I work in a factory that produces revolving doors, access gates, turnstiles, etc. I was put there through a temp agency, although there isn’t really an end date, and they can definitely use all help available on the factory floor for the time being. I certainly can use the work as another job just ended and I need the money.

I spend most of my day cutting aluminum and steel profiles to lengths and angles, cutting sheet aluminum and steel, and supplying the CNC machine with material to work on. It is fun working there, the colleagues are great, they have nice benefits, the work itself is enjoyable and challenging enough, and they put on nice radio stations — a huge perk, in my opinion.

Then, I start getting called into the office by [Manager] every few days where I’m given “warnings” wrapped in “helpful advice” wrapping paper.

Manager: “I see you’ve filled up your waste bin already. You might want to try and plan your profile cuts better so we don’t throw away as much.”

All the profiles and cuts are calculated by the computer so there is as little waste as possible. I also have proposed to colleagues to set aside profiles long enough that they can still be used in future products and can still be handled by the machine. The advice isn’t applicable, and I’ve amicably let [Manager] know. It’s been disregarded.

Manager: *Urgently* “You might want to work faster. I see that the painting and coating department regularly has to wait for your work to arrive before they can continue working.”

They’ve had to wait because the machines regularly break or clog while one or more of my carts with profiles is waiting for them to be worked on. The advice isn’t applicable and I’ve plainly let him know. It’s been disregarded.

Manager: *Irritably* “You take too many breaks during the day. Where are you going all this time?”

When I started the job, I informed [Manager] that I have irritable bowels and need to use the restroom more often on some days, and I always let colleagues know where I am, so I explain it to him again. The “helpful advice” wrapping is starting to tear and the manager starts to huff.

Manager: “Well, do something about it, or we might have a problem.”

This all takes place within the same week, and I am getting annoyed. I have a hunch that they are looking for a reason to let me go. There aren’t as many orders coming in anymore.

Finally, the wrapping paper comes off.

Manager: “I’ve had you in my office three times this week already. Can you explain yourself?”

Me: “I think I already have. I’ve taken in the advice, but I’ve already explained that I can’t really do anything about what you’ve spoken to me about. And as far as I know, there haven’t been any warnings or write-ups, so if I’m in trouble, I would like to know what for, and I would prefer to have it in writing so I can discuss it with my temp agency.”

Manager: “You’re trying to be much too smart about this, and you need to do as you’re told. If you don’t want to be a team player in this, you might want to find different employment.”

For the record, my team is great, compliments me regularly, and values my suggestions and improvements, and we’ve regularly had a great laugh together.

Me: “I understand what you’re saying. Is there anything else?”

Manager: “No, just get back to work.”

It takes him less than half a day to call me back in.

Manager: “I’ve decided to discontinue your contract. You were contracted to work here until [two months later], but your attitude toward me and the work is sub-par, and that is grounds for dismissal.”

While a temp contract gives some protection, it isn’t binding and it can be dissolved without the reasons you’d normally need for an employment termination. It makes the whole matter more ridiculous because [Manager] was looking for reasons to fire me, didn’t find any, made some up, and didn’t even bother formalizing them, while all that wasn’t even necessary. He could just have said, “That’s all, folks,” and let me go on Friday.

Manager: “You can finish your week by working today and tomorrow, and then you can turn in your stuff.”

I am pissed. I have a temp job, which is a liability, so I’ve been doing my best, and I’m still getting fired. I would’ve easily forgiven a company for letting go of temps when orders plummeted, but making excuses and blaming me is actually hurtful, and it doesn’t help the state I’m in.

I decide to turn it around; I might as well leave on a high note. I’m a professional drummer (but don’t make enough income from that). I always joke about the concrete factory hall and how it would make an amazing reverbing room to drum in and that I’ve put doing that on my bucket list.

So, on the last day of my employment, I go on my break, but I skip the cafeteria, go to my car, back it into the bay, take out my drums, which are already set up for the most part, set them up on the factory floor, and start banging the h*** out of them. Of course, I play a musical solo, but I don’t exactly hold back, and the room just comes alive. It’s like a tremendous arena, and the floor quickly fills up with colleagues who obviously heard the ruckus sitting in the cafeteria.

