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“It’s A ‘Benefit’ To My Employer, Not Me”: People Are Sharing 30 Insulting Things A Job Has Offered Them
Interview With Author
Companies offer a variety of perks and benefits to attract the right talent into their business. After all, the workers are one of the most valuable assets a business can have, so it’s worth making sure that they feel happy and productive both in and out of the workplace.
Unfortunately, some employers seem to have a different idea about what makes their staff feel truly appreciated. Reddit user Chocolat3City asked fellow r/AntiWork members: "What's the most insulting 'benefit' a job has offered you?" and the thread spread fast, with more than 26.2K people finding it relevant.
Whether it’s a free uniform, personal protective equipment or lunch, stories that people shared seem to be serving the employer, not the employee. Take a look at some of the best answers we collected from the thread and be sure to share your experience in the comment section below.
This post may include affiliate links.
#1
Free lunch every day.
Sounds great but let me explain.
I started a job some years ago and one of the benefits they sold us on was that they bought us lunch everyday. Each day, they would take our orders in the late morning to have lunch delivered by lunchtime. We only ever ordered from like 2 or 3 places but hey, it was free. Cool. Great.
But the problem was when I tried to do anything other than sit at my desk and eat. After a couple weeks, I started leaving my place of work for lunch here and there just to run errands, have a phone convo with family/friends/gf, or just eat by myself at a restaurant (the food they ordered wasn’t bad but it got old quick).
After having done this a few times, my manager stopped me one day and asked where I was going and why I sometimes leave. I replied “I’m Going on lunch.” He told me that the whole point of them ordering lunch for us was so we could eat at our desks while we continued to work. I was shocked lol. I asked him if he understood how lunch breaks worked in relation to the law and that he can’t keep me hostage, especially since I’m not being paid for being there during that hour. He then passively aggressively said “okay do what you want I guess”.
Fat Harry 4 years ago
So am I! But then I'm working from home... and actually my employer actively tells me to take breaks and take my holidays. It might not be intentional reverse psychology, but it does work. Give and take is a wonderful thing. They give me leeway and they get commitment.
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karin s. 4 years ago
A workplace also offered free lunch. They paid quite low but boasted with their free lunch as if their employees could not work out what they lost on accepting low wages in return for free lunch. AND there was no menu to see if you might like lunch or hate it. Nobody explained how it really worked like how to get vegetarian options. They just showed you the room where to turn up at lunch time - which was down in the cellar and very crammed.
Mari 4 years ago
Once I had a job with free lunch every day. But I had to eat with the weird kitchen staff and my Casanova-boss. I ate once with them and never again. I said I went on a diet and never ate with them again.
Tavi-The-Taboo (He-They) 4 years ago
But- the weird kitchen staff needed friends :C
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DuchessDegu 4 years ago
Had a job like that but they didn't even provide lunch, you were expected to bring something that could be eaten at your desk and nothing that'd smell too strong! They were appalled and I got a warning on the first day as I DARED to go out to buy lunch "everyone brings lunch, that's how we do it". Needless to say I didn't last long as I didn't "fit the company culture"
Lilia Loewenberg 4 years ago
It's usually implied that you will have a working lunch...but to say it outright... that's ballsy.
Lucretia Rossi 6 days ago
Yeah, if you have to still work while you eat, it's legally not a lunch break.
RELATED:
#2
Food stamp eligibility. They paid so little that they listed government assistance as a BENEFIT.
Lsai Aeon 4 years ago
Walmart employees are paid $1 too much, they don't qualify for government assistance. Source: My husband works for Walmart
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. a 4 years ago
To all you Americans: This is basically individual taxpayers subsidizing giant corporations. Basically it's socialism. Only they'll never call it that.
Ms LaDonna 4 years ago
Some of us understand this, but a lot don't. It's sad really, we could be so much more.
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Marco Hub-Dub 4 years ago
50 years of deregulation and trickle-down economics working out wonderfully!
Ms LaDonna 4 years ago
It's in the Wal-Mart play book. And it's basic how to fleece the U.S. tax payers.
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Jeremy Parsons 4 years ago
Walmart used to brag about their "team" being eligible for Medicare and food stamps amd just one of the 2.73 million reasons I will NEVER spend a single cent there
Dando 4 years ago
That’s Stalmart, I mean Walmart. Just stop shopping there. And Amazon. Never. Shop. At either. You’re enabling their abuse of our system if you do.
Veronica Johnson 4 years ago
See the only problem with telling somebody to never shop at Walmart is when they live in a town where literally the only place to be able to get your stuff is either Walmart or Dollar general. And the closest Target or anything like that is an hour away.
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Susan Betz 4 years ago
Walmart was all for universal healthcare in the 90s because they realized they would see more profit if they didn't have to pay for *any* company healthcare (even those employees who make an actual salary). And when you think about it, that's actually sensible, as most industrialized countries have realized.
Bored Panda reached out to the author of this post, Chocolat3City, to have a chat about benefits that employers offer but end up insulting the staff or potential employees. The idea to start this thread came from personal experience. The user lives in the U.S. and has just moved to another state.
"I've been looking at new job postings on the internet, and saw many employers trying to couch standard workplace amenities as 'benefits'," they said. This made the user think of one of their first jobs out of law school: "It offered me 'free parking,' but the pay wasn't competitive."
The user mentioned this in their post, saying that a thing that helps a person to access their workplace is a benefit to the employer, not the worker. "It's kind of like allowing the custodian access to an elevator of the high-rise building where he works, and calling it a 'benefit.' I think not," they added.
#3
Retail worker. As a reward for working through the Pandemic, the toilet paper crisis, not getting our pay for another 4 weeks and having one of our colleagues die of covid unexpectedly...
A box of 6 capri sun. There are 8 of us.
Casey Burns 4 years ago (edited)
3/4 a capri sun per person. Fantastic deal. Especially with free COVID.
Jennifer Mcmahan 4 years ago
Hey at least you got that...I have been spit on and yelled at and cursed 2 retail jobs, and neither even said thank you. They both just complain if you get symptoms and want to get a test.
Brian Early 4 years ago
My wife is a Registered Nurse.For working through another year of Covid, short staffed, masked and without a raise, the hospital administration gave small candy canes with a pre printed note that read “You earned your stripes”.
Marcellus II 4 years ago
Harsh. But being capri sun it's probably still 2 per person, with more than half refusing to drink that ... stuff.
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#4
Silly socks day. To make up for the increase in abuse from patients (start of COVID). Thanks, my mental health is... great.
Mewton’s Third Paw 4 years ago
I’m also appalled that you couldn’t wear them before Covid. Or at least that’s how this makes it sound.
MyOpinionHasBeenServed 4 years ago
I get a similar feeling when we have "spirit week". "Dress up as your favourite Team Leader." Why????
The thread collected more than 7.3K comments where many started sharing their own experiences. Chocolat3City thinks that the r/AntiWork community found it so relevant probably because everyone has worked extremely hard just to survive for the last couple of years.
According to them, some people are looking for work, while some have stayed in salaried jobs that are demanding more hours and scope without increasing compensation.
"We are particularly sensitive right now under these circumstances, and this fake benefits phenomenon both insults our intelligence and demeans the value of our labor. That's why I think many have such a visceral reaction to the post."
#5
A 'wobble room'. Basically a room where it was okay to go and have a little cry/freak out/meltdown if you got overwhelmed at work.
Instead of, you know, attempting to address the reasons why people were crying/freaking out/melting down at work...and then you were expected back front and centre for the rest of your shift.
Casey Burns 4 years ago
Acknowledging the issue is a good thing. Normalizing it as standard practice is a bad thing.
Somewhat-Guilty 4 years ago
Where I work at it's called a "Zen Booth" lol. ... It's smaller than a portal potty.
Annie Bieber 4 years ago
A million years ago I managed a Coco's...my supervisor told me if I was stressing...go in the walk in freezer & do a primal scream 😱 it worked...wish I had one for all that is the 2020's!!
