What are some of the worst things that have happened at your job?

[grace0418]

Another thread got me thinking "Geez, I have a *LOT* of stories of wildly unprofessional and inappropriate behavior from the last 6+ years at my job." I shared a few on that thread but what are yours?


I'll get started with the short versions of some of mine:

1. Upper management openly mocking a recently fired coworker of mine for having Tourette's Syndrome AT THE DEPARTMENT HOLIDAY PARTY.

2. Two of my supervisors calling a coworker a "psycho bitch" to everyone in the department even though they had no proof of what they suspected her of doing.

3. Firing a woman who was 8 months pregnant and then attempting to cover their asses from litigation by telling everyone in the department what an awful job she was doing.

4. Attempting to fire a woman the DAY she got back from maternity leave but "graciously" waiting a month.

5. Firing a married couple who had just bought a house and were expecting their first child. The husband was simply fired because they figured he'd be mad that his wife was fired.

6. Making everyone work through lunch on 9/11/2001 because a bunch of things needed to be overnighted to our client's HQ in lower Manhattan. See if you can count how many things are wrong with that sentence.

7. Refusing to cancel a department dinner on 9/11/2001 even though everyone just wanted to be home with their families. And at the time, living in a huge metropolis, we had *no* idea what was going to happen next or whether we were going to be attacked at any minute. We were threatened with losing our jobs if we didn't attend.


Okay, now your turn...

[BOSSHOG]

1. About 25 years ago

A Sailor I was stationed with got a less then favorable performance review (eval.) He went out in the parking and shot himself in th head next to his car. Rather traumatic period for all hands.

[wildhorses]

7. holy fuckaroli

:wow:

[BOSSHOG]

11. It was a sad Catch-22

He had a lot of little nagging things going on off work that he was attempting to cope with but it did affect his performance at work. One piece of paper pushed him over the edge.

[Maine-ah]

101. I think you said that perfectly.

holy fuckaroli, second that.

[grace0418]

15. That's awful!

I'm sorry to hear that.

[raccoon]

2. Boy, that list makes me feel like I'm working for a passel of saints. nt

[grace0418]

16. I was hoping people had similar stories and

could make me feel a little better about staying her as long as I have. LOL! Seeing them all strung together like that really drove the point home that I need to leave this place.

[raccoon]

104. Let me hasten to add, it has not always been the case that I've been

working with sane people.

I can't think of anything really crazy right now, however.

[formerrepuke]

3. I am 'volunteered' to help out at another branch. The guy from that branch that I'm

supposed to help out gets killed in a car accident on his way in to work. Everybody's fuming that he's already been replaced "even before his family has been notified." I quietly try to get some work done while everyone gives me the evil eye.. like I had anything to do with what happened.

[grace0418]

21. How uncomfortable. Those people shouldn't have treated you that way.

Like you said, it wasn't your fault. Although I think the management decision to replace the guy so quickly was a poor one. It sends the message that getting the work done is more important than anything else, even the death of a coworker. Again, not your fault, but I can see why they were upset. They just shouldn't have taken it out on you.

[sniffa]

4. getting feLt up constantLy by one the vendors

thank goodness, he was a married, famiLy man and wouLd never do such a thing.

don't worry though - i was Laid off some time Later, and they didn't have to worry about that probLem anymore.

[grace0418]

28. Let me be the first to say...

huh? :)

[sniffa]

68. Let me expand

this was this guy who was the top vendor at the company i worked for at the time... before i met the guy, i was toLd as much, and basicaLLy impressed upon my 18 yo seLf that i was to kiss his ass, work hard, yadda, yadda, yadda.

i was tipped off by my new coworker (the guy training me, as i was going to be the 2nd shift on his job) that this guy was reaLLy weird.

anyhow, the first time i met the man he snuck behind me whiLe was instaLLing a cLothes rack high on the waLL (if you don't know yet, i was part-time stock boy when i first attended coLLege) and he sLapped his hands under my armpits and begin to "massage" my pecs (or tweek my nippLes, whatever) and beLted out, "yeah!! ya reaLLy feeL the muscLe strain here when you're hoLding that up!"

i didn't know what to think, and i didn't initiaLLy piece that together with what my new coworker tipped off on, so i just went about my business Like that didn't happen.

then, pretty much every time we worked together (or even on the same day at the company in different areas) he had to "scoot by me" or "massage me because i Look tense" or "whack me on the ass but Let it Linger and grope because i'm doing such a good job" or...

yeah, i have a horror stories of work, but i don't bother posting them since this one wiLL be hard to top.

