Bank fees for fun and profit

Okay, sorry about the title. It's perhaps a little misleading but still describes my mood. So, last friday my contracting company screwed up with payroll and I didn't receive my direct deposit. After calling, I was able to find out that it was a company wide problem but they'd have my money in my account by 2pm. Sure enough, it was there by 2pm. Since the extra few hours didn't hurt me any, I thought nothing of it.

Fast forward to either Tuesday or Wednesday this week. I notice a $15 fee on my account labeled "general fee". I found it odd, but I do let my GF withdrawal money from an ATM in Canada sometimes, and that is where most of my fees come from. I figured maybe I'd passed some maximum ATM withdrawal monthly limit or something. Anyway, so I called the bank on Thursday and asked about the fee. Turns out it was because the deposit from my company was done as a wire transfer from their brokerage account.

I talked to the CS rep for the bank and told her that it was my direct deposit and that the mistake was with my company, not me. I'd been a customer for almost 10 years and I already pay them enough in fees. In short, I didn't want to pay for my company's screwup. The CS rep said she'd refund my $15. Excellent.

So then I mention the fee to one of my coworkers who contracts with the same company. He actually had called our company and said something about the free. Apparently our company realized the screwup and was going to give everyone a $15 direct deposit to make up for the fees. I checked my account this morning, and to my wonderment I have an extra $15! Pretty cool, huh? I'm sure I'll have to pay taxes on it, but it's money I didn't have ;)