Tee Witt 4 years ago
These I do not understand, never have I found or heard of these rooms being available or necessary in the UK.
Uchman 4 years ago
Understandable since I doubt you've worked in every single workplace in the UK
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pigasus1 4 years ago
This is why people regularly bring a gun into the workplace and start shooting managers. In America anyway. You almost can understand the reason after you hear their horror stories, and the government always sides with corporations, so they think it's the only way to get justice.
Helen Krummenacker 1 week ago
I've had jobs where this would have been a lot better than being reprimanded for crying in the stairwell because someone saw me crying (fellow employees, it was a closed building).
#6
Free personal protective equipment. Literally required to be provided by the employer too.
Joel Moore 4 years ago
USA employers are required by law to provide personal protective equipment (PPE), free of charge.
Eagle Girl 4 years ago
Ever see Superstore Season 6 Episode 1? All about beginning of pandemic. Corporate sends PPE & it's all "Tools" to protect the store during a Riot. Somehow, they made sad..funny.
Some benefits that the employers see as central are actually not so important in the eyes of the workers. According to a study from Robert Half, a global human resource consulting firm, companies often seem to miss the mark. More than 1.5K American employees and 600 HR managers participated in the survey. Results showed, that there seems to be a big disconnect between what’s being offered and what the staff actually wants.
For example, 66 percent of employees would prefer a compressed workweek—where they work more hours but fewer days per week. Unfortunately, only 17 percent of companies offer this perk. Also, when it comes to healthcare, many workers seem to be indifferent about some of the benefits the employer provides, e.g. vision insurance, which only a fraction of them needs.
#7
The 45 minute commute each way as a "great way to prepare for the day and de-stress when you go home."
What the f**k man.
karin s. 4 years ago
Yeees. I remember quite lively when an employer tried to sell me my commute as a great opportunitiy to do the paper work on the companie´s lap top that I was allowed to use for private stuff, too. They paid like s**t and I did not buy their "great" offer.
Mike Loux 4 years ago
Yeah, no. If I'm off the clock, I'm not working. F**k that.
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Bobert Robertson 4 years ago
I CHOSE to have a commute for this reason, but if my employer tried to sell me on it being a perk I'd tell em to cram it
MyOpinionHasBeenServed 4 years ago
I do not miss my 45 min commute. My back no longer hurts so much now that I haven't had to take the bus along a decrepit, crumbling street, and no longer have to fear being in the crossfire of a bus fight and drunken, race-fueled tirades.
Kaj Boelsen 3 years ago
So. It’s directly related to work and should count as paid work-time as well.
Mikey Kliss 4 years ago
Haha I think Bored Panda released something that said this too in a previous article. Definitely not a destressor
Susan Betz 4 years ago
Whoa there, I find driving more stressful than working and I suspect I am not alone.
#8
Company listed "withholding taxes" as a benefit. You know, the thing that they're legally obligated to do as an employer. Still laugh at that one.
Col Car 121 Car 4 years ago
A friend worked for a very short time at a place that tried to deduct the cost of her desk from her salary.
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Steve Fischer 4 years ago
Companies have been convicted of witholding taxes but not giving it to the government.
karin s. 4 years ago
In my country, they got a thing that is quite a scam, but everybody is happy with it. Your employer deducts some amount from your wage so you have to pay less taxes and adds up a bit. This amount goes into a fund for your old age. BUT when YOU have to pay less taxes, your employer ALSO has to pay less taxes on your behalf which reduces the money you get in case of illness, unemployment or for old age.
Lydia Languish 4 years ago
That sounds like a pension or retirement fund - which is not a scam
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Marco Conti 4 years ago
Not to mention the free floors and ceilings, bonus toilets in the bathrooms and the convenient stairs/elevator to get to the office. "Competitive benefits".
#9
Weekend events, xmas parties.
Like I want to spend my personal time with work people...?
Robert T 4 years ago (edited)
Reminds me of an event that one of our suppliers held - it was in a brewery - but there was no beer - they literally couldn't organize a piss-up in a brewery.
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Tash 4 years ago
I like the people I work with and we socialize a lot outside of working hours so this would be a benefit to me! (Especially if the boss is paying!)
Isabella 4 years ago
it is a benefit untill something saucy or f****d up shows up on the horizon, you talk about it to coworker, coworketr goes to higher ups and you get fired.
Load More Replies... karin s. 4 years ago
One employer did not list such things as a benefit, but expected you to come and socialize. I did not - got better things to do in my spare time than stuffing food I don´t like with people I don´t like plus I would have either so spend money on a hotel room or do a long commute late at night and back in the morning for work. They had the nerve to call me out on it twice in a team meeting. Some people (all the assholes, none of the normal people) felt rejected and that they would have a right to my time and company.
Julius Zuke 4 years ago
This expectation ties in to the corporate idea of "family" and "teamwork," which shames you for not giving 110% and being controlled all the time. Some people actually enjoy some things, but I don't, either. Good for you for sticking to your boundaries!
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Tom Spade 4 years ago
Yep. They cancelled ours this year because like 2 people were planning to attend. Oh, and they cancelled our work clothing allowance the same week. And probably wonder why no one wanted to go hear about how great s**t is over mediocre food, and not getting any kind of bonus.
Steffen Rehm 4 years ago
I hate X-mas parties, especially when alcohol is involved. Everyone is loud and noisier then usual. so i do not go there anymore. On the downside, i have to explain every year once again, why i not come with them. My Brain can not handle the noise and drunk people for long, i feel exhausted really quick and get angrier every second pas.
Taki 4 years ago (edited)
No job is so fantastic that I would willingly spend my rare free time socializing with them for free.
Uchman 4 years ago
Just say you haven't found one like that, not "no job"
Load More Replies...Chocolat3City thinks that companies disguise common conveniences as benefits simply to make the job look better: "Just like how any product is marketed. Of course, employers are always looking for ways to provide less compensation and fewer benefits for their employees."
They added that these perks can be used to distract from non-competitive compensation. The author of this thread hopes that employers read this post and "see what we really think of the 'benefits' they offer us."
#10
Free uniform.
rumade 4 years ago
No one should have to pay for work uniform. Some places will charge you though if you leave after a short period of time and don't return it.
Robert T 4 years ago
And charge for replacements, to make sure you look after it.
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Rench 4 years ago
I've worked in various auto shops over the last 30 years. Free uniforms are not standard. I have got free uniforms, but had to pay for the laundry service and I've had to buy and launder my own. But I've also got completely free uniforms, including the laundering. So I can see where this could be construed as a benefit.
Jiří Petruželka 4 years ago
Nah, it's still insulting. Employer should provide everything you need for work and everything they require for your work. It's them who want you to wear the uniform. If they forced you to pay for it somewhere, then it's an outright scummy practice
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Treessimontrees 4 years ago
I was forced to buy jeans at my first job at Levis. They'd take it out of my pay. Trick was they'd require you to buy one of virtually every style so "you knew the cuts" - I worked weekends for a year and probably worked for 10-12 weekends for free due to the cost of the jeans.
Kelly Taylor 4 years ago
I worked at a casino in Norman Oklahoma and they paid you to get dressed and undressed out of your street clothes into your restaurant clothes! That's how you do it
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Cassie Graff 4 years ago (edited)
At the restaurant I used to work at they required us to buy black dress shirts and dress pants to wear as the uniform (iykyk). I worked on to go and we tried to change our uniform to include nice crew necks that have our names and the company logo on them that look better than the actual merch for the company. We got away with it too for a while except a new manager came in and said everyone in the restaurant needs to look the same and no one team could wear a different uniform cause it looked “unprofessional”. Meanwhile we had people running food to the parking lot in the dead heat of summer and packing food in the kitchen where they weren’t ever seen by customers but we weren’t allowed to wear the t-shirts with the company logo that they supplied to us which the line cooks all wore cause it was hot back there.