[Initech]

5. Man, sounds like you work for a bunch of psychos...

:yoiks:

The worst that's happened at my job is that I've had to buy my own supplies (like the computer I'm currently using) but that's about it.

[grace0418]

17. I do. But I still think it's pretty bad that you had to buy your own computer.

And employer should provide you with the tools to do your job unless you're a contractor or something.

[Initech]

54. They keep giving me all the shitty, outdated systems.

I was using a seven year old Celeron 667 MHz that could barely run Windows XP, let alone Architectural Desktop 2004. They were going to give me another system, but that one was also on its way out. So basically I had no choice. I only spent $1200 (built it myself) on it so it wasn't like it was a drop in the bucket or anything.

[Connonym]

6. Don't get me started!

I wasn't allowed to have bottled water at my side when I was pregnant (I won the greivance right before my daughter's 1st birthday)

The ventilation system intake was above a train station and we frequently had diesel fumes. Even AFTER I had been hospitalized for three days with a very severe asthma attack (and got Workman's Comp for it) they refused to fix the problem and refused to let me work in another area of the building.

Someone shot and killed a couple coworkers and then himself.

Guess where I used to work.

[grace0418]

14. OMG! Don't tell me the post office!

That's awful!

What was the logic behind not letting you have a water bottle? I don't get it. Especially a pregnant woman.

Your ventilation system story reminds me of another one from my office. One summer they decided to tar the roof of the building (it's a huge one-story building). The roof was in such bad shape that hot tar was actually leaking into the building and dripping all over the place. I had some on my desk and some dripped about 3 inches from me while I was standing at the copier. Aside from the danger of third degree burns the fumes were horrendous. I was nauseous the entire time. But did they close the building and/or send people home? Nah...

[Connonym]

33. Yeah the PO

I resigned following the asthma incident.

[Omphaloskepsis]

8. Long story short...

I walk into work... I had been on vacation and went there first to check the schedule.

Celeste says, "call your sister, it is urgent."

I pick up the phone and start dialing.

Celeste says while I dial, "She wanted to tell you your grandpa is dead."



I would have liked to get this info from my sister.

[AllegroRondo]

10. Reminds me of one I saw years ago

at an Army unit, one soldier was informed that his father had died, via a message posted on the Company bulletin board.

[grace0418]

26. How tactless!

What was the point of that?

[Rabrrrrrr]

9. The North Tower of the World Trade Center falling into our offices

at 3 World Financial.

There are those who experienced worst than me on their job, but not many.

And all the other bad days on my job - not even worth considering any more. Gonna take a hell of a bad day to get me to complain any more (especially now that I'm self-employed, since it would be bitchin' against myself :-))

[kwassa]

18. Were you in the offices at the time????

What happened? Did the windows blow in???

[Rabrrrrrr]

81. No, I was outside, thankfully. The North Tower took a corner out of the building

from about the 5th floor up to the 20th floor. One of my workmates had a corner office there on the seventh floor - his office was totally removed. Thankfully, none of us were there. I was across the street when the south tower fell, and then about 20 blocks north when the north tower came down.

The World Financial Center buildings were all back in business by about the new year or early January, except my building - that didn't reopen until the following August because of the damage to the corner, but also all the internal damage - asbestos especially - it caused. Every floor had to be totally emptied of everything. Most of us got almost nothing back from our desks because of a) theft and b) being covered in asbestos (shoes, paper, clothing, anything porous was not legally allowed to be returned to us, but had to be destroyed). I lost a lot of sentimental pictures from my desk that were given to me by people over the years, and for which I have no duplicates, nor any way to get copies of them. That's the worst of that day - a lot of pictures of me and people I've encountered over the years.

So, yes, the windows did blow in - they generally do when the walls crumble and cave in from being hit with a few hundred tons of i-beams, concrete, and other crap falling a thousand feet. :-)

[grace0418]

20. Holy crap!

Well that's a different animal altogether but I can see why you feel nothing would compare to that! I'm glad you're hear to tell the story. :hug:

And I hear that boss of yours is pretty nice so nothing to complain about anyway. ;)

[mentalsolstice]

65. I can't even comprehend that!?

:hug:

[Magrittes Pipe]

12. Dude dropped dead of a heart attack at his fucking desk.

[grace0418]

22. That's bad.

Were you there when it happened? That would be terrifying.

[JackBeck]

13. My boss threatened to stab me.

She was the nutjob owner of the first bar I worked at.

[grace0418]

23. Jesus H! Nutjob doesn't do it justice.

How long did you work there after that?

