While some consider theft a black-and-white situation, whereby it doesn’t matter what you steal, it’s still stealing and it’s wrong, others tend to find a gray area between the two. You know, like it depends on what exactly is stolen and what the circumstances are.
Or more specifically, what if it was 3 empty garbage bags from a massive fast food chain, and the employee wasn’t really hiding the fact that he was taking them. This is what happened in u/BilbosBagholder’s post shared in the r/AntiWork subreddit that’s all about ending work.
Needless to say, it did divide the lovely people of Reddit a little bit, who were trying to decide who was wrong and who wasn’t, while others shared similar stories.
More Info: Reddit
We don't think much of garbage bags, but companies do, especially if they are used for personal ends
Image credits: barnimages.com
So, Reddit user BilbosBagholder shared a story of how back in the day, a friend of his took 3 garbage bags from the McDonald’s he worked at to be used for packing some of his clothes he was planning to get rid of at home.
Well, the Assistant Manager offered the friend a ride home and happened to notice the trash bags on him. He inquired whether those bags were from work—the friend was truthful about it, didn’t hide it at all, and didn’t even make a big deal about taking them in the first place.
An internaut shared a story of how his friend got fired for taking 3 trash bags from work
Image credits: BilbosBagholder
Nothing really happened until the next day when the employee found out his job contract was terminated. Turns out, the Assistant Manager reported the theft to the Manager, who took action and dismissed the thief.
“The AM held his head down and wouldn't make eye contact with my friend. Didn't say anything or apologize,” elaborated Bilbo.
In light of the story, the Reddit user also pointed out how he now sees a lot of fast food joints desperately looking for people to work, saying how the tables have turned that previously restaurants were fire-happy while now there’s an extreme shortage of people working in the field.
Image credits: BilbosBagholder
The post has managed to garner nearly 32,000 upvotes in under 12 hours, engaging with people to a degree where there are now over 4,000 comments and over 30 Reddit awards on the post.
While for the most part people were supportive of the fired one, considering the trash bags quite a minor thing to take from work and sharing their own stories of how they got fired from similar establishments, there were also some who argued the opposite.
They claimed stealing is stealing, it doesn’t really matter what is stolen, pointing out that he’s lucky no charges were brought upon him, as it could’ve gotten very ugly very quickly.
Besides debating the right and wrong, many shared some of their "being fired" stories
You can read more comments by checking out the Reddit post, but before you go, tell us your thoughts on this. Was he wrong to steal, was the manager wrong to jump to such a conclusion without confronting the employee? Was everyone wrong, or nobody? Discuss and debate in the comment section below!