My teammates start clapping and headbanging, grab sticks from my stick bag, and join in. [Manager] stands in front, trying his best to use his stern “you are in so much trouble” expression. But I see a twinkle in his eyes, and he can’t resist a slight smirk. I don’t think he ever expected this to happen.

I end on a flourish with sticks flying in the air and applause from my colleagues. They help me carry the drums back to my car and ask whether I have any gigs coming up. [Manager] comes up to me with the same stern-ish expression.

Manager: “It might be best if you went home for the day. That all right with you?”

I didn’t mind losing half a day of pay, and I was done with the place anyway, so I agreed and went home after shaking some hands and saying goodbye.

Payday came and no money was shorted, and as [Manager] was directly responsible for checking my hours — which I’d submitted half a day short — it told me that he probably wasn’t really the one to blame for having to let me go and he didn’t mind my little stunt.

Some colleagues dropped by one of my gigs a week after and told me they’d even put up a picture of me going nuts on the drums in the cafeteria. I’m just happy that that’s the part of me that stuck from that job.

Welcome to what has been dubbed the “Kramer Chronicles!” (The name has been changed.)

At my work, we have multiple drivers for our semis. Two of our drivers retire and we bring in a couple of new drivers. Both of these drivers are pretty young and don’t have much experience, but that’s not really an issue because everyone has to start somewhere.

One of them has learned to be cautious when driving, especially with the snowy winter we’ve been having in Minnesota this year. He drives a bit too cautiously at times, but he hasn’t had any accidents or gotten stuck. His slower driving and cautiousness have helped him learn, and he’s doing well.

The other guy is pretty much the opposite. He may be young and inexperienced, but he continues to drive faster than he should, especially in crummy weather, and he’s caused a lot of damage.

Here are some of the issues and some things Kramer has said to me about them.

1) He backed into a car in the parking lot. It wasn’t even parked in a spot that would be considered in the way when semis back up into docks. He caused over $10,000 in damage.

2) He went down a weight-restricted road — he said his “GPS told him to go that way” — even though the road didn’t lead to the customer’s facility. Once he realized he wasn’t on the right road, let alone a weight-restricted one, he came to a T intersection and almost jackknifed his trailer trying to make a wide U-turn. He ended up damaging part of the trailer and the back end of his cab from the turn due to his poor judgment. This was around $5,000 in damages.

3) He told us he almost got stuck going under a bridge because his “GPS” sent him a different way from the last time when he was making a delivery to a customer that he had done multiple times before. The top of the trailer was scraped across the entire length of it as he drove under the bridge. No holes were made, but the top was all scratched up.

4) During a regular maintenance check one morning, he noticed that his antifreeze was low. (A cracked hose was found and fixed later.) He removed the cap where the oil goes in the engine and started to pour antifreeze into the engine. He noticed a second or two after he started pouring antifreeze that he was adding it to the oil and not into the tank where the antifreeze actually goes. Thankfully, no harm came from this eff-up.

5) He needed to gas up one day. We have two gas station companies for which we have gas cards for our drivers. This way they can easily fuel up anywhere they are in the metro area. He came into the shipping office in a bit of a panic. He told me that he was trying to fuel up at [Gas Station #1] nearby because he was getting really low on diesel, but the card wasn’t working at the pump, so he came here to let us know so we could get him a new card. He then left and headed out to the next closest gas station — [Gas Station #2] — and tried fueling up there. He got back and told me that we didn’t have to get a new gas card for him because when he was trying to fuel up at [Gas Station #1] he didn’t realize he was using the [Gas Station #2] gas card; that was why it wasn’t working.

6) A couple of weeks ago, we had upwards of sixteen inches of snow fall over two days. It took a bit for things to get back to normal in terms of good road conditions. Fast forward a week. It hadn’t snowed since the previous week, and roads, parking lots, and driveways were clear. Kramer delivered a load of material to a customer with no issues. The next day, he had another half a trailer of material to deliver to the same customer. He called into work because he had gotten “stuck in their unplowed parking lot” and couldn’t get out.