[JackBeck]

25. A few months. They were terrible owners.

But it was the only GLBT bar around, so it was like our communal living room. I started the mass exodus, and eventually, a couple of our regulars opened a GLBT bar across the street and hired all of us.

[grace0418]

30. It's awfully satisfying to start a mass exodus.

I did that from a frame shop where I worked. Four people left days after I did.

[LostinVA]

60. I did that, too

Half the staff left within one month after I left as management at a big box bookstore. I was the only pro-labor manager. I always fought Corporate on their illegal -- and immoral and unethical -- labor practices.

[Starbucks Anarchist]

19. Got laid off while on vacation.

At another place, my bosses were psycho and played favorites with other people, even though I was a good worker.

[grace0418]

24. Did you post about that here? I feel like I remember reading about it.

Yeah, the playing favorites thing is just total bullshit. It's totally the way everything works here, no matter how hard you work or how talented you are.

[Starbucks Anarchist]

Yep, I did.

I'm still pissed off about it, and it was two years ago.

The asshole also "hired" his mail-order Russian bride (seriously) but let me go.

[grace0418]

38. I don't blame you for still being pissed off.

That's an incredibly shitty thing to do.

[Starbucks Anarchist]

42. And I didn't even find out till I got back, 2 weeks later.

Which would have given me time to look for other jobs instead of coming back totally screwed.

They also kept on one person who constantly messed up, and who had the IQ of a toaster, but went easy on him because "he was getting married."

:wtf:

I would have cursed the shit out of my boss over the phone, except I needed his recommendation letter -- and he would have been scared shitless, because I'm normally a very easygoing guy, but when I'm fucked over like that, I get REALLY pissed.

[mentalsolstice]

67. But, but, but...

I know you were better looking than the Russian bride!

(please don't flame, just having fun with SA about his stunning good looks!)

[Starbucks Anarchist]

72. Ha!

:rofl: :hi:

[mentalsolstice]

76. Maybe your sup...

was tired of having to dig out his sunglasses every time he had to interact with you! :loveya:

[Starbucks Anarchist]

77. ...

:blush:

[LostinVA]

63. OMFG -- that's horrible!

[Starbucks Anarchist]

73. Indeed.

[grace0418]

87. I had a coworker get a call from our boss when *the boss* was on vacation in order

to fire her. Not only that, she was a childhood friend of his and he fired her on Christmas Eve. Talk about cold. Like it couldn't have waited a few days until after the holidays. He was an evil bastard, that one. I no longer work at that company (I eventually got fired as well) but things haven't faired so well for me since then either, I guess.

[Jimbo S]

27. Man killed in an explosion

One or two other ocassions where a man is carted off not to return.

[grace0418]

37. What do you do?

Is it dangerous?

[Jimbo S]

48. Going on 17 years in the foundry business.

Molten metal
Band saws
Heavy machinery

We consider it working in a minefield. Just keep your head out of your ass and you'll be OK.

[grace0418]

88. Oh well that makes a bit more sense then.

Although it still is horrible to experience such things. :hug:

[Zavulon]

29. Was it my thread that started this one?

Well, anyway...

I've got nothing to compare to some of what I've read here so far.

1.) This is just a personal one, but it still angers me no end: several years ago I worked Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, New Year's Eve and New Year's Day off. My apologetic boss promised me the day off the Monday after the Super Bowl to make up for all that, and then called me at 6:00 a.m. and said I'd have to come in after all. I hung up on him, unplugged the phone, went back to sleep and quit the next day.

2.) This doesn't sound too bad, but it is: last year we had some motivational speaker come in to give us all a pep talk, and this guy doesn't just preach - he sings. You know, seven minutes of blab and then three minutes of clap / shout / act like an unimaginable ass singing, and then you repeat that cycle about eight or nine more times. It was truly agony. I know it pales in comparison with some of the worse stuff I've read here, but I've never suffered more on the job - that music was indescribably bad. I faked having to go to the bathroom about ten minutes into this fucking hell and just left.

3.) Every time there's bad weather and / or school closings, people bring their goddamned demon children into the office so as to save on day care and my boss does NOTHING. :mad:

[grace0418]

34. Yes, your thread did it.

I know your second story must've been awful, but hearing it retold is hilariously funny. It totally sounds like something out of the Office. Sorry to laugh at your pain and all. :)

And don't feel bad because your stories don't compare to some of the stuff here. I should've been more clear in my OP that I meant people should post about bad things that happened at work because of the bad behavior/decisions of bosses and coworkers. Clearly nothing is going to compare to someone dropping dead or the building collapsing. That was my fault though. I didn't realize that until it was too late to edit.

