voluntarily, so the claim was thrown out.

Source: Accountants Daily

🍿 What’s poppin in accounting

Open Enrollment Is Changing This Year

If your benefits feel more confusing this year, you are not imagining it. A law called SECURE 2.0 is starting to kick in.

The biggest change is automatic 401k enrollment. New 401k plans now have to sign employees up by default. If you do nothing, you are in the plan and saving for retirement. That alone will push a lot more people to save. There are also a few new perks. You can take out up to $1,000 for emergencies without penalties.

Employers can help you save for retirement even if you are paying off student loans. And new Trump Accounts let parents start investing for kids early with help from the government.

Source: Ledger Lowdown 

🕵️‍♂️ The Audit

Are you an outlier or the industry standard? Vote in our new weekly pulse check, and we’ll share the results next issue.

Last poll results:

67% of you are hoarding bad apples. Don't overthink it. Draft one email today. Send it to the 3 worst clients on your list. Your blood pressure will drop immediately, and your bank account won't even notice.

New Poll ⬇️

 🤝 Partner Spotlight

Payroll for Busy Owners

Payroll is one of those things that is annoying until it breaks. SurePayroll makes it simple. Run payroll in minutes, pay employees and contractors, and let taxes file automatically.

It costs about a dollar a day and saves hours every month. Built for small teams that want payroll handled without thinking about it.

Try SurePayroll

 📊 Weekly Trend Chart

America Only Agrees on One Christmas Movie

Most Americans say they’ll watch a Christmas movie this year. But when you ask which one they actually love, it’s not even close. Home Alone wins. About 56 percent of people who’ve seen it say they love it. It’s also the highest grossing Christmas movie ever at roughly $286 million.

The rest of the list is old. Really old. Charlie Brown, White Christmas, Die Hard. You don’t see a modern movie crack the top ten until one from 2023.

Hollywood keeps trying to make new Christmas classics. America keeps rewatching the same ones.

#😂 Meme of the Day

😂 Best ROI HANDS DOWN