I am working part time, my job is paying me full time, I need help

Yes, but YOU cashed the checks. Knowingly cashing the checks for 5 months can be considered embelzzelment. What you should have done was immediatly return the first check to payroll and demand a corrected one. At this point, you should feel lucky all they are doing is making you pay it back, they could take you to court, and you would have quiet a fight on your hands because you continued to cash the checks knowing they were overpaying you.

Do you have the money in your checking account that you could return to them?

You did know it wasn't your money, so yeah I imagine that they can. You could probably fight it, but you would need a good laywer.

Your right it is your works mistake you made them aware of it and they never took care of it. although I would not of waited five months before doing something. You could of also took that extra money you were recieving and put it back so when it was straighten out you could give it back. I would think that they would just of took out so much from each check until it was paid. It is selfish on their part to think that you should be completely responiable for their mistake. You need a check what do they think your are going to live on. I would go to my boss and try to talk to them and see if it is an option to have so much taken out of your check instead of the total amount. It sounds like you owe alot considering you are having to work 6 months with out pay,exspecially when it was five months they over paid you and even then I don't know how the extra money an hour you made would of exceeded to six months of full time pay. If they do not work with you you can always check with the labor board and see if what their doing is legal and if you are responiable to pay them back for their mistake. If you find out that they can then you have a decition to make you can continue to work without pay or quit your job and get another and pay them what you can afford within reason to pay them off. Your working to make a living what are they thinking. I wish you luck.