[Zavulon]

43. Oh, then you'll like this one.

We just introduced a recycling program which features "multi-ports" and "mini-bins." The mini-bin is for your desk, and it holds 32 ounces - one liquid quart, or less than three cans of soda. Our garbage cans are no longer emptied by custodians, they were all confiscated - we now use these laughable little plastic cans (complete with stupid little lid and tiny, tiny liner bags) only.

At this point you might be thinking "Um, that's not a bad idea, people throw out recyclable stuff all the time, this would encourage them to be more careful." Correct, and in fact that is the stated goal of the project, but:

a.) These mini-bins look so comical that the office can't stop joking about them. When the whole office thinks every desk looks like a laughingstock, it's not good and it does cut down on production because nobody can keep a straight face looking at the fucking thing (much less using it to store any garbage)

b.) With a stupid little slogan on the side of the mini-bin (here's the case-sensitive version: "This is all the GARBAGE I make!") people feel even dumber.

c.) While I was writing "b.)," someone walked up and joked about the mini-bin with me, providing a good example of what the office has turned into: "Hey, Bud, I just broke this lead off my pencil and I have no room left in my garbage to store it. Can you help me out?" Then we both cracked up.

d.) Enter the "multi-ports," large structures with three slots: one for large garbage, one for paper recyclables and one for plastic recyclables. There are about five of them on the floor, so instead of just throwing out stuff at our desks we have to walk halfway across the floor. This makes everyone LESS inclined to sort of recyclables, not more.

e.) Finally, one of the multi-ports is really to my desk and that the smell of everyone's combined garbage can be enjoyed by everyone in a 50-foot radius. Before this stupid fucking program, everyone handled their own garbage and it didn't combine into a delightful combo platter for all of us to lose our appetites to.

If you could see these mini-bins, you'd wet yourself laughing. The only problem is that the mini-bin could never hold even a moderate-sized piss.

[grace0418]

89. Good grief. That sounds ridiculous.

At my office we all have blue recycling bins in our cubicles. Until you work late and realize that the cleaning staff throws it all in the same garbage anyway. We've complained to management about this multiple times but they don't give a rat's ass.

[edbermac]

31. Why are you still working for the RNC?

:rofl:

[grace0418]

35. I can see where you'd think that.

It's especially weird because I work with a bunch of artists. Even my three direct supervisors are artists, so you think they'd be a little more open minded and understanding. But one of them is even a Republican! It blows my mind.

[EFerrari]

32. Being threatened with firing if I left my shift when my son was

attacked by two dogs and needed surgery.

Being hit on by my boss when I was early 20s and he was twice my age, married and had all the power. Make that, bosses.

Being in an elevator that fell 15 floors, kicked in at the last moment and having to go back up 17 floors to translate in Federal court.

Being in City Hall the day Mayor Moscone and Harvey Milk were murdered.

[grace0418]

36. Did you go anyway (to be with your son)? Did you get fired?

That's awful. And the elevator thing-OMG! I think I wouldn't have been able to stay at work because I would've had to change my pants!

[EFerrari]

40. I couldn't go. I needed that job (Thanks, Ma Bell). My mom went

instead of me and to this day, I regret not telling those asshole to fuck off and die.

And, you can be jailed for failing to show up to Federal court. There were about 10 of us and all pale, we just went right back up. :scared:

[grace0418]

90. You did what you felt you had to do. Luckily your mom was able to help.

Would they really jail you if something like that happened? That's nutty!

[EFerrari]

106. We were at the mercy of Federal judges. They can have you

hauled off to jail for being late to a hearing, i.e., "in contempt".

[ThomCat]

44. Wow.

:hug:

[Oeditpus Rex]

39. Firing seven of us

who had the nerve to be over 40.

[grace0418]

91. Oh man, that's cold.

Was there any legal action taken?

[Oeditpus Rex]

95. Yeah

But it fell short of the desired results.

[Richardo]

41. I was working in the building where a guy killed 8 people in 1993.

7/1/93 - A 55-year-old mentally disturbed man with a grudge against lawyers opened fire in a law office, killing 8 people and then himself.

I was working on 16th floor (not for the law firm), below where the shooting occurred - but the SWAT team did not come to get us until 7pm that evening. Very scary - I looked out my office window and saw the EMT crews laying out stretchers and body bags on the street below.

[grace0418]

92. Holy moses, that's awful!

Did you have any idea what was going on at the time? That must've been terrifying!

:hug:

[Richardo]

100. Yes we did - people had radios, etc so we were listening to the news...

It wss horrifying - almost moreso for the spouses at home.

