Article: State Farm Agents Fired Over Alleged Abuse of Matching-Contribution Program

When a fellow State Farm insurance agent called him with a request last fall, Paul Julian was glad to help out.

On the phone was Don Soukup, who explained that he wanted to make a donation to his alma mater, Wayne State College, and could increase it with Julian's help.

It was easy, Soukup said: He would send Julian a $1,000 check, and all Julian had to do was send the money on to the small Nebraska college as a donation under his own name. Their employer would then match the donation with another $1,000, the maximum available under State Farm's matching-contribution program. The idea blew up in the faces of Julian, Soukup and 52 other State Farm agents around the country who ...

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