After a few hours of him digging himself out and the help of a passing tow truck that helped pull him free, he returned to work. He was telling everyone that the parking lot hadn’t been plowed and that was why he’d gotten stuck… but how did he not get stuck the day before when he delivered? Eventually, the truth came out: he had misjudged his turn by a lot, and he’d driven right into a snowbank and gotten stuck.

7) A week later, it had been snowing some, maybe a total of three or four inches throughout the day. Most roads were pretty decent with just some slushy and slick spots. Kramer was returning from a delivery. He was coming down the hill toward our parking lot entrance, and he was going too fast to safely make the turn with those road conditions. Instead of just going past our driveway and further down the road to safely find a spot to turn around and come back, he tried to turn into the parking lot. He couldn’t turn in properly and ended up burying the front end of his cab into the snow bank on the far side of the driveway with his trailer blocking the entrance of the parking lot.

Our maintenance team had to go out with the bobcat, shovels, salt, and sand to help dig him out so he would no longer be blocking the driveway entrance. He told people that his “load shifted in the trailer and it caused his truck to slide.” Upon checking the outside cameras, it was very easy to see that he had been driving too fast to make the turn into the parking lot safely, yet he’d tried to and gotten stuck.

I told our manager that this was bad on Kramer’s end in one of two ways. Either he wasn’t driving safely and was putting others and himself at risk or he wasn’t strapping his loads correctly, which posed danger to those on the road around him. Either way, he should no longer be driving for us.

These are just a handful of stupid things Kramer has done and said over the eight months he’s been here. Based on what management has mentioned, I’m 95% sure he won’t be driving for us much longer once this workweek ends.

My parents are well-known musicians, part of a band that has quite the following and has been around for about thirty years or so. Around 2004, when I was thirteen, I went on tour with them when I was off school for summer break. They paid my expenses out of pocket and made sure I was treated like a member of the band. It was a very fun time and an eye-opening look at what really goes on behind the scenes of concerts.

We arrive in London for one of their shows. We all have to wear special crew passes to get in and out of the venue before and during the show. I am given one by my parents and told to always have it visible when we are at the venue. Each badge has a specific number attached to it, and all security guards working the doors are given sheets of paper with these numbers and who the badge belongs to with a picture of that person. It’s 2004 technology at its prime.

My parents decide that we are going out for food before the show, and we make it back just in time for their call time. I tell them I’ll meet them inside, as I have to use the restroom really quickly before we go in. They tell me to take my time but to be backstage before the doors open as I usually wander around and speak to the merch vendors as they are setting up, even helping them out at times due to boredom.

I finish up in the restroom and head toward the backstage area, but I’m stopped by a security guard.

Guard: “What do you think you’re doing?”

I flash my crew badge.

Me: “Going backstage?”

Guard: “Where did you get that? This is an eighteen-plus show — no minors!”

Me: “My parents, [Mom] and [Dad], gave it to me so I could meet with them. I just had to stop by the restroom before—”

Guard: *Snatches the badge from my hand* “Who did you steal this from?! No kids are allowed, and the venue is closed right now! You need to leave or I’ll be calling the police service and having you arrested for trespassing!”

I try to grab the badge back from the guard, but it is no use. He grabs me by the arm and pulls me outside the venue, shoving me into the street and warning me that if I come back, he’ll call the police. As I do not have a cell phone due to it being 2004, I have no way of contacting my parents. I decide to wait outside the venue — luckily it is summertime and not too cold — to see if my parents or one of the crew will come looking for me.

It is well past call time when police cars show up, and they are escorted into the building past fans who have started to line up early. There is murmuring in the crowd, but I think nothing of it until a police officer comes outside about half an hour later and looks through the crowd until he spots me. The officer walks over to me, and I can’t help but be my normal smart-a** self.

Me: “I believe you might be here for me, officer.”

Officer: “And why would you think that?”

Me: “You were either: A) called by the security guard trying to arrest me for trespassing, or B) called by my very scared and worried parents wondering where their son has vanished for about… two hours now?”

Officer: *Looks me over* “Are you [My Name]?” 

Me: “That would be me, yep.”