(I see I left the city out of my OP - this was downtown San Frnacisco)

[Yavin4]

45. Someone stole my stapler

I wasn't paid for weeks.

I had to move my desk downstairs to the storage closet.

I didn't get a piece of birthday cake.

[Initech]

56. Now Milton, don't be greedy, pass it around so everybody gets a piece!

:rofl:

[AwakeAtLast]

115. I foresee a tropical holiday in your future

:hi:

[Yavin4]

46. Someone stole my stapler

I wasn't paid for weeks.

I had to move my desk downstairs to the storage closet.

I didn't get a piece of birthday cake.

[Yavin4]

47. Someone stole my stapler

I wasn't paid for weeks.

I had to move my desk downstairs to the storage closet.

I didn't get a piece of birthday cake.

[Deep13]

57. Guess you'll have to burn down the building.

[trof]

49. Cargo door on 747 came open at 500' after take off.

It's about 10' X 12'.
This one:

Luckily we were slow enough that it didn't separate from the aircraft.
And possibly wipe out the left horizontal control surface. If it had, I wouldn't be here writing this.
Scared the shit out of us, to say the least.
Dumped 30 tons of fuel over the North Sea and returned to Schipol and landed with no incident.
An hour later we were on the way to Anchorage again.
One of my most memorable 'work' incidents.

[CottonBear]

51. Holy cow! You're lucky to be here!

:scared:

[trof]

52. You're telling me.

It was a door malfunction, not really anybody's fault.
We ( the crew) got a commendation and a big dinner celebration from the airline, Nippon Cargo.
Them 747s are EXPENSIVE.
They were pretty pleased that we brought their's back in one piece.

[mentalsolstice]

69. Yikes!!!! eom!

[Initech]

74. Holy crap!

:wow:

I bet that was some crazy shit when that happened!

[jakefrep]

50. One of our clients drove her car into the waiting room.

She pulled into a parking space, hit the gas by accident, and jumped the curb through the brick front wall of our building. She was unhurt, though badly shaken up. There was surprisingly little damage to the car - the airbags didn't even deploy.

[Ikonoklast]

53. When I was a department head, a newer employee

asked our supervisor if there was any chance that there would be any layoffs in the immediate future, as he was thinking of buying a house for his new wife and two little boys. Our super told him that in the thirty years the company had been in business, no one had ever beeen laid off (which was true), and not to worry.

Except that there were layoffs in the works, and he knew it. He was drawing up the list of those getting laid off.

Two weeks later I got the call from my boss to lay the guy off. I told the supervisor that he needed to come over and do it in person, as I wasn't about to get killed for his lying ass.

Just two months after going through a hard-fought union contract negotiation, the first one that included concessions across the board; in wages, vacation, health care, work rules, 'to keep the company viable and competitive', the owner was showing pictures of the new 42' Sea-Ray that he bought with the money we gave back.

He just couldn't understand why people were pissed at him.

[Courtesy Flush]

79. I got laid off on my birthday

But at least nobody bought a boat with the savings... as far as I know.

[guitar man]

55. I saw a man get killed

right next to me. I was working on a sandblast/paint crew doing maintenence work on offshore oil rigs. We were working underneath, the rig was "jacked up" in the shipyard. We had swinging scaffolding suspended by cables to work on, one of the cables on his section of scaffolding broke and he took a header into the steel crossmember about 80 feet below us, face first. That was 22 years ago and I will never forget it. :(

[BuelahWitch]

58. I was once written up

for not using the "company standard" cup that was issued where I worked. I didn't like it because the opening caused liquid to drip out, so I brought in one I had bought from school. My cup had a (local) college name and logo on it, nothing dirty, but apparently they wanted everyone's desktop to look the same. I also got written up because my pics of my kitty cats were not in company approved frames...
:eyes:

[LostinVA]

59. HR Head acting like working stiff during Labor investigation

The company was reported for not paying requited overtime, so they the Feds investigated. The HR Head was flown in to act like one of the regular employees -- used their name tag and everything, and LIED to the Labor Division investigator. I called up the woman the next day from my job and told her. She was shocked. She came back to reinterview, and asked everyone for photo IDs. The HR person escaped through the back door -- literally.

THEN, after all of us were rewarded backpay, Corporation launched an internal investigation to see who had done it so they could fire the person -- which is totally illegal. I was in management and trusted, so I was privy to certain memos (yes, they were dumb enough to put it into writing). I called the investigator again, scared I would lose my job. She called Corporate and threatened to call the newspapers. Corporate dropped it -- and, suspected a fellow manager of being the "snitch (their word) all three times.

