What you describe is illegal: you *must* be paid for all work you did, and the employer may only deduct money from your wages with your consent or agreement (or as otherwise required by law, such as court-ordered wage garnishment), so the employer may not give you a "gift" then make you pay for it.It's unclear what you can do however, as a practical matter: if the employer will not voluntarily correct this, your only options are to sue for the $25 (hardly cost or time effective) or file a complant with the state department of labor--always a drastic act, to file a complaint vs. your employer, and the dept. may not even act on such a small amount. You may have to simply accept this as a practical matter, even though it was illegal.