Note to staff: One Direction breaking up is NOT a valid reason to call in sick.
15 Outrageous True Stories of Dumb Employees
Updated on Dec. 05, 2022
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Needed: Someone who will answer the phone like a normal person
New York City’s Department of Health may have a job opening soon if one of its employees doesn’t stop screwing around. It seems that management does not care for the fact that the twice-suspended help-line operator keeps answering IT calls by talking like a robot. —New York. These are the most ridiculous excuses people actually used to get out of work.
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Can you pass a simple test?
An Egyptian bus driver had an ingenious plan to beat a mandatory drug test: He used his wife’s urine. Nevertheless, he failed the test. He found out when his boss handed him the results and reportedly said, “Congratulations; you’re pregnant.” —BBC News
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Looking for a house sitter who will actually watch the house
A San Francisco couple got quite the surprise when they returned home from the Burning Man Festival last September—the house sitter they’d hired had rented out their apartment on Airbnb. —seattlepi.com
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Have a pulse? You’re hired!
The city of New York had trouble with another employee. This one, his bosses claimed, abandoned his job when he missed 18 months of work. An administrative law judge even recommended firing the slacker when he didn’t bother to show up for his hearing. Turns out, the employee would have loved to have gone to work—even to the hearing—save for one small detail: He was dead. —rawstory.com.
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Wanted: A Frank Sinatra fan
When singer Zayn Malik quit the British boy band One Direction last year, young women were inconsolable. How upset? An employment firm reports that companies were inundated with requests from female employees for time off while they recovered from the devastating news. —telegraph.co.uk
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Probably shouldn’t admit that
“I falsified my résumé. Now that I’m working here, can I change it?” —workforce.com
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Most employees do
“Can my supervisor require me to have specific working hours?” —workforce.com. Check out the stories of the dumbest criminals ever.
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You can’t avoid the IRS
“Can I have my salary deferred until next year so I don’t have to pay taxes this year? I don’t need the money this year. “—workforce.com
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You can’t make this stuff up
“Will you give me a raise if I stop smoking marijuana?” —workforce.com. Read up on these funny jokes to diffuse any awkward work situation.
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That’s a little too casual
“Can I wear a swimsuit and towel on casual day?” —workforce.com
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How long ago did they pass?
“Since my mother and father both died before I came to work at this company, will I be credited for bereavement leave I didn’t have to take?” —workforce.com
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How much power does my supervisor have over me?
“Every day my supervisor tells me to stop chatting and get back to work. Can he do that?” —workforce.com. Check out these ridiculous requests shoppers have actually made in stores.
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He’ll look like the worst employee
I’m a teacher, so I have a million stupid rules I have to follow. But the worst one is that my performance evaluation is based on student improvement on a statewide literacy test. I teach wood shop.
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Very professional, HR
At my old job, HR held a meeting to tell us that there was too much swearing on the sales floor. Someone pointed out that swearing is very common in our industry and that is the way that our customers speak. HR later sent out a memo explaining that swearing should be limited to conversations with clients.
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0 problems
My workplace doesn’t let you use the word “problems.” Instead, we have to say “challenges” if something is wrong. —reddit.com. Next, take a look at these funny work cartoons to help you get through the week.
Originally Published in Reader's Digest