However, boys and girls, I was the one who filed the initial complaint. Just because you call someone a manager doesn't mean they have to work without overtime.

[alarimer]

61. I once got stranded in a boat until about 2 am.

Dumbass I was with ignored the overheating warning and blew up the engine. So we had to wait for rescue. Of course the person I was with is well-known for doing whatever the hell he wants so it was no surprise. How this guy has kept his job, I'll never know. If I was his boss I would fire him.

[mentalsolstice]

62. Suicide attempts and murder

One place I worked at had three suicide attempts, on site. One was right before I was hired, the other two while I was there (and I witnessed one of them personally).

On another job, a couple of employees were murdered during my tenure (off site)...so hard to get that email!

Then I worked on domestic violence issues for a couple of years...so nearly every day saw some shit hitting the fan (pardon the pun, I didn't mean it to be funny)! I learned quickly why there is a high and fast burnout rate for shelter employees!

[mentalsolstice]

64. The EEOC

The EEOC may need to be looking at your office, as pregnancy and Tourettes are both disabilities...and pregnancy is also sex discrimination. Just sayin'!

[LostinVA]

66. Yup, I thought the same thing

[mentalsolstice]

71. Great minds think alike!

:hug:!

[LostinVA]

78. Agreed!

[Courtesy Flush]

70. My turn

When hurricanes are coming (we're on the Gulf Coast), we're not given time off to prepare our homes for the storm. Then, at a feel-good meeting afterward, management denied that they didn't let people go.

I work for CPS. At one time, we were told not to accept any anonymous child abuse reports, and to hang up if they didn't give their name (that didn't last long).

A group of administrators falsely accused a group of male workers of sexual harassment. The "victim" was pressured to claim she'd been offended. To her credit, she refused to lie for them. They continued to press the issue until attorneys were mentioned. Then it was never brought up again.

Once they had to meet for two hours to decide whether to hold a training session in the midst of a tropical storm. The training was for foster parents, not for employees. The storm killed several people in two states, but they didn't want it to get in the way of our "mission".

Don't get me started on the shit they do to the families we're supposed to serve, and the people who should have been fired, but were promoted instead.

[Courtesy Flush]

75. Almost forgot

I was ordered to investigate my next door neighbor for sexual abuse! That was so unethical, I can't begin to tell you! My boss wouldn't re-assign the case. I was an inexperienced worker at the time, and really bothered by the prospect of accusing my neighbor of abusing his grandchild. That was the most superficial investigation ever done.

[Pacifist Patriot]

80. I thought I had some, but after reading some of the responses...

My experiences pale in comparison.

[XemaSab]

82. My boss?

:shrug:

[rockymountaindem]

83. I've got you all beat, get a load of this shit....

Being the only person under the age of 30 in my place of employment at times, I was automatically tasked with lifting anything weighing over 25 pounds. I mean, come on!?!?! What a bunch of whimps those other slackers were, eh? Oh, and when the little kids would mess up the candy display I had to re-arrange it, but I couldn't yell at the kids because that would have been bad for business. Those little punks had chocolate-covered raisin bags and candy necklaces all over the frikkin' place and it was *my* responsibility to clean it all up. *That* was a nightmare, let me tell you.

:sarcasm:

I guess that just goes to show my lack of shocking employment-related experiences I've had in my 20-year-young life. Reading about all of your travails has me kind of worried about my upcoming graduation and moving closer to the "real world". Yikes! You've all got my respect. There sure are a lot of nutbars out there in the working world it seems.

[femmocrat]

84. Every time health care costs go up, they threaten to furlough all the

"last hired" teachers in each department. (I was furloughed in 2001!)

That is nothing compared to some of your experiences though. I have stopped complaining.

[AlCzervik]

85. The guy that worked in the cubicle next to mine died right there in his cubicle

i noticed he hadn't moved for a good while so i went over to ask him if he was ok and when i touched his shoulder his head went face down on his desk. Turns out he had a heart attack, a very fast quiet one.

[grace0418]

108. Geezuz! I'm sorry you had to be the one to discover that!

:hug:

[achtung_circus]

86. Attacked with a hunting knife.

The cop I was with was wearing coveralls OVER his duty belt, the dumbass, and couldn't get to his gear. I clocked the guy with a Maglight, slowed him down while the cop pulled pepper spray. The guy walked through the pepper spray. Time to run, you can always come back.

It took me 18 hours to get to sleep after that particular adrenaline rush.

[Ptah]

93. Just last week:

And then on his way home for lunch, riding his motorbike, he died.