Annie Bieber 4 years ago
I worked at a Western Bar, we had to buy these stupid saloon girl dresses and fishnets...that was 30 bucks in 82...and first one to the bank was the the only one able to cash their paycheck...I usually won that race...🙄😒
Lillukka79 4 years ago
Is this common outside US? Never bought a uniform in any of my jobs in Finland. If you need me in certain clothes, you get them for me. (Same goes for being a bridesmaid btw.)
abby smink 4 years ago
I mean, free scrubs would be amazing, especially since they require us to order them from one particular(ly expensive) website and have them embroidered with the logo.
Huddo's sister 4 years ago
Where I worked, in a sessional preschool, we didn't have a uniform, but there long day childcare centers the company also ran that did have a uniform, so everyone was paid a uniform allowance each pay day. Meaning I got an extra $2.50 or something a fortnight.
#11
I have no maternity leave and hr told me that’s the benefit of working remote - I can just watch my baby while I work.
LittleLiz 4 years ago
At the start of COVID, I babysat a preschooler at the family's home. Both parents worked from home. My boyfriend didn't understand why they couldn't just watch her themselves. She was 4 years old and full of energy and they had important legal stuff to write. My boyfriend has never been around a small child.
Load More Replies... Andy Acceber 4 years ago
That's fine if HR doesn't mind baby food smeared on the expense reports, personal files lost in the diaper bag, and a marked decrease in productivity with an increase in mood swings and swearing.
Kaj Boelsen 3 years ago
I’d let the kid scream full blast through every single meeting and not mute. Sharing is caring.!
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Guy MacGregor 4 years ago
Maternity (parental) leave is a legal mandatory thing in every developed country
Anko Tijman 4 years ago
I wonder how HR would see changing diapers as part of your job description then...
GoddessOdd 4 years ago (edited)
Sadly, my employer, who was normally pretty decent about most things, decided that mothers of infants, who wanted to work from home, had to prove they had full time child care in place to be allowed to remain at home. If your child minder called out sick, you had to take the day off, without pay.
Alexandra Konigsburg 4 years ago
I had HR tell me that the unpaid FMLA leave that they were required to give was generous of them. The guy was totally serious.
#12
A pinball machine and pool table for use on breaks that people got shamed for using.
Serial pacifist 4 years ago
I wouldn't mind having it. Hell, I wouldn't care being judged for it either.
Rumple Schleppskin 4 years ago
Yes, but how many employees are expected to be sharing these 2 items at break time?
Load More Replies... LH25 4 years ago
Worked in a place like that. Most of the building was a call center for a cell phone company, but we the IT group were there as well. Really nice break room with a ping-pong table and a foosball table. Comfy chairs and couches. But if you spent much time there, you got in trouble.
Lara Verne 4 years ago (edited)
"Yeah, sure, you can use that pinball machine on breaks. But you will get shamed for using it."
Treessimontrees 4 years ago
I swear a previous job I had put a pool table in to know who to fire. It was in an open area next to a main corridor where everyone had to pass by to go to meetings, so you were very visible if you played a game... It gathered dust pretty quickly.
Thomas Mack 3 years ago
Had a pool table at a job recently. it was listed on the job ad too. What wasn't mentioned was that it was a piece of c**p with one leg too short, one pocket loose and water damage causing one of the corners to be bloated and kill momentum on the ball. Also it was a call center, and you can hear the clacking of the damn thing through walls during calls so you would get quietly judged for using it. T
Robotic Gentlemen 4 years ago (edited)
Amazon has arcade machines that are free but with how closely they watch your time If you go over 4min past break you will be fired.
Annie Bieber 4 years ago
My nephews company has a full arcade break room & allows do it yourself desk decor..or did before CV...never seen SO many people happy to be at work in my life...it was amazing go build.com...pick me too!! 😁
#13
Casual Fridays. We're a tech business with no customer visits, why can't every day be casual?
Robert T 4 years ago
We used to do public training courses, but not every week. We wore casual every day in the office, unless there was a course on. Used to be suit and tie on a client site, at least until the client said they didn't mind casual. Went to one client in the Netherlands, with just smart gear for a fortnight, and on the second day client says they don't know why I bother to get dressed up. Bearing in mind this was February and there was ice on the canals, neither did I, as it was a summer suit and I was freezing waiting for the tram. Second fortnight I took casual clothes and a ski jacket and my god did that make a difference!
Annie Bieber 4 years ago
I missed Aloha Friday's when I moved back to the mainland..."casual" Fridays didn't appear for years...
Nightshade1972 3 years ago
My wife and I both used to work for the same company, although in different departments. Her boss was perfectly content to let his underlings wear jeans/tshirts every day. My boss insisted on business casual every day except "casual Fridays." By the time the whole company had switched to "yes, you can wear casual clothes every day, not just Friday," they'd promoted my wife into management--where she was still expected to dress up every day (except Friday).
Kaj Boelsen 3 years ago
I recall working for a pure phone IT support device in which the employees were mandated to wearing full business suit (including tie). The reasoning: ‘people who dress up seriously do serious work’. They don’t.
ToGo 4 years ago
Same! One of my old jobs was casual Fridays. Zero customer interaction. Apparently people can't work as well in jeans as they can in uncomfortable suit trousers/skirts. I worked the weekend too so it was just like a random day I got to be comfortable. Jokes on them, my Grandad used to work in a dye factory and he dyed a few pairs of jeans the blackest black and I started wearing those instead of trousers. No one noticed - and I say that with confidence because my bosses jumped at any chance to tell off staff. Think that was their only job actually 🤔
Marco Conti 4 years ago
When I worked in tech, I used to dress up on Friday and wear jeans the rest of the week.
AzKhaleesi 4 years ago
I never understood that. I worked for the main hub of U-Haul in my late teens. I was in charge of break-downs and police contact. This means absolutely NO ONE saw us. We did not deal with the "public" aaaaand I worked nights. Yet we had to dress business type attire, that made no sense. We were on like the 8th floor too. But the 2nd floor people that dealt with customer service (in person) could wear jeans. I was like wtf?
#14
Contact stated "flexible hours", but I was pulled aside and rinsed by a colleague and one of the company directors when I turned up at 9.30am on my second day.
It turned out that their interpretation of "flexible" went the other direction - you had to be in the office 9-5 plus at least 2 hours a day to "show your commitment".
Cuppa tea? 4 years ago
After your normal hours, no one can make you stay. Of there is mandatory OT, it has to be announced within certain time and paid accordingly.
Chucky Cheezburger 4 years ago
Only way I've seen flexible hours done is when the employee has to flex their time and schedule to meet the demands of the employer. Need to stay untill 12 to get something done? Just do it. Oh, and come in late tomorrow to stay under 40 hours so we don't have to pay you overtime. Pretty much, they work you on demand.
Kaj Boelsen 3 years ago
Aaaand we’re out. I expect flexible hours to be defined in the contract (up to not exceeding x hours / week, compensation (monetary or paid free days in addition to PTO). If that’s missing, I’ll be flexible my way.
Jiří Petruželka 4 years ago
That warrants immediately quitting the job, unless you're desperate enough
Annie Bieber 4 years ago
I worked for a Japanese Co in the OC on a "four-ten" schedule...that never happened...it was five-ten plus six-six. It would have been seven but Sunday was golf day. BTW my bosses, all from Japan, were there no less than six-fourteen. Talk about a work ethic!! 😶
Uchman 4 years ago
Really not "work ethic" just abuse/slavery. Japanese workers regularly drop dead at work
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#15
Windows. (The kind you look through, not the OS.)
Robert T 4 years ago
I've worked in offices with no windows. I've worked in open plan offices the size of two football fields where the noise is deafening. I've worked in offices where I've had my own room with a window. I've worked in offices where we had a stereo system to listen to music whilst we worked. Fortunately I travel between many clients, so I was never stuck in any of the horrible ones for long. Some of them would have driven me mad.
Hi, I'm Mars! 4 years ago
After working for five years in an underground lab, I would welcome this but NOT as a benefit.
