Guy Tells Story Of Friend Taking 3 Trash Bags From Work And Getting Fired, Now People Are Sharing Similar Stories
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!
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A warning would have been more appropriate. Kid clearly didn't know he was doing anything wrong, so they could have just put him straight and that would be that.
Yes. A warning with explanation why he shouldn't do that. (If they let people help themselves with small stuff, where does it end? It can lead to loss of big bucks over time.)
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Okay, so for the theft is theft folks, how you stand on this? Employee A clocks out and is walking out the door when they are stopped by their manager who gets them to help lift a box onto the counter. The employee does, then leaves. Is that theft? How about your boss calling you outside of work hours? Unpaid time to help the business is technically theft by the employer. Proportionality it's the same. It's just a few cents. But technical it's theft of labor. This kind of stuff routinely happens. I don't know if there is a name for it, but I call it being a human. We overlook the small crap, do what we can, and the world is smoother. A warning would have been the most that should have happened.
Jerry, I upvoted you because you are absolutely right. Companies think nothing of the theft of labour and then get hopping mad about small item loss. I worked at a big company in the early 00s that accepted this was a reality and let a lot of it slide. This was because the CEO was well aware of the small but extra minutes that employees put into the company outside of paid time. Small item loss from the company was equalled out by small time loss from the employees. What's a real shame is the number of people who don't seem to (want to) understand this concept and routinely defend corporations' own terrible behaviour. I can't see them as anything other than turkeys voting for Christmas at this point.
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This is the whole problem with the US's "at-will" employment laws. Yes, you can fire someone for gross misconduct in the UK, but you can't simply fire someone because you don't like the look of their face like you can in the US. The more I learn about the US, the more messed up that country seems to be.
It’s why we need to unionize more workplaces. I had a union job once, and it was like night and day. Management really has to make an ironclad case for firing you, or it just doesn’t happen. It was nice to know the union had my back, and I wouldn’t have to fight for my job alone. Ended up leaving anyway, to go back to college full time and get my Masters.
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A warning would have been more appropriate. Kid clearly didn't know he was doing anything wrong, so they could have just put him straight and that would be that.
Yes. A warning with explanation why he shouldn't do that. (If they let people help themselves with small stuff, where does it end? It can lead to loss of big bucks over time.)
Load More Replies... Okay, so for the theft is theft folks, how you stand on this? Employee A clocks out and is walking out the door when they are stopped by their manager who gets them to help lift a box onto the counter. The employee does, then leaves. Is that theft? How about your boss calling you outside of work hours? Unpaid time to help the business is technically theft by the employer. Proportionality it's the same. It's just a few cents. But technical it's theft of labor. This kind of stuff routinely happens. I don't know if there is a name for it, but I call it being a human. We overlook the small crap, do what we can, and the world is smoother. A warning would have been the most that should have happened.
Jerry, I upvoted you because you are absolutely right. Companies think nothing of the theft of labour and then get hopping mad about small item loss. I worked at a big company in the early 00s that accepted this was a reality and let a lot of it slide. This was because the CEO was well aware of the small but extra minutes that employees put into the company outside of paid time. Small item loss from the company was equalled out by small time loss from the employees. What's a real shame is the number of people who don't seem to (want to) understand this concept and routinely defend corporations' own terrible behaviour. I can't see them as anything other than turkeys voting for Christmas at this point.
Load More Replies... This is the whole problem with the US's "at-will" employment laws. Yes, you can fire someone for gross misconduct in the UK, but you can't simply fire someone because you don't like the look of their face like you can in the US. The more I learn about the US, the more messed up that country seems to be.
It’s why we need to unionize more workplaces. I had a union job once, and it was like night and day. Management really has to make an ironclad case for firing you, or it just doesn’t happen. It was nice to know the union had my back, and I wouldn’t have to fight for my job alone. Ended up leaving anyway, to go back to college full time and get my Masters.
Load More Replies...
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