I’m going to go ahead and disagree with just about everyone in this thread.
Management should be told, but not asked to do anything about it. They need to be made aware that an employee has engaged in potentially abusive behavior toward another employee. I am assuming that the co-worker approached your friend on company time, and on company property.
Management does have an interest in preserving morale and cohesion amongst employees, and knowing that one employee has screwed another out of money could be helpful for managers to take into account if they notice people suddenly becoming uncooperative with that particular co-worker.
Again, I am not saying you shoudl ask mangement to be your debt collector, but informing them so they can watch for signs in other people might be helpful.
Agree with all those saying it’s silly to drag management into a personal affair like this.
Disagree that you (well, your friend) should just let it go, because it’s only $20. 20 dollars is 20 dollars! Get it back, sob stories notwithstanding. I had to fight it out pretty ruthlessly once for about $8.72 (this was w/ a company, not an individual, but the principal remains).
The point was not that the friend doesn’t deserve the money. But eventually, a determination has to be made as to whether the effort involved in pursuing the debt has far surpassed the actual monetary value involved. Not to mention the loss of dignity in such a pursuit.
If there’s truly someone who’s doing it again - and I don’t see any reason why it wouldn’t be office hubbub - then yes. Otherwise, management is going to do nothing. As a manager, this is not my problem. If you choose to engage in at-work loans, romances, or other poorly advised activities, it’s really none of my concern unless the person is being manipulative and begging for cash.
Employees ask me for medicine, change, food, etc. all the time. I just say “no” for the most part, and anything else I consider a gift.