Annamagelic 4 years ago
My first job out of college was in a windowless lab, surrounded by windowless cube farm. When I got a new job I was very excited to work somewhere with windows.
Cameron Barnes 4 years ago
As someone who works in a building with literally 0 windows this is definitely something a lot of people under appreciate.
GoddessOdd 4 years ago
I spent the first half of my career working in mostly windowless spaces, but I didn't mind it, because I worked nights. Then we moved to a place where I had a top floor corner completely surrounded by windows, and I realized what I had been missing.
MyOpinionHasBeenServed 4 years ago
LOL yes, windows... looking out across the street of an ugly walls of the convention center. Enjoy,
Oopsydaisy 4 years ago
But natural light. That is the more important thing.
Load More Replies... #16
"Free Parking" at my workplace.
My thinking is that if it's something that only helps me access my workplace (which I wouldn't need but for the job), it's a "benefit" to my employer, not me.
It's kind of like allowing the custodian access to an elevator of the high-rise building where he works, and calling it a "benefit." I think not.
Jo Choto 4 years ago
You're lucky. I worked at a public library but had to pay for parking every day.
Queserasera423 4 years ago
Yes! I worked downtown, and the closest parking was a ramp a block away. It was a monthly parking pass fee just to drive into work.
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Robert T 4 years ago
It is definitely a benefit, as if you had to pay for it youself, it could account for quite a significant portion of your wages. This is why it is such a big deal for hospital staff in the UK.
Fat Harry 4 years ago
Definitely. When I use a hospital I'm happy to pay for parking *if* I think the revenue goes to the hospital / NHS. If it's just going to a third-party company then I feel quite aggrieved. I can totally understand why staff would be annoyed though.
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Karin Jansen 4 years ago
I think this one depends on the location of the job. Working in the center of a city, you can take public transport, walk, cycle. Getting a parking spot would definitely be a perk as no one *needs* it to get to work. Working at a distant location that is not accessible other than by car, different story.
Fat Harry 4 years ago
Not in many cities, and actually not technically where i work, but as we're in a small town there are plenty of free places to park nearby anyway.
Load More Replies... Marcellus II 4 years ago
IF the company has its own private parking terrain, obviously it's normal. IF there isn't, you're probably expected to deal with it yourself. From posting I guess it's having to pay on the private terrain.
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Peter Korsten 4 years ago
As someone who lives and works in one of the most densely populated countries on the planet: get a reality check. Free parking is definitely a bonus, since you insist on using personal transport.
Brett Layton 4 years ago
I had a job in downtown Palo Alto and it basically cost me $16 a day to park . Also let the meter expire once got ticketed for another $50 or so and had someone else sideswipe my car in the parking garage a few days before Christmas. I do not work there any longer.
#17
Pretending pizza is a 10k salary increase or anything significant
karin s. 4 years ago
At the end of a meeting where the boss had angrily said that it was the law that student workers have to get paid sick leave and holidays, but that it would be immoral as it would make science expensive, she told us she would sponsor a xmas pizza party. I did not attend and I also did not tell her were to shove that "generous" pizza.
Michael Fuhry 4 years ago
"...immoral as it would make science expensive..." ??? What brand of methamphetamines is this stupid person ingesting? That is one of the most asinine statements I've ever heard in my life. Good grief.
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Julius Zuke 4 years ago
There's nothing wrong with showing appreciation for people working overtime for free, especially if the boss is paying for it out of his own pocket. But don't be insulting about it. If you're offering free donuts and bagels for breakfast, don't break them in half to discourage "overeating." And if you're offering free lunch, a dried up balogna sandwich, and apple, and a warm soda in a brown paper bag really makes you wonder how valued you really are.
RK Barbo 4 years ago
Had free pizza for lunch at one job. But you couldn't eat it till your lunch. Shifts were staggered. Pizza was delivered at 11:00. My lunch wasn't till 4:30. I got 5 1/2 hour old leftover, picked over pizza. Yum
GoddessOdd 4 years ago
My employer used to do this too... make a big deal about company catered dinners, etc. The problem was, for those that worked nights, we got the left overs that had been sitting out all day. We shamed them into doing right by us when several of us asked if we were to be paid for time off for food bourne illness, and explained why. After that, we got our own dinner. Not as nice as the day shift dinner, but at least it was fresh.
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Marcy Brown 4 years ago
My old job had massive amounts of people quitting (because of low pay and toxic work environment) and instead of doing something about the reason they couldn't keep anyone they instead offered free popcorn on Wednesdays.
MyOpinionHasBeenServed 4 years ago
LOL This is my company, except pizza days come out of the pocket of the Team Leaders. The company does f**k all to thank the front liners for the companies successes.
#18
I cried at work and was offered a “normalize crying at work” sticker.
Didn’t seem to help.
purple zebra 4 years ago
I would have stuck it on my forehead and walked around while crying some more
Søs Rasmussen 4 years ago
Say what? When the h... and why the h... would it be normal to cry at work?
LittleLiz 4 years ago
I can't imagine having a job that wouldn't make me cry.
Load More Replies... Lynn Bulmahn 5 months ago
But they did not try to address the situation that made you cry in the first place? For shame!
Jessany Trotter 3 years ago
Have a workmate pass away in hospital from a terminal illness and tell us how that makes you feel and how you’ll react. F**k the employer of the sticker. 🖕arsewipe bitchface bootlicker
#19
They set up an online store for us to purchase company merch with and then offered everyone I think 20 or 30 in credit, which would have been nice if the cheapest thing wasn’t $65 plus tax and shipping
Valisbourne Spiritforge 4 years ago
It's almost beyond belief when a company has a "Company Store" selling their merch, wants their employees to buy said merch and then charges an outrageous amount for the cheapest thing in their store.
Theresa De Wild 4 years ago
My company just did this! Opened a store online for us to get items to either give away to vendors or wear for presentations. Lowest priced item was a pen, for $8. Button down shurts were $85! It's nuts!
Al Christensen 4 years ago (edited)
Here's your pay, now give some of it back to us at the store. And think of Walmart employees, for example. Think they shop elsewhere?
Nightshade1972 3 years ago
I worked as a grocery store cashier where the mascot was in colors of red, yellow, and green--but Corporate decided that "corporate colors" were red, white, and black only. I bought myself a zip-up sweater that was mostly black, with some red and white, and I didn't realize until I wore it to work that there were very faint traces of very light blue in it, as well. I got written up because the very light blue "wasn't a corporate color." "Well, you guys sell store-branded jackets that have a full-color picture of the mascot on it (red, yellow, green). Why is that okay, but this tiny little amount of very light blue is worth writing me up?"
Brett Miller 4 years ago
Much like when buying a car with their name badge on the vehicle/license plate, the company attempting to advertise on my vehicle (or personal effects) advertising company should, by God, be paying ME for said advertising.
Annie Bieber 4 years ago
Kmart used to pay cash weekly...in the back of the store...buhbye paycheck!! 🤑
Jennifer Mcmahan 4 years ago
You must work at my job... We even have to buy our uniforms from the same site.
#20
This is a discussion I had with my previous employer before I accepted their offer letter, discussing compensation:
Me: I'm used to my annual bonus being a significant portion of my total compensation, what's your bonus structure look like?
Them: We don't make specific commitments, it depends on company performance and your annual review.
Me: Sure, I get that, but I need to know a general ballpark. Is 8-12% in the general range that I should usually expect to see?
Them: Yes
I didn't get it in writing, because I'm a dumbass.
Sign on, work a few months, Christmas/ New Year's comes around. HR hands out bonuses. I open my envelope to find a $10 gift card to a local grocery store.
Figure "I've only been here a few months, maybe I'm not eligible for bonus yet, oh well".
Next year comes around, and it's another $10 gift card for the grocery store.
Started applying for new jobs that day.
