Starting a new job can be really scary. Suddenly, you have to get used to new coworkers, a new workspace, and figure out which workflow works best for you and your peers. It can be quite daunting, but also exciting.
But some people take these new opportunities and quickly become HR's worst nightmare. And we have some stories to prove it. Someone on r/AskReddit asked about the quickest they've ever seen someone get fired, and well, some of the answers are truly shocking. So, hey, if you're looking to hold on to your job, here's what not to do.
#41
I hired a person and typically I would have them fill out an application while waiting for the interview to start.
This person convinced me that they would take it home and return the next day as there was information being asked that they did not have with them. I was reluctant but they were charming and I agreed.
They had stellar references that I checked and everyone raved about this person and their skill sets/work ethic.
Person gets hired and is involved in a workplace accident almost immediately. Not the end of the world, no one is actually injured, but it does require paperwork to be filled out and reports to be written.
This person spends about 4 hours writing a 3 paragraph report and it’s obvious from their penmanship, spelling and grammar that they’re functionally illiterate.
So yeah, they were fired. In hindsight it was obvious his “references” were friends and family.
This person convinced me that they would take it home and return the next day as there was information being asked that they did not have with them. I was reluctant but they were charming and I agreed.
They had stellar references that I checked and everyone raved about this person and their skill sets/work ethic.
Person gets hired and is involved in a workplace accident almost immediately. Not the end of the world, no one is actually injured, but it does require paperwork to be filled out and reports to be written.
This person spends about 4 hours writing a 3 paragraph report and it’s obvious from their penmanship, spelling and grammar that they’re functionally illiterate.
So yeah, they were fired. In hindsight it was obvious his “references” were friends and family.
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3points
#42
Like 3 hours. First day lunch break he got caught rubbing one out in the backroom bathroom by the manager and she wasn't impressed, apparently.
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3points
#43
That'd be me. Started in a call center because I needed quick cash. Supposedly "almost entirely business to business" so no cold-calling random people.
Not only was their stamping policy highly illegal (you get logged out if you aren't moving your mouse for 20 seconds and have to log back in with your employee card. Not logged in? Doesn't count as labour. So bathroom breaks would not be paid, which is illegal in Germany), it quickly turned out there was an amount of calling almost random people.
I had the worst set of leads imaginable in the first day, despite the databank coming from the government. Not a single concluded call after hours because who the hell wants to take a 20 minutes survey about pensions and insurance.
After an old woman had cried her heart out over her insurance troubles, she mentioned something that made it clear that it wasn't even the right insurance company. I had just spent almost 30min stealing this old lady's precious time and given her hope that this would actually do anything at all for her and it wasn't even getting registered.
So I quit.
Not only was their stamping policy highly illegal (you get logged out if you aren't moving your mouse for 20 seconds and have to log back in with your employee card. Not logged in? Doesn't count as labour. So bathroom breaks would not be paid, which is illegal in Germany), it quickly turned out there was an amount of calling almost random people.
I had the worst set of leads imaginable in the first day, despite the databank coming from the government. Not a single concluded call after hours because who the hell wants to take a 20 minutes survey about pensions and insurance.
After an old woman had cried her heart out over her insurance troubles, she mentioned something that made it clear that it wasn't even the right insurance company. I had just spent almost 30min stealing this old lady's precious time and given her hope that this would actually do anything at all for her and it wasn't even getting registered.
So I quit.
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3points
#44
4 days and this was just a couple weeks ago. He literally kept going up to random employees and defending the Cornell 7. The guy also said he keeps cameras in his house so he isn’t wrongfully accused. Just creepy all around.
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3points
#45
Guy starts on his first day. We show him to his office and do all the onboarding stuff he hasn't done yet. We make a nameplate to hang outside his office that says "John Doe - Payables Staff Accountant."
Within an hour or two, he had changed his name tag to say "John 'Big Daddy' Doe" and removed his title altogether. He left for lunch and when he came back, HR was waiting for him because he had apparently told a coworker that he could show her why everyone called him Big Daddy if she wanted to hang out after work.
He never clocked back in from lunch. Made it around 4 hours.
Within an hour or two, he had changed his name tag to say "John 'Big Daddy' Doe" and removed his title altogether. He left for lunch and when he came back, HR was waiting for him because he had apparently told a coworker that he could show her why everyone called him Big Daddy if she wanted to hang out after work.
He never clocked back in from lunch. Made it around 4 hours.
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3points
#46
Several hours into their first shift. This was back during my FedEx truck loading days. The guy just couldn't keep up with the flow of packages and the supervisor got sick of it and said, "You're a good guy, but this isn't the place for you. If you can't keep up, you're out."