Officer: “Could you step inside with me, please?”

Me: “Gladly.”

The two of us headed inside, where we were met by my very worried — read: exhaustedly bawling her eyes out — mother and my very upset and worried father. The officer asked me for my side of the story — where I had been, what I was doing, etc., and I told him about what happened between the guard and me. I can’t exactly remember much of what happened next, but I do know that my dad was furious and berated the guard for not checking the sheet and for going on a power trip. I know the guard wasn’t fired for what he did, but he was only allowed to work the front doors for the rest of the tour and was given a severe reprimand from his boss once his boss found out.

I own a small retail store in which we also repair items in the category of what we sell — think like a cell phone store that also repairs phones — but with various items.

I bumped into an old friend at a trade show where I was selling my wares, and we got to chatting. She mentioned she had recently gotten surgery on her arm due to a workplace accident, and the employer (a multi-million-dollar corporation) was fighting her tooth and nail on paying compensation and benefits that she was entitled to. I sympathized, as the reason I opened my own business was similar to the situation she was in. She mentioned she was out of work and trying to collect disability but was also getting pushback.

She asked if I had a position she could work in, and of course, I obliged.

At first, everything went great. [Employee] caught on quickly to how I operated the store and was excellent with customers. About a month into the job, I started to feel quite comfortable and gave her a key to the store for emergencies. I have a young child, and as a single parent, sometimes things happen (such as an ill babysitter or ill child) and I have to close for the day or end up coming in late. She took the bull by the horns and would cover for me on days such as that. It was a blessing!

Two months in, [Employee] asked me if she could have a week off to take a mental health vacation. She was still fighting with the compensation board and disability board, so I understood. She asked for a pay advance, and there was no reason not to give one, so I sent her off with a week’s pay in advance. I wasn’t well off financially, but I have a bleeding heart.

She returned a week later seemingly much happier, and all was well… until payday. I had given her $800 in advance, and her hours and commissions for that week were a net of $840, so she received the remaining $40. She came in the next day with a horrible attitude and made a few snide comments throughout the day, but we were incredibly busy so I couldn’t address it right away.

After the rush, I sat her down and asked what was wrong.

Employee: “I don’t work for free. How dare you only pay me $40 for all the hours I worked last week?!”

Me: “Oh, gosh, now I understand! Remember when you left on vacation, I gave you the $800 advance? So, last week was thirty hours, and you made $240 in commissions. That’s $840. Subtract the $800 advance, and that’s $40.”

Employee: “Um, no. That was a gift. You told me it was a gift.”

Me: “I’m so sorry, but no… See, we wrote it down on your payroll sheet for that week, and here is this week’s based on the hours and sales you filled in.”

Employee: “This is so stupid. I can’t afford to live on $40!”

Me: “I’m sorry, [Employee], but that’s what we agreed.”

She still didn’t seem to understand entirely but accepted it, and we moved on from it.

A week later, [Employee] didn’t come in on time to work. I sent a text but heard nothing back until 1:00 pm when she called me crying. She said her boyfriend had been in a horrific car accident and was in surgery as we spoke. I was immediately forgiving, expressed my condolences and well wishes for him, and told her to take as much time as she needed off work.

Two weeks later, she returned to work in a rotten mood. I checked in but didn’t want to push. Then, she asked for her pay for the last two weeks.

Me: “Oh… well… you didn’t work the last two weeks, so there is no pay.”

Employee: “What? You told me to take as much time as I needed, though! I thought it was paid leave!”

Me: *Visibly frustrated* “I’m not sure when or where that was ever said or even implied, but no, you don’t get paid when you’re not at work. I have a child I need to take care of. I can’t pay you for time you haven’t put in.”

Employee: “Well, I was in a pretty difficult situation, as I’m suuuuuure you can imagine! I need money for bills!”

Again, my bleeding heart took over, and I gave her a $500 advance, but I made it CLEAR that it was an advance, and we both signed a contract stating this.

Over the next week, [Employee] showed up HOURS late and/or left HOURS early, if she showed up at all. I’m talking about showing up at 10:00 and leaving at 1:00 in the middle of a rush. In total, she only netted five and a half hours and did only $24 in commissions. She was to be paid $134, leaving her owing me a balance of $366 from the advance.