[Godhumor]

94. On my first day of student teaching...

I just started at a local high school, was still meeting people, trying to get settled in...well, an email arrived about 20 minutes after the first bell announcing one of our students had been killed in a drug deal. That was not a fun way to start a placement.

This year, one of our student's died in a snowmobile accident over winter break, last year I had a number of students get brothers or sisters gunned down in gang fights (I worked in DC last year) and one of my students died in a pedestrian hit & run.

I've only taught for 6 years, but this kind of stuff leaves impressions.

[QMPMom]

96. I was working in a busy Family Practice medical office as an

RN. The Dr. had just finished using liquid nitrogen to remove some warts off a patient. I was at my desk phoning a patient and informing her that the Dr. had ordered a medication for her and that it could be picked up at the pharmacy.

For patients that could not pay, this Dr. had a barter system. One lady could not pay but worked out with the Dr. to clean the office. She was cleaning the exam room and moved the thermos from the safe place we always kept it and sat it on a Mayo stand. While she was cleaning she bumped the stand and knocked it off.

Liquid Nitrogen is highly explosive and when the thermos hit the floor it exploded and blew through the wall, travelled across the hall and hit the other wall and ricocheted off that wall and landed behind my desk chair. I started screaming and slammed down the phone because I thought the Autoclave had exploded (I was sterilizing surgical instruments in the same exam room where the liquid nitrogen was.). The Dr. came running out of his private office and the secretary was huddled in the corner behind the photocopier.

The exam room was thoroughly black and we had to get in professionals to clean the place and carpenters to repair the wall. The Dr. picked up the thermos and told me to take it back to Sears because it had a warranty to be indestructible. I looked at him and said, "They meant indestuctable under normal use, not when it's blown to bits by explosive materials. And, from now on, I want hazard pay."

We looked all over the office and never did find the cleaning lady. We *did* find the back door open where she had sneaked out after the explosion!

I put the thermos in the truck of my car and carried the damn thing around for a week (the amount of time the office had to be closed for repairs and cleaning) and then told the Dr. that Sears wouldn't take back the thermos.

[idgiehkt]

98. that is hysterical!!

:rofl: :rofl: :rofl:

I'd loved to have seen that, lol.

I worked in a lab that did parasitology and needless to say they handled stool samples. These little vials sometimes would have gases build up in them and would explode upon being taken out of the box...usually the *contents* flew straight up and hit the ceiling and then rained down. Luckily it didn't happen that often but it was plenty gross when it did. :(

[QMPMom]

113. Ewwww! Uck and yuck! LOL!

From same Dr's. office: Since this office was in a small town, the labs in the city would make rounds every day to pick up the specimens we had collected during the day. One day they were running laet and wouldn't be able to get to the office before we closed. The person doing the pick up that day was my best friend's sister and she said that if I'd take the specimens home with me she'd stop by the house and get them. That was fine with me, the Dr. and the Lab, so I took the specimens home and plunked them in the fridge for the hour it would take for Paula to get there. Now, they also delivered the lab supplies we needed when they picked up specimens, so, Paula brought the replacement supplies and gave them to me. One of the items was culture plates. For Gonorrhea. I thought my mother was going to have a stroke when she found out what was in the fridge waiting for me to take them to work the next day - and that was just the unused culture plates. God knows what might have happened had she known what was in the vials and on the petri dishes that I gave to Paula to take to the lab with her!

[BikeWriter]

97. VietNam

[Ind4now]

102. Yea,

I think you got everyone beat!

[BikeWriter]

112. When I got back, they shipped me to a remote site in Alaska...

for a year.

[enigmatic]

99. Two deaths

I was 18 and waiting on tables for 9 days when elderly sisters (who were regular customers) came in and I got them. They both ordered and and I had gotten their meals and went to get a pitcher to refill their water. As I was walking back I heard a shriek, and when I got to their table one of the sisters was having a heart attack and fell face first into her meal. She went pretty quickly and died there at the restaurant; when the sister was told that her sister didn't make it, she fainted and another ambulance had to be called. It was a Friday night, so I went to my best friend's house and got smashed off my ass on Mickey's Malt Liquor and listened to Pere Ubu...

About 10 years later I was a manager at another restaurant on a busy Saturday afternoon; I left my shift w/ the dishwasher that day and said goodbye as he hopped into his car and I got into my girlfriend's car. My girlfriend and I went to her place and after a few hours I turned on the TV to see a live TV news crew at the front of the dishwasher's house. He had gotten into an altercation w/ a couple of people and shot a guy; he barricaded himself inside his house w/ his mom and girlfriend. He let both leave after an hour, then shot himself. I had to call the Chef and he broke it to the workers at the restaurant. That was a surreal night.