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3points
#47
We hired a social media manager to help our marketing manager, who reported to me. On her first day, I stopped by her desk to ask her to go to HR and finish some paperwork. She had earbuds in and wasn’t acknowledging me, so I knocked on her desk to get her attention.
She ripped out her earbuds and shouted, “What do you want?!” She hadn’t even been there an hour.
I said, “Nothing,” walked into the president’s office, and asked him to fire her. She was gone 15 minutes later.
She ripped out her earbuds and shouted, “What do you want?!” She hadn’t even been there an hour.
I said, “Nothing,” walked into the president’s office, and asked him to fire her. She was gone 15 minutes later.
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3points
#48
I worked a night shift job stocking shelves at a large midwestern/southeastern grocery store chain. There was always one last slot on the night crew they just could not keep filled.
Out of all the people they hired, at least half just never showed up for their first day.
Out of the ones that did show up, at least half of those would clock out to lunch during their first shift and never come back. I was kind of shocked how common this was.
Out of the ones that made it past lunch on their first day, at least half of those would never show up again.
Out of the infinitessimal new hires that made it through all that (maybe 3 total during my 3 years there) they would get fired on the spot within a week for showing up drunk/high or getting into a physical fight with someone.
Out of all the people they hired, at least half just never showed up for their first day.
Out of the ones that did show up, at least half of those would clock out to lunch during their first shift and never come back. I was kind of shocked how common this was.
Out of the ones that made it past lunch on their first day, at least half of those would never show up again.
Out of the infinitessimal new hires that made it through all that (maybe 3 total during my 3 years there) they would get fired on the spot within a week for showing up drunk/high or getting into a physical fight with someone.
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3points
#49
Half an hour. New guy in the kitchen spilled ice on the floor- picked it up and threw it back in the machine. Chef said - You can go home, this isn’t going to work out.
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3points
#50
I've had two experiences in my old job of someone being fired/quitting after a few days.
First one was a guy who joined our team, he started doing the mandatory training, usual stuff. Told our boss on day 2 that he "doesn't need the training as he's here to be the CEO not some pencil pusher" this was after the first day where someone got up to make a cuppa and he just said "won't be long before you're making tea for me" arrogant jerk.
He wasn't a good fit for the team and let go after about a week after it was found he didn't scan and archive some important confidential documents he just threw them in his filing cabinet. I don't think he did any actual work. I can remember the hissy fit when he was let go "thanks sooo much I've gained sooo much here" really sarcastically
Edit: The best way to describe it was he was treating it like some high powered job you'd see on TV. He'd make loud obnoxious calls on his mobile using what he thought were business terms, and kept going on about optimizing his chances to meet the CEO and would try and look slick rather than do any work.
The second guy came in as IT support, went through all the training and intros etc on day one, seemed alright, nice chap.
On day two he finished his training in the morning went for lunch and never came back. He left a message with our IT guy apologizing saying he'd lied on his CV and in the interview had absolutely no idea what he was doing and was really sorry.
First one was a guy who joined our team, he started doing the mandatory training, usual stuff. Told our boss on day 2 that he "doesn't need the training as he's here to be the CEO not some pencil pusher" this was after the first day where someone got up to make a cuppa and he just said "won't be long before you're making tea for me" arrogant jerk.
He wasn't a good fit for the team and let go after about a week after it was found he didn't scan and archive some important confidential documents he just threw them in his filing cabinet. I don't think he did any actual work. I can remember the hissy fit when he was let go "thanks sooo much I've gained sooo much here" really sarcastically
Edit: The best way to describe it was he was treating it like some high powered job you'd see on TV. He'd make loud obnoxious calls on his mobile using what he thought were business terms, and kept going on about optimizing his chances to meet the CEO and would try and look slick rather than do any work.
The second guy came in as IT support, went through all the training and intros etc on day one, seemed alright, nice chap.
On day two he finished his training in the morning went for lunch and never came back. He left a message with our IT guy apologizing saying he'd lied on his CV and in the interview had absolutely no idea what he was doing and was really sorry.
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3points
#51
After about a week. This was at a bank branch and she was hired as an operations manager (no banking experience but whatever).
There were some warning signs beforehand but she got fired for having a 10k shortage in the bank vault and lying on the balance sheet. This triggered a branch audit and it turns out she had just logged a new cash shipment wrong. She freaked out and figured lying was the best course of action?
She seemed genuinely shocked she was fired which was kind of wild in itself. I felt bad because she was nice but I don’t think this job was a good fit.
There were some warning signs beforehand but she got fired for having a 10k shortage in the bank vault and lying on the balance sheet. This triggered a branch audit and it turns out she had just logged a new cash shipment wrong. She freaked out and figured lying was the best course of action?