The following Monday, I was immediately met with hostility again over her inability to pay bills because I “didn’t pay her”. By this point, I was done with the games, and we had a very serious conversation about her future, if any, working with me.

She apologized profusely as soon as the phrase “may have to let you go” left my mouth. She explained that she was struggling with her mental health, her boyfriend was using a wheelchair still, she was behind on all their bills, their electricity is due to be shut off, etc. I gave her another chance, and she asked for the rest of the week off, which I agreed to.

Cue the insanity. [Employee] showed up the following week in a different car and then bragged to me and a customer how she’d”only” spent $4,200 on it. She showed off her new shoes that she’d “only” paid $110 for. Honestly, her attitude had done a total one-eighty. Long story short, I let her go that week after discovering she was pocketing some money from the till after a customer accused her of shorting their change.

I was so confused about how, since she’d started, the store had begun struggling financially and how she’d suddenly changed her tune toward the end. I went through the receipts, finances, customer database, and everything that night, and I found that for every hour she worked, she would write down two hours. For every $100 in commission she made, she wrote down $200. I was missing over $2,500 in stock and parts from the storage room, including a $400 machine reserved for special repairs that was rarely used so it was pretty much ignored until I needed it. You get the picture.

I attempted to confront [Employee] but found that she had blocked my number AND blocked me on all social media. The next morning, I awoke to a bombardment of one-star Google reviews and both comments and messages to my social media pages calling me a crook and a bunch of horrible names, all from friends of [Employee]’s. According to her friends, I verbally abused her, never paid her on time if at all, owed her over $3,000 in wages, was manipulative, cheated my customers with inferior products and shoddy work — you name it.

I chose to block and ignore these people, but the damage was done both financially and reputationally. My business went bankrupt a month later.

While job hunting, I met with a friend who worked at a competing store to mine who also happened to be [Employee]’s cousin. He and I grabbed a coffee and caught up… and then he mentioned [Employee]. Apparently, she had gone in there for an interview while working for me and casually mentioned that she had also been doing side work in the evenings and on days off. She said if they hired her, she had a “special machine used for special repairs” she could bring with her — aka my machine. They didn’t end up hiring her as her schedule conflicted.

I asked how [Employee]’s boyfriend was recovering from his accident and was met with the most bewildered look I’d ever seen. [Cousin] said, “Accident? What accident?” So I explained what I was told and mentioned the dates. He pulled out his phone and showed me photos of [Employee], her boyfriend, [Cousin], his wife, and their three other cousins, drunk on a cruise ship, dated THAT WEEK and several days after! [Employee]’s boyfriend was never in an accident.

[Cousin] went on to say that their grandfather passed away last year, and finally, after the family fighting over it, they got their inheritances a week before the trip… to the tune of around $40,000 each. All the cousins (grandkids) took a vacation together and went on a cruise last minute and had shopping sprees galore.

It is years later now, and I’m nearly done with my bankruptcy hit on my credit, but I have struggled immensely since then. It goes to show that not all friends are true friends.

This story is part of our Not Always Working Most-Epic Stories roundup!

Read the next roundup story!

Read the roundup!

A storm causes a tree to fall across the powerlines, tearing them completely off the building.

I call up the power company to report it and get a repair crew out. I am met with a woman who is obviously reading from a script and is very devoted to it.

Me: “A tree came down and tore the wires off my house, so I need a repair crew to come out and re-attach them.”

Call Center Agent: “Before we do that, go out and flip the main breaker on and off. That often fixes issues.”

Me: “That won’t do anything. The power lines are lying on the ground. They are no longer physically attached to the building.”

She keeps insisting I go and flip the breaker. I’m not getting anywhere, so I finally said I will. I put the phone down, wait a minute or two, and pick it up.

Me: “Didn’t work.”

Call Center Agent: “Okay, I guess we will have to send a crew out to try and find out what the problem is.”

I had a good laugh with the crew when they arrived. I told them about my call and said I really hoped they’d be able to figure out what was wrong.