Buy licensed employees
Apr. 24th, 2021 11:49 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
schneefinkCon.txt is online again this year (June 26-27), and panel voting is open.
One of the options is "Werewolf Torts and Undead Annuities Vol. 4". I looked at my notes from last year, which included "A question in chat that I was very sad they didn't get around to: if I control my employees with a geas, would it be GAAP-compliant to activate them as assets?" And it occurred to me that while I know nothing about US-GAAP, I do work on financial reports myself, so I can try to make an educated guess at the answer according to the Austrian financial reporting standards of the UGB.
First, to clarify for those for whom it means something, I'm talking about GmbHs here (companies with limited liability) and the laws pertaining to them, because that's what I have the most experience with.
Secondly, we should probably clarify what kind of geas, because afaik they often only pertain to one specific thing, or a couple of specific things. I assumed the question was about a more general magical binding that would give you a greater amount of control over your employees. Not make them slaves (that would be a different question), but something that e.g. ensures their loyalty. It could also force them to keep to certain work hours, maybe eliminate distractions, force them to work for less pay etc. I assume you'd only bother with a geas if it gives your company some kind of actual benefit (or if it's "tradition" or it's about showing off – okay yeah that's a weak assumption.) It doesn't really make a difference in this instance under UGB as far as I'm aware; I think it does under IFRS (International Financial Reporting Standards) but I know very little about that.
In short, my best guess is that while you would not be allowed to activate your employees as assets, you would be allowed to activate the geas itself, similarly to a license. This comes with the additional complication that a license is an intangible asset, and under Austrian law you are not allowed to activate intangible assets that you created yourself. If you hire someone else to put a geas on your existing employees, my guess is that that still counts as having been created by the company itself, but tbh that's not my specialty and the details would probably have to be determined by the courts. And what if you sell the company? Depending on the kind of deal, if you "buy" empoyees under geas those can then be activated. (I bet there'd be rules about what's tax deductible.)
Additionally, the labor law aspects of employees under geas would be a nightmare.
Disclaimer, I'm still a trainee and I did not actually look up anything, I was justprocrastinating having fun. I'd love to hear more thoughts/perspectives from different financial reporting standards ^^
One of the options is "Werewolf Torts and Undead Annuities Vol. 4". I looked at my notes from last year, which included "A question in chat that I was very sad they didn't get around to: if I control my employees with a geas, would it be GAAP-compliant to activate them as assets?" And it occurred to me that while I know nothing about US-GAAP, I do work on financial reports myself, so I can try to make an educated guess at the answer according to the Austrian financial reporting standards of the UGB.
First, to clarify for those for whom it means something, I'm talking about GmbHs here (companies with limited liability) and the laws pertaining to them, because that's what I have the most experience with.
Secondly, we should probably clarify what kind of geas, because afaik they often only pertain to one specific thing, or a couple of specific things. I assumed the question was about a more general magical binding that would give you a greater amount of control over your employees. Not make them slaves (that would be a different question), but something that e.g. ensures their loyalty. It could also force them to keep to certain work hours, maybe eliminate distractions, force them to work for less pay etc. I assume you'd only bother with a geas if it gives your company some kind of actual benefit (or if it's "tradition" or it's about showing off – okay yeah that's a weak assumption.) It doesn't really make a difference in this instance under UGB as far as I'm aware; I think it does under IFRS (International Financial Reporting Standards) but I know very little about that.
In short, my best guess is that while you would not be allowed to activate your employees as assets, you would be allowed to activate the geas itself, similarly to a license. This comes with the additional complication that a license is an intangible asset, and under Austrian law you are not allowed to activate intangible assets that you created yourself. If you hire someone else to put a geas on your existing employees, my guess is that that still counts as having been created by the company itself, but tbh that's not my specialty and the details would probably have to be determined by the courts. And what if you sell the company? Depending on the kind of deal, if you "buy" empoyees under geas those can then be activated. (I bet there'd be rules about what's tax deductible.)
Additionally, the labor law aspects of employees under geas would be a nightmare.
Disclaimer, I'm still a trainee and I did not actually look up anything, I was just