She seemed genuinely shocked she was fired which was kind of wild in itself. I felt bad because she was nice but I don’t think this job was a good fit.
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3points
#53
We worked at a small startup. On everyone's first day, they intro the newbie to the entire company. So there's like 70-90 people in attendance.
One of the questions you're supposed to answer is "What is your guilty pleasure". Most people said normal stuff like Kardashians or long baths.
This one dude said "white women".
That was his last day.
One of the questions you're supposed to answer is "What is your guilty pleasure". Most people said normal stuff like Kardashians or long baths.
This one dude said "white women".
That was his last day.
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3points
#54
Me, working a supermarket. General stuff, stocking shelves, cleaning aisles and so on.
Zero training or introduction. Day 1, I was left entirely directionless and without any clear indication of what to load, where to get the stuff, where the cleaning supplies were. Place was hilariously understaffed, no one else had time for me, I was basically treated as a nuisance to babysit because I didn't know what to do. Which, I mean, fair, but you didn't give me anything to work with?
Day 2, I show up at work and they just do not open the door for me. Locked out of the building. That is how I found out I had been fired.
Zero training or introduction. Day 1, I was left entirely directionless and without any clear indication of what to load, where to get the stuff, where the cleaning supplies were. Place was hilariously understaffed, no one else had time for me, I was basically treated as a nuisance to babysit because I didn't know what to do. Which, I mean, fair, but you didn't give me anything to work with?
Day 2, I show up at work and they just do not open the door for me. Locked out of the building. That is how I found out I had been fired.
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3points
#55
This should have led to someone in HR being let go, but... that didn't happen.
New guy shows up for work three weeks before Christmas. Around 10:00 he pulls his supervisor aside and admitted that he had no idea how to do his job.
Eventually discovered that [EMPLOYEE NAME] from Lower [COMMUNITY NAME] applied for a laborer job at the same time as [IDENTICAL EMPLOYEE NAME] from Upper [COMMUNITY NAME] applied for a lab technologist position. Someone in HR grabbed the wrong file when they hired him.
To complicate matters, the new guy and his wife had made the decision to put their Christmas money into fixing their vehicle so he could get to work in the city.
New guy did get two weeks pay, plus rumor is that some of the managers pooled their money together to give his kids a Christmas (I'd like to believe that last part actually happened, but I knew all the managers and I have my doubts).
New guy shows up for work three weeks before Christmas. Around 10:00 he pulls his supervisor aside and admitted that he had no idea how to do his job.
Eventually discovered that [EMPLOYEE NAME] from Lower [COMMUNITY NAME] applied for a laborer job at the same time as [IDENTICAL EMPLOYEE NAME] from Upper [COMMUNITY NAME] applied for a lab technologist position. Someone in HR grabbed the wrong file when they hired him.
To complicate matters, the new guy and his wife had made the decision to put their Christmas money into fixing their vehicle so he could get to work in the city.
New guy did get two weeks pay, plus rumor is that some of the managers pooled their money together to give his kids a Christmas (I'd like to believe that last part actually happened, but I knew all the managers and I have my doubts).
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3points
#56
First day. He was a cashier who left to go to liquor store during his first break. He was drinking alcohol in a clear water bottle. As he was ringing up this woman's groceries he threw up on her. Store paid for all her stuff, probably still got sued. He got fired.
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3points
#57
At our first day HR meeting prior to starting work in a secure facility. Girl asks if she can have Facebook open on her computer throughout the day, and gets upset when told she can never use it at work. Got belligerent and was escorted out.
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3points
#58
I worked at a nanotech startup and they hired a PhD professor to set up a new laser lab. Well, literally within the first week he sent this invoice off to the CEO to approve this $20,000 specialty laser, and the CEO decides, hey, you know what, let me call the vendor, see if I can negotiate a little bit of a discount. So he calls and he finds out that the laser was only $2000 and our new director was planning to embezzle the rest of the money for himself. He disappeared pretty fast.
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3points
#59
i got fired after my first day at my first job ever. i got this cleaning job when i was 16 and was meant to clean this gym at night. Id been shown how to do the job and there was a bunch of room that was supposed to be cleaned. I sorta forgot which rooms so i just opened the doors with the janitor keys they given me to see if one of the rooms was behind the door. One of the doors i unlocked went to a room that set the alarm off and security pulled up 5 minutes later. I was questioned and let go and finished the job, in the morning i got a text telling me to hand in the keys and that i unfortunately could not continue the job. They didnt even pay me for the day, but i felt stupid so never pushed for it.
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3points
#60
5-10 minutes. When I was a kid working at McDonald's a 30~ something guy had started, and by the time I went into the change room, put on my uniform and came out he was in cuffs being walked out by two police officers.
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3points