Andy 4 years ago (edited)
Is it usual in the US for yearly bonus to be a set value? In the UK (at least the places I have worked), they usually have a bonus scheme which is very generally explained (e.g. you need to have worked for X time, have no disciplinaries etc to qualify), but if and how much of a bonus they give is dependent on the business end of year performance, and decided at that time
Maxigrod 4 years ago
In my country we have something called "aguinaldo" (I don't know if it exists elsewhere). Basically if you work for a company, every 12 months of work you are paid 13 wages. The 13th is paid in two halves, one in the middle of the year and the other at the end of the year. It is in the Constitution as a right of every worker and is calculated based on your salary and the time you have been working for said company and not according to the wishes of the company.
Guido Pisano 4 years ago
one thing I've learnt: always write down what you require - on words they will promise everything but once you ask to have on your contract...
Kaj Boelsen 3 years ago
We get a bonus. The way it is calculated, Level & prorating for employees (on leave / new starters) are detailed out roughly a quarter before bonus time. Everyone gets a bonus, sales get their usual monthly commission and a smaller bonus, people non-sales roles get a %of their quarterly base income + x% performance bonus. This is a large US company.
Michael Gatewood 4 years ago
Walmart distribution centers offer an additional 10% off one item not to exceed $200 that is the Christmas bonus we get to spend money at the company
Rachel Rockwood 4 years ago
Closest thing I've ever had to a bonus is company swag. I do love my giant Thermos with the company logo, but money would be be better... good thing basepay is good!
Joshua Williams 4 years ago
Haha yeah my hospital system gives us a 20$ Publix gift card... Can't even afford to shop at Publix, but hey thanks lol. Upper management can count their bonuses in how many beach front properties they can buy with it..
#21
"You get to work with kids!"
My job description was ALSO my benefits...
Mel in Real Life 4 years ago
EVEN MORE additional benefits.... you GET to work with their parents! Rolling my eyes
Veronica Sjöberg 4 years ago
Can i bring my own? That would sort of be a benefit in some situations. Just working with other peoples kids? Yeah, kids are cool and i have worked with taking care of kids but thats no benefit. Its work. Hard work.
#22
Overtime. Yes it was listed in the job description as a benefit.
Victoria Pitt 4 years ago
Optional AND paid time and a half... I'm salaried so working OT actually just lowers my pay rate.
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Not A Panda 4 years ago
Paid overtime is indeed seen as a benefit in many places and industries, mostly due to the increased pay.
Gaby Almodovar 4 years ago
Paid overtime is not a "benefit" is an obligation by law, in normal countries.
Load More Replies... Andrew 4 years ago
This one can be viewed in certain contexts as a benefit. I worked at a job were overtime was allowed and some guys would work extra hours to earn more money or ease their workload. Was never forced! Also worked at a company that did not allow overtime under any circumstances it at times equaled a rushed work day to try and meet goals.
Cuppa tea? 4 years ago
Worked for one of the major brand in alcohol industry. One of the perks was Bottle Bank - basically discount prices for most of products. I got bottle of 120€ cognac for 35€. Oh, almost forgot - we received twice a year credit of 250€ to use.
Melissa Johnson 4 years ago
While I understand where you're coming from, to some people overtime IS a benefit.
Lynn Gable 4 years ago
I was at a job where I was required to work a couple of hours on the weekend. The Thursday before my first weekend, they explain that this hours meant "whatever the team didn't catch up on during the week, plus any new work that comes in over the weekend". They originally sold it to me as 5/6 hours on a Saturday, but it turned into me needing to be available every waking Friday through Sunday. My bosses response, alongside my direct coworker? "It's part of the job, we all do it". My response? Get your act together and actually hire an efficient team so this doesn't have to happen, and maybe you will retain people. Needless to say I had an interview the following Monday somewhere else.
Chucky Cheezburger 4 years ago
Been there.Donr that.Told them to shove is where the sun dont shine
#23
JEANS DAY
Mohammad Ammar 4 years ago
Unless you're directly working with clients I don't see what problem people have with jeans at work. And if it's ok for a Friday then what about the other 4 days of the week?
Caryle 4 years ago
I worked at a company where they actually charged us money to wear jeans instead of business casual as a fundraiser I wanted to stab everybody in there , and to have the sheer gall to act like it was a privilege they were extending when they could have just made it possible for everybody to wear jeans instead of extorting money from us
Victoria Pitt 4 years ago
Guess I'm blessed that in my office everyday is jeans day. Thank goodness.
Ryan Badgley 4 years ago
You were allowed to wear jeans on fri but had to pay a dollar to do so
Pheebs 4 years ago
I like jeans Friday. General attire is business casual (slacks and polo/button shirt) for most, some form of suit for higher up the chain. We don’t have clients as it’s a chill, so we’re required to maintain the business look to differentiate from students. I actually get it - you would not believe how some of the profs would roll up in to class without a dress code.
Nina Khmielnitzky 3 years ago
In 2008, when the enomony crisis hit, the company I used to work for stopped all fun freebies. I mean, our dept used to take the whole team on an off-site activity (while paying us to do so), like a spa day to get a care of our choosing and we'd spend the night, or to visit a vineyard and have a great gourmet lunch there, cupcakes every month for the birthday people of that month, amazing xmas parties. All came to a screeching halt. We used to be allowed jeans only on Fridays. I suggested they let us wear jeans everyday, as a morale boost which wouldn't cost the company anything, and cost us a lot less in dry cleaning of our pre-crisis nice work clothes. Everyone saved money that way. I stayed for another 8 years. Conditions were slowly decreasing, but I left when I got for my last year there the shittiest boss ever. In a much better place now.
Urbangirlatl 4 years ago
I worked for a company that let you pay $5 towards their charity to wear jeans. I did not wear jeans.
#24
In a plastics factory where you're lifting 100+ pound iron molding pieces repetitively, they actually had the balls to point to a gym area that was "open to all employees". They couldn't figure out why only the office people ever used it.
Rissie 4 years ago
Well. By training your whole body correctly you are less likely to be injured when lifting things. Also this employer stinks.
Rumple Schleppskin 4 years ago
So.. Workout before work(which is a workout in itself) or after. I had a job that had me lifting and pushing and walking over 13 miles, everyday. Outside. They too had a gym area, and listed exercise as a benefit. Not saying it isn't, it's maybe they most fit I have been. But you may as well list sunshine as a benefit too.
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M O'Connell 4 years ago
What kind of place doesn't have jib cranes, or at least hydraulic lift carts for that kind of thing?!
Al Christensen 4 years ago
The company could have saved money and increased productivity by having office staff spend time on the production floor.
#25
Company branded tennis shoes for Christmas. When am I ever going to want to wear tennis shoes that are company colors and have the logo of a hospital on them? They’re against dress code at work too lol.
SueMcB 4 years ago
We get slogan or logo t-shirts we can't wear at work. I'm not going to wear that when I'm not working, either!
Grayson Wrigley 4 years ago
Ours were always way oversized, so I used them as smocks when I was painting or doing anything messy. Great wear for an at-home hair dyeing session too.
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Two_rolling_black_eyes 4 years ago
Don't get clothes with logos in general. Why should I give you free marketing or even pay you to market your product? I don't think I'm in danger of losing Victoria's Secret, Disney, or Coke if I don't wear a hoodie with their logo on it.
Lynn Bulmahn 5 months ago
Well, the thing to do is to give them to a homeless shelter so the clothing and shoes with the company logo can be worn outside on Skid Row by the unfortunate clients of said shelter. I'm sure that will make your employer very happy (Not!), since he is so gung-ho about the company image. But it will help the unhoused people and will make you happy knowing you helped.
#26
I had an employer that offered discounted tickets (theme parks, sporting events, concerts, etc) through a third-party website. The website charged a service fee that made the tickets the same price or sometimes more expensive than if you bought them through traditional methods.
