How Do These People Keep Getting Hired?!

In my company, you can leave early on a Friday if you don’t take a lunch. I really like leaving early on a Friday; not only do I get more time at home, but I miss a load of traffic leaving early.

However, before I go, I have to fill out some reports. They must be done on a Friday or the weekend shift won’t know what to work on.

A new guy has started and it’s his job to pull the data together that I use to allocate the work. I’ve heard bad things about this guy, so I decide to chat with him early on.

Me: “Hey, [New Guy], are you working late this Friday?”

New Guy: “Nah, I’ll probably work through my lunch and leave early. You?”

Me: “Yeah, same. I have to do the weekend report before I go; I need the data from you for that. You know what to do with it?”

New Guy: “Yeah, easy. Come see me Friday and I will have it ready for you.”

Friday comes around. I go and find [New Guy]; he hasn’t done it yet but will “definitely have it by lunch.”

Lunchtime comes and he is not there. One of the guys tells me he went to lunch. Fair enough; he is entitled to a lunch break if he wants it.

At 12:30, no show. He should be back by now.

At 13:00, no show again. I need to leave soon if I want to get out on time. I put a note on his desk, send an email, and try his phone. Nothing.

At 13:30, I go again to find his PC off. One of the guys tells me he left early. 

I spend the next hour trying to piece together the data. I have no idea what I’m doing but manage to put something together.

I leave late and run straight into a massive traffic jam.

Saturday comes around and the weekend shift is angry. The data I got was wrong as many of the jobs [New Guy] was supposed to close down weren’t, meaning the jobs I assigned aren’t ready and they can’t start the next stage as the system won’t let them.

A dozen people lose overtime pay and have to go home as there is no work they could do.

Monday, I have it out with [New Guy] about the missing data, him taking a lunch but leaving early anyway, losing people money, and not doing his job.

New Guy: “If I want to take a lunch I will, and if I want to leave early I will do that, too.”

Me: “You lost people money and you screwed me out of a lunch and early finish. I had people shouting at me for your mistake.”

New Guy: “Sheesh, I don’t care ‘bout that.”

I ended up reporting him. He lost all early finishes and was put on report. The next Friday, I checked, and he hadn’t done the data again. His boss forced him to do it as he watched; it turned out to be all wrong and another weekend was lost.

With the schedule massively behind, people up in arms, and [New Guy] seemingly not caring, he was fired before the end of the month.