[slj0101]

103. I wasn't there to see it,

but one of the cooks sawed off a finger while grinding cabbage for cole slaw. A piece of cabbage was stuck in the hopper, and Einstein picked it out while the machine was still running. :eyes:

[Ind4now]

105. Wow, lets see...

I get spit on, yelled and cussed at, and threatened with my life.

I have to wrestle drunk hepatitis positive a$$ hole white trash who just beat the crap out of their wives because she didn't microwave their TV dinner fast enough.

I go into cockroach infested apartments and trailers to calm down shit head's 15 year old problems (their kids) because they are too busy getting drunk to care for their children. OR I get to run those 15 year old problems down after they just trashed a dozen mailboxes with base ball bats.

I get to be told that a technicality of the up most stupidity ruins my 4 and a half hours of work, rendering it literally useless.

Oh, and the other day I got to respond to a one year old that was not conscious nor breathing. It was the highlight of my night getting to walk in on the mother kneeling down crying over her son who has obviously been dead for several hours. (sarcasm!!!)

However, even with that I must say I have the best job in the world.

[kwassa]

107. 25 years ago in the movie business ...

those this pales compared to other stories here ....

I was working in a old run-down studio in Hollywood as a lighting technician on a movie. The place was huge, and we were up on catwalks about 90 feet above the floor hanging lights. The studio was in disrepair, and there were boards missing in the wooden catwalks, and chunks of railing missing, and worklights that were out. Now, I had done a lot of work on location shoots up to this point, but never in a big studio.

What I discovered was that some of the technicians were expected to walk out on the 2 x 12 beams between catwalks to hang lights. Like actual cats, or something, but holding big, awkward heavy lights. The size of the openings between beams was known as "ozones", or how much air space between beams. These had a grid of beams about 12 ' X 12'. So, if you fall, you fall. A long ways.

I knew that if I was asked to do this, I would instantly quit, but this is the way the old-time gaffers used to do it in the heydey of the studio system. This was my first and last encounter. Someone else in the crew in his macho manner volunteered, and smoked a little dope, and did fine walking out there.

Someone else later threw a line out to hang a light on, and in the process knocked a fire extinguisher off it's holder. The extinguisher fell 90 feet to the floor, hit a guy in the leg, and gave him a compound fracture with the bone sticking out of his leg. If it had hit him in the head he would have been killed.

This was not the reason I left the business, but it did make me seriously reconsider the future in this line of work.

[grace0418]

109. Criminy! If I was in that position I would be really pissed that some no-talent

jerk like Tom Cruise is making $20M and the studio can't spare funds to make it a reasonably safe environment.

[Tyler Durden]

110. Got fired by certified letter while on disability with my whole arm in a cast.

[Wcross]

111. Woman lost her leg, her dad works there-tried to make him get back to work.

This woman was driving a tow motor, it hit a bent pole and flipped over crushing her leg. Her father worked in a nearby department and actually helped get the tow motor off her leg. After they loaded her into the ambulance his supervisor told him to "get back to work". The father was going to go to the hospital with his daughter. The supervisor told him that he was going to be written up for walking off the job if he left the plant. He left but nothing was said or done about it.

Two maintenance guys were working on a press. They needed it "live" in order to test the operation. It moved and broke one guys leg. The head of safety and security walks up while the guy is on the ground and yells at him "Your fired"! He did nothing wrong and came back after he healed up.

We have also had three fatalities from accidents but management didn't threaten to fire any of those people.

[CabalPowered]

114. Laying people off is the hardest thing I've ever done.

It sucked. Bad. No eloquent way to put it.

[1gobluedem]

116. DJ refused to run NPR newscasts; told listeners to watch FOX News

When the 'war' started we made the decision to add NPR newscasts to the top of each hour in all programs including music,for duration of the conflict, instead of going to wall to wall news coverage. All hosts were notified. This guy went on the air, told his audience that nobody could tell him what to do, refused to run the NPR casts and told his audience that NPR didn't know what was going on and to watch FOX news for 'the real story.'

We tell host to run casts, he refuses; says if we put them in his show he'll do the same thing. We fire host for insubordination, he spins story that he was fired for being pro-war and pro-Bush. FOX picks up story, host ends up on O'Reilly Factor, we get hate mail from right wing, fundamentalist, 'patriot' wackos from all over the country. All this in two weeks leading up to the pledge drive during which the host takes out a quarter page ad telling people not to donate to us.