Rissie 4 years ago
Oh this happens all the time. It's mostly naive HR people falling for it. My husband received a login fomrom his employer. Because people working in hospitals need extra special care was their reasoning. All these so called discounts were just the normal prices or higher.Now my hubby is in IT and administration but it's such an awful way to treat people that actually provide care and get average pay. Kick in the face it is
Marco Hub-Dub 4 years ago
Beneplace. It’s a corporate discount site that offers the same with pages tailored to specific companies. Everything from concerts to electronics and outdoor wear to cruises. Only, the service fees bring the cost higher than public discounts. Yet, the TOS allows them to provide your purchases and usage to your employer. Your job can track your purchases and vacations. Gross!!!!
#27
The “stress management apps”.
Julius Zuke 4 years ago
They take this a step further with teachers--they make us attend live SEL (social emotional learning) professional development sessions. They were actually helpful for me. During one session toward the end of the school year, a presenter asked me to share with the group how I have been exercising "self-care." I answered honestly, "I'm retiring next month." Not the answer they were expecting. You could have heard a pin drop. LOL, I loved teaching but don't miss all the disregard of human dignity that teachers endure day after day after day.
Huddo's sister 4 years ago
The stress relief PD I did was basically, fake laugh until you are really laughing!
Load More Replies... #28
Pizza on fridays in the break room. But it’s also a Bible study.
Rijkærd 4 years ago
Damn f*****g Bible study. I got fired as a graduate intern for not attending this s**t..less than 5 mnths didnt even finish my probation period at the place...am not a religious person. The place was'nt religious based, just a psycho bible ninja boss with a holyfucking attitude that stank to high heavens ....
Phill Healey 4 years ago
It says in the Bible that you should practice Christianity without preaching it or making a big deal of it to others. Therefore by forcing others to attend was actually going against God's word.
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abby smink 4 years ago
I know a lot of jokes are made about the "free pizza," but in healthcare, all anyone ever cares about his weekday morning shifts. So unless you want cold pizza that's been sitting on a counter for 5+ hours, you'll have to buy it yourself, and I often did.
Marco Conti 4 years ago
Let me tell you how I would cherish the chance to sit in on a mandatory Bible Study session with people like that. Even though I am an atheist, Bible studies and early Christianities is one of my hobbies. I must have 300 hours of lectures under my belt, along with probably 50+ books, annotated. I think I made the local, smashingly dressed JW couple cry once. They sent their boss the next week and he was even more ignorant of basic apologetics than they were. The poor mormon missionaries that showed up at my door were ready to dedicate their lives to Satan (I don't believe in him either) after I was done with them. Alas, I was never in a position to make these people eat their religious powertrips in the workplace.
#29
Bear with me, but it was a "game room."
It was actually a nice setup: table tennis, a few cabinets, and every console of the day.
The only problem was that anybody that actually used it during working hours was judged incredibly harshly. Like, it showed up in performance reviews. I think the hope was that it would drive people to play after hours and maybe eke a bit of extra work out of them. All of us just wanted to GTFO of the fluorescent-lit prison we'd just spent 8-9 hours in.
Eagle Girl 4 years ago
Oh if I got written up in a performance review for using an on-site facility, at the end when they ask your feedback, I'd give notice.
#30
“Experience”
You can get experience from a colonoscopy. Doesn’t mean you’re going to be able to use or monetize that experience outside of the paradigm within which you acquired said experience. And that’s assuming you wanted the experience in the first place.
James016 4 years ago
I've had a colonoscopy, it was not too bad as they gave me a mild anaesthetic, the prep for it, however was the worst thing ever.
Freya the Wanderer 4 years ago
There was an entire BP thread about a needlepoint company requesting that artists send ideas for patterns, and in return the artists would receive "exposure." Many of them sent patterns mocking the idea of being paid in "exposure." Anybody know how to find it?
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Kishibe Angelo 4 years ago (edited)
so they put their finger in my butt. gonna be hard not to be hard
#31
One year we got ikea Candle holders. The cheapest available. My Boss bought himself a new Porsche. They still wonder why so many ppl (incl me) quit the following year.
KMill 4 years ago
Sometimes, your holiday gift or appreciation gift is bought and paid for by the secretary, assistant, or receptionist when the big boss forgets. I did this once when the big boss was suddenly out on medical leave. I didn’t want people to have nothing. This little token wasn’t much but it was all I could afford for 60 people.
#32
A Rice Krispie Treat for working through the Pandemic. They MAILED it to me.
Kari Marine 4 years ago
Staff that still worked in the clinic got cookies to show appreciation. The telework staff were supposed to get cookies mailed to them. Never saw them..
#33
Company listed "healthcare benefits" in their job description. I was SO excited because I was uninsured at the time. I asked about it at orientation and the manager hands me a pamphlet with a coupon for a reduced cost clinic for uninsured people in a city 60 miles away. Awesome.
EntTown 4 years ago
I wonder what American companies will do to attract workers if things like healthcare and required time off are provided/mandated by the government?
Vetus Vespertilio 4 years ago
No point in wondering. It’s not going to happen.
Load More Replies... #34
You will see the world. I’ve been in the Navy almost 5 years, and haven’t left the U.S.
Pilot Chick 4 years ago
My friend was in the military for 8 years before she left the central time zone
#35
I was working in a brand new Amazon warehouse. On payday they had people standing at the exits (which were right past the metal detectors you had to go through) handing out Payday candy bars. I just wanted to scream at this insult. Instead I just cried in my car.
Steve Fischer 4 years ago
That's why Jeff Bezo is worth over $200 billion dollars! Capitalism is the legal method to steal from the workers and give to the rich!
Freya the Wanderer 4 years ago
Remember the Amazon workers who were ordered to stay at their posts in the middle of a tornado warning?
Load More Replies... Robert T 4 years ago
Chocolate to help soften the blow of the very small numbers on your paycheck. On a more positive note, one place I worked at in Belgium handed out free chocolate to everyone (including contractors like me) on Valentine's Day as we went into the office.
Nunya Business 4 years ago
Does Payday have chocolate in it? I' thought it was all peanuts.
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Blarrg 4 years ago
I'm not seeing what's so upsetting here. You get your check with your agreed-upon salary, and as an added gesture of appreciation they give you a candy bar. Yeah, I guess I would rather have a bigger gesture, but I would still eat the candy bar.
Diana 3 years ago
The workers didn't received their payment on payday, the superiors at the warehouse made fun of the situation by insinuating that they would receive their payment but instead gave the employees a candy bar named "payday"
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Dave Smith 4 years ago
I could understand screaming if they were paying you in candy bars, what an insult. You work hard and they give you candy as pay. How can they get away with this.
Erik Lawrence 4 years ago
what? who is being paid in candy? nobody is getting away with paying in candy because it isnt happening. they were being given candy bars in addition to their paycheck, obviously.
Load More Replies... #36
I was working at a high-end furniture showroom just as I was graduating. I was getting paid 8.5€/h (in Slovenia), I was 24, and I was offered a 10% discount on 15,000 € kitchens.
Lola 4 years ago
Ok, this doesn’t sound too bad. You can’t expect to work at high end places and be able to afford the merchandise. No everyone who works for Ferrari can afford to buy one.
Valisbourne Spiritforge 4 years ago
So it's a great benefit at the Ferrari place if they give a 5% discount on Ferrari's? I think you are missing the point here.
Load More Replies... #37
3 free mental health counseling sessions. As if I will pour out all my s**t on-site, in the office to a counselor who is associated with my employer. Doctor patient confidentiality my a**.
Erik Lawrence 4 years ago
prove it. the key is proof. without documentation, or some other solid proof it means nothing at all in court. so you just wasted time, money, and the whole situation... where you could just avoid it to start with. common sense isnt common enough.
Load More Replies... #38
I asked for a raise after two years, and been told: « When’s your birthday ? July? I offer you that you go at the restaurant with your family, and send me the bill » Never felt that insulted to be honest
Mohammad Ammar 4 years ago (edited)
Have a party with all your friends and fam at the most expensive restaurant you can find.oh and pay for everyone else there. Then sEnd tHe BiLl
kaycee14 4 years ago
You'd have to pay the bill first, then submit the receipt... which cheap boss would refuse to reimburse you for.
