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Oops! People Share Their Biggest Mistakes On The Job

By Molly Rapp
August 25, 2023
shy
Photo by Ivan Aleksic on Unsplash

Ever had one of those facepalm moments at work you just can’t forget? We’ve all been there! In this article, we’re diving into the hilarious and sometimes cringe-worthy world of job blunders. Get ready to cringe, laugh, and maybe even relate as people spill the beans on their epic workplace mishaps. So, get ready for some “oops” stories that will make you feel a whole lot better about your slip-ups! All content has been edited for clarity purposes.

“It Was One Of The Worst Mistakes I’d Ever Made”

Bachelor party
Photo by Giorgio Grani on Unsplash

“When I was young, I worked at a paintball field. I was a referee and general employee. 

The main part of my job was to take the players for a ‘safety briefing,’ and explain the rules of the game. The rules were mainly for player’s safety, as our usual customers were 10 to 13-year-old kids. I was supposed to explain how players should never take off their masks and never aim at another player’s face. 

One day, I went to work and had a HUGE party visit. It was like 40 kids from a hockey team. 

My manager told me, ‘Take the kids to the staging area for a safety briefing before they start playing.’ 

Usually, we had a room designed for the briefings, but everyone wouldn’t fit inside. So once we got to the staging area, I completely blanked out. I forgot to do the safety briefing and sent the kids on the field. 

As a result, 10 kids ended up taking their masks off. Two of them were shot in the face, and one permanently lost their vision. As a result, the field shut down. 

It was one of the worst mistakes I’d ever made in my life.” 

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“I Was Shocked The Company Didn’t Fire Me”

a faucet running water from a kitchen sink
Photo by Imani on Unsplash

“A while back, I was installing a reverse osmosis water filtration system under the sink in a client’s fancy home. It was a million-dollar home, so I couldn’t mess anything up. Unfortunately, I didn’t realize I had made a HUGE mistake until after I did it. 

I cut the PEX pipe before shutting off the water valve. 

By the time I got the water main shut off in the basement, water had run down and destroyed the client’s basement ceiling. Water was running like a river into the guy’s fancy man cave and all over his electronics. 

The wife went ballistic on me, and she called her husband who was a huge muscle head. I was sure I was going to be murdered by him as he screamed and raged. His veins in his neck looked like they were going to explode. 

Fortunately, my boss’s insurance covered all of the damage, and the clients were awarded $6000 for repairs and damages. To this day, I’m shocked the company didn’t fire me.” 

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The Deli Drama

Man looking back through rear view mirror
Photo by Joshua Wordel on Unsplash

“I previously worked at a deli. My job did a lot of catering deliveries, and employees would deliver the food in the company car.

One day, I was out making a delivery in the company car, which was wrapped in an advertisement with the company’s name in plain sight. While driving, a lady cut me off. I sped up, nearly side-swiped her, then flipped her off. I forgot I was in the company car. 

Later in the day, the same lady called and complained. Luckily, I was the one who answered the phone. I assured her the situation would get, ‘taken care of,’ and the employee would definitely ‘be reprimanded.’ 

Oops.”

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“It Took The Custodians 3 Hours To Clean”

This is Brazil.
Photo by Feliphe Schiarolli on Unsplash

“I used to work at a school in the purchasing department. The school held students in pre-school through 12th grade, and my job title had to handle all of the orders coming in. The orders were usually things like art supplies and new textbooks. 

So, it was my first summer working at the school. One day, we got a delivery, and it was just a bunch of heavy white buckets. It turned out they were the dissection specimens for the high school biology students. 

My mistake? I stacked the buckets three high on a dolly. 

As I was pushing the dolly, one of the buckets toppled over and cracked the deal. The lid broke off, and a load of formaldehyde and fetal pigs were released onto the carpeted floor. The stench was one that you could only smell in hell. 

It took 3 hours for the custodians to clean up the mess, and we had to order another bucket of pigs. The moral of the story is don’t stack the fetal pig buckets.”

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The Bee Hive Bust

Person holding fresh honeycomb
Photo by Arthur Brognoli on Pexels

“I was a beekeeper in California. One day, I was making rounds with a coworker checking all of the beehives. It was basic stuff, just clearing out dead hives and building up strong hives. For reference, the hives were boxes about a foot and a half long, with nine honeycombs inside each. 

At the end of the day, we were heading back on the highway with a load of dead hives and extras for building more hives. One of the ties came loose on our trucks, and suddenly, 20 beehives were flying across the interstate. Cars were hitting the hives and bees were flying everywhere. 

In a panic, I pulled over, parked, and sprinted onto the highway trying to pick up the debris. My life nearly flashed before my eyes in front of a semi-truck, and I suddenly realized I was an idiot. 

The cops showed up and ended up closing the highway while we cleaned the mess up. Only one person complained about being hit by a hive, but I knew there were more. Out of all of the hives that fell out of the truck, I recovered a single hive intact, and maybe 15 honeycombs out of 180. We never really discussed or remembered who tied down the last load, and nobody got in trouble. 

Thankfully, my boss was a great guy.”

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“Just Like That, $8,000 Was Gone”

Hard cash on a briefcase
Photo by Pixabay on Pexels

“Years ago, I worked at McDonald’s. One afternoon, I went on a cash deposit drop with my manager. When we got to the bank, my manager realized she had left the bag of cash on the roof of her car after unlocking it. 

We tried to backtrack and find the bag, but we never found it. Poof. Just like that, $8,000 was gone. It wasn’t my fault, but I felt terrible. My boss cried her way out of being fired. I was surprised she pulled it off.” 

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