Load More Replies... #39
Not necessarily a benefit, just something they thought could benefit their workers. They had a sleep specialist come in and talk to us about the importance of getting to bed at the same time every night. Talking to 300+ people who work a rotating shift. We worked a different shift every week so our sleep schedules were in constant flux. I rotated for 7 years, my dad did it for 17. It’s hard on the body. Thankfully the plant is on locked shifts now and I’m straight days.
Brandon Marlowe 4 years ago
Should be illegal to switch worker's shifts often.
Load More Replies... #40
PTO as follows: Hired start with zero days. Accrue one day per YEAR up to five days after 5 or more years worked.
King Joffrey 4 years ago
Not in the US mate. In the UK where I live 20 days is the legal minimum (in addition to bank holidays).
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#41
A mandatory party where we were…aggressively encouraged to participate in activities like dance offs. Who doesn’t love mandatory fun?
Jerry Mathers 4 years ago
That was my first thought. If it's mandatory, then it's paid.
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#42
In 1994, I worked at a video store for $3.25/hr. Minimum wage was $4.25 at the time but I was told it was legal because I got one free rental per shift.
Nunya Business 4 years ago
At that rate you can't even afford the TV or video player to play them on!
Kelly Taylor 4 years ago
I'm sure they would rent them a player at a small additional fee
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#43
Lunch and Learn. Bring your own lunch but come sit in this room so we can learn you some s**t while you eat. Basically a voluntary mid-shift detention.
Mandy Schramm 4 years ago
My office does lunch and learns which are voluntary and scheduled at noon to get as many ppl as possible. I go to them sometimes. And then take my lunch break.
#44
I worked in a jail. I got to have free food made by the inmates. It was the same food they were fed, which, in my opinion met the criteria of cruel and unusual punishment.
Tom Jones 4 years ago
So you a prison guard who is keeping inmates from escaping, and the inmates you are guarding are preparing your food. Hmmmmm.
Lucretia Rossi 6 days ago
This! I'm a prison CO, and I have worked in a jail. Prison food is even worse than jail food! It's insane. But then the state DOC always goes on and on about inmate medical costs!
Samantha Eddy 4 years ago (edited)
Ouch. Pour inmates that were wrongly convicted. Or inmates that were convicted for petty crimes.
#45
‘Free fruit Fridays’ which turned out to be a bunch of bruised apples in the same old cardboard box every week :/
#47
Company sweater (meant as uniform) but given as a new year's "gift".
Nunya Business 4 years ago
Yeah, I don't wear sweaters, I'd die of heat stroke. Did you HAVE to wear them?
memyselfandI 4 years ago
It can also depend on the area. Like how where I live, in December to about March, you generally need a jacket at least in the mornings, if not midday. But any other season and most of the time it’s overkill.
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#48
10 days PTO that you had to take on 10 specific dates, but they made it out like it was a huge favor to me.
Nunya Business 4 years ago
I got 3 days PTO to last 15 months! And we're not allowed to take a day off without pay.
#49
Unpaid sick leave (I’m not in the US so this was quite outrageous )
Robert T 4 years ago
My other half has unpaid sick leave in the UK. But this is only up until Statutory Sick Pay kicks in after 4 days. However, SSP is only a small portion of her income. I think this is fairly normal in the hotel and catering industry. I had full pay from mine, and I had some serious time off for chemo.
Mandy Harris 4 years ago
Unpaid sick leave is very common in Canada - Ontario at least. It is not mandatory to offer paid sick time to employees. When I was out sick, I had to use vacation days (yes, even during this pandemic).
Victoria Pitt 4 years ago
I'm in the US and all my jobs offered paid sick leave...? Except my part time jobs as a teen I suppose.
Dave Smith 4 years ago
What company was it, what country. How long was you sick for, with what. So much information not given. ( The most information given was where you are not) outrageous
#50
A $1.50 raise over the span of 4 years.
Robert T 4 years ago
I got £0.61/hr over the last 5 years if that helps. I'd hand in my notice, but I'm the boss.
Lauren Caswell 4 years ago
You need to have a stern talk with your boss/employee
Load More Replies... #51
We were each allotted £2 a head to spend on lunch, once a month. With a dozen or so of us in the office, we'd pool it together and get 3-4 pizzas :(
#52
At one point, management would make the rounds Friday's and collect $5 from everyone wearing jeans for upper management pet charity. I figured screw this, I dress like Jake from State Farm every other day.
Hotrobot 4 years ago
Yep! I did not work for this company, but worked with the guy who implemented this "fun perk" on a committee. Their employees could "donate" a percentage of their salary to a charity picked out by the company (auto-docted from pay) and get to wear jeans on Friday's. And if they increased their donation (something like 10%) they got to wear jeans all week. Basically the employee's paid for the privilege of being comfortable in a horrible work environment and the company got amazing PR for donating so much to charity. They workers were never credited.
Amanda Nolting 4 years ago
Kind of the same. Worked at a bank where if you donated at all to United Way monthly (also auto deducted from your paycheck) you could wear jeans on Friday. A lot of people donated like $1 a paycheck. But if you donated a certain percentage you got an extra day off per year. Still crappy. Still never acknowledged the employees for the donations.
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#53
Record your exercise activity in an app every friggin day in order to get $100 off the cost of your health insurance. Not worth my time and breach of privacy to save what works out to be < $10 month.
Mike Loux 4 years ago
Last company I was at did this for people who had "high markers" in several diagnostics - so it basically punished obese and/or diabetic people. Smokers, too. I had a high-deductible health care plan and pretty much paid for everything out of my HSA and/or pocket (plus despite being overweight and a type II diabetic I have no symptoms), so I cost the company almost nothing, but they chose to pull this bullshit anyway. It's one of the (many) reasons I left.
#54
I worked at McDonald's as a teen and they only offered a 50% discount so long as you purchased two meals...so basically "you get half off but only if you buy twice as much". Unless you brought a friend, it wasn't really a discount. Also, no shift meals despite their food costs being literal pennies.
UpQuarkDownQuark 4 years ago
I loved that I would throw away pounds and pounds of food on my shift at McDonald’s, but employees get half off food AND have to wait in line with customers on their break to get food. Luckily, they had a habit of asking you to take the trash out at the end of your shift, so I’d pile food meant to be tossed out into a clean bag in the trash bag, and take an armload of burgers and nuggets. If I’d been caught, I would have been fired for stealing food from the garbage.
#55
$25 metro card once a month, which was only one week worth of commuting. And this was at a law firm.
#56
"Making a difference in the world"
#57
I work retail and if we catch people doing certain sneaky things (switching price tags, nesting items, miss matching sets, etc) we get a "bonus" of $1.25. They push it so hard, and right now it's "DOUBLE CIPs!!" like $2.50 is going to make up for the fact that I make minimum wage.
Mike Loux 4 years ago
And how do they monitor this sneaky activity? Is it your word only, or do you have to produce recordings and such? Because I could see people gaming the system (reminds me of the Dilbert cartoon where they promised a cash reward for every bug they fixed - next thing we see Dilbert going off to "code myself a Ferrari").
#58
We got a free meal out of the "run off goods" for our lunch every day. It was literally
"we can't sell this, it's literally worthless to us. Say thank you"
Not A Panda 4 years ago
This is the basis of Too Good To Go (and other such schemes I'm sure) where they have to throw out food because of legal requirements. Food that is often still good for quite some time. It's not a bad idea at all.
#59
A couple of years ago I was offered a cell phone from 2006, with its according thick antenna. They gave it to me when I asked for a cell phone to call company customers. I worked in sales.
Caroline 4 years ago
Don't kill me for this (explain nicely ^^') but if it's just for calling, what does it matter if the phone is from 2006?
Victoria Pitt 4 years ago
I would think you would need a phone that offers emails and allows you to video call and set appointments in a calendar, etc... I really doubt any modern day salesman works exclusively through phone calls.
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Rissie 4 years ago
Haha, I once worked for Tele2 and they gave us the cheapest phones on the market. And this was a time where almost everything was sim locked. Sound quality was Fisher Price like. Hilarious, because the customers were raked in with all the newest models. And our personal phones were way better.
#60
A space heater that my boss yells at me whenever I turn on.
#61
Friday bagel club: Sign up and you get bagels every Friday. When it’s your turn, you have to buy (and pick up) bagels for everyone in bagel club Just to add, by the time I lift, bagel had probably 50+ members, that’s a lot of bagels to carry. I felt so bad for people who commuted to work without a car.
ephemeral_mochi 4 years ago
The first rule of Bagel Club is that you never talk about Bagel Club.
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#62
Guaranteed hours, as if that’s not bare minimum.
SlartyBlartFast 4 years ago
One job offer I viewed once stated "paying your salary on time each month" as a benefit....
Robert T 4 years ago
That's not to be sniffed at. When I got my salary late one month, then in cash the following month, I quit. I was peeved as I had just spoken with the MD a couple of months earlier prior to taking out a mortgage. Fortunately a colleague had been trying to poach me for a while, so I had a job to step into.
Load More Replies... #63
Guaranteed I'd never be required to work overtime, evenings, or on weekends. Sounds great until you find out that means 50 hours of work still need to get done in 40 hours.
Guido Pisano 4 years ago
If you work on hours no matter if you've finished, otherwise it is piece rate system and they've to pay on the base of work done no matter how time you use or how many hours you work per day.
#64
Previous employer was a cinema. The ONLY perk was free cinema tickets. Because returning to work on your days off is a delight.
Requiem 4 years ago
Thats not "work" and yes going to the movies for free is a perk. So either your watching movies at your "horrible" hard job or you never see any as you cant handle going to "work" to not do any work but watch movies
AngelWingsYT 4 years ago
Yeaa idk how this is bad. My place does this (1 free a week for you AND a friend) plus free small popcorn n drink for both you
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AngelWingsYT 4 years ago
It is. Good way to see movies you arent sure youll like n not waste money on a bad movie👍
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CanadianaKa 4 years ago
That's how my mom learned English in the Netherlands and precisely WHY she took a job at a local cinema... But this was in the early '50s
AngelWingsYT 4 years ago
I work at the movies. 1 free movie a week! And theres been a TON of good movies! Also we have an adoby atmos theater (ultra surround sound) that is also included (usually $10)
#65
15% tuition reimbursement if you promise to stay 5 years beyond graduation lmao If not, gotta pay us back in full or else we withhold your final paycheck as well as tax documents :) Edit: 15% tuition reimbursement for job related majors. "We really want our employees to grow into the best versions of themselves... If and only if it helps us along the way :)"
Davo gifman 4 years ago
I don't know where you're at, but where I live it's illegal for any business to withhold any tax documents.
#66
Worked understaffed for half a year. End of the year came and instead of a bonus/raise, I got a $100 Starbucks gift card. I don’t drink coffee.
cybermerlin2000 4 years ago
Starbucks does tea, hot chocolate and cold/soft drinks as well as coffee, and they do food too. Still a sh*tty 'bonus' though
#67
“Fun” trainings at the weekend with lunch paid for.
#68
We get a holiday party for 6 people with a budget of 40 dollars...
#69
One week of vacation time, and $150 credit for health insurance we had to get ourselves.
Samantha Eddy 4 years ago (edited)
Clearly not America because that would be decent and usual here.
#70
Free Coffee* and other drinks!** *we can’t use the professional coffee machine that’s used for making Lattes, Cappuccinos or Irish Coffees. We have to use the jar of instant coffee. **The ‘other drinks’ are tea and squash. Not hot chocolate. The only coffee I can drink without feeling ill is a mocha.
Tom Hanlin 4 years ago
Squash? Like a gourd? Is there a kind of drinkable pumpkin I haven't heard about?
#71
They got rid of it... but the month before our annual wellness incentive (if you scored in the ranges they were happy about you got $$$) we'd suddenly have catered high calorie meals and cake. Now they just ask us to have a doc signed by a physician stating we had a physical and they give us the $$$
#73
A coworker of mine had an office upgrade in lieu of an actual raise. He went from a cubicle to a closed office with a door mind you!
#74
It wasn’t a benefit offered at employment, but at one of my first jobs I hated the job and wasn’t the best employee. The pay was terrible, the conditions were terrible. I called in a lot and it upset my boss and his boss (understandably). But I was good at the job, and they felt it’d be tough to find someone else who would put up with those conditions so they kept me. During a yearly evaluation, negotiating an insignificant pay raise, i mentioned that i wasn’t able to pay my bills and if I couldn’t get full-time status with this insignificant pay raise and the vacation days/healthcare that came with it, i had no choice but to get a different job. My boss was understanding so he passed my concerns to his boss. His boss said “He won’t be able to work anywhere else. No one else will give him the leniency we do with absenteeism.” You know… instead of realizing there might be a problem that needs addressing if your employee never wants to be at work. So their “offer” in lieu of decent pay or conditions was instead to continue letting me be depressed and call in a lot with minimal backlash. I got a different job making 3.5x the wage and started paying bills and stopped missing work.
Requiem 4 years ago
yeah you are unfit to work anywhere and need to be on disability for your "depression" NO one else would hire you with your constant absenteeism.
RedMarbles 4 years ago
Sounds like they were fit for the new job though. The story is lacking the details about what made the first job so awful they missed a lot of work (and so awful the employer didn't think they could find someone to do as good a job with less absenteeism).
Load More Replies... #75
The horrible Keurig machine.
#76
10k towards fertility services. I’m childfree.
Kristin Ingersoll 4 years ago
My company offered amazing fertility and adoption perks as well as paternity leave that goes above and beyond. I've never had kids, but I still think those are amazing perks. I also pay my taxes to educate other people's kids. I'm 100% okay with that.
Shine Caramia 4 years ago
It's too bad that there isn't a good equivalent for childfree people, because that actually is a very nice benefit.
#78
My coworkers who have been at this company for 20 years, one relocated three times for the job. They got a $20 gift card and a pamphlet of all the items they can pay for to get at a discount. One thing was a dryer vent. That was about the only good thing in there.
What do you think ?
Jo Choto 4 years ago
I bow down and give thanks at the altar of self-employed small business owner/contractor where I do the work I love on my own schedule. May I never, ever have to work for anyone else ever again.
Gaby Almodovar 4 years ago
From what kind of work-slave countries are these answers? Real workplace-benefit are 13. month salary, Christmas-money, share-money or working in hotel-industry discounts for you and family members booking rooms in the hotels of the hotel-chain, where are you working. Using for free the facilities of the hotel, where are you working at: like gym, sauna, tennis-playground or having discounts in the hotel's shops, if you want to buy something there.
K Witmer 4 years ago
These are all from the American dream capital of the world good ole USA. These are all commonplace and they are actively trying to bully and shame people into thinking this is great for us and were so privileged. The brainwashed trump supporting conservatives all worship this ideology too while not being able to afford to eat. We have a workers shortage now but the people in charge are still making their millions of dollars in bonuses.
Load More Replies...
ben woskje 4 years ago
First "career" job out of uni - was on a starting salary in the 90's - approx $25k pre-tax. Got chewed out by my manager, as a 20 year old, because i didn't use the salary packaging solution the MD was getting kickbacks from. I was living at home, had a $300 car... at that stage in my life my money went towards savings (for a house) or beer... Still remember that psycho b*tch to this day.
Bob Belcher 4 years ago (edited)
I took a job at Travlers Insurance when I was starting college. One of the main reasons I took the job was because they offered tuition reimbursement up to $5000 a year. Sounds great for a college student. After the year long probation period I applied for it. Never heard anything back. 2nd semester I applied again and again never heard anything back. I asked my manager what was up and she referred me to HR. HR said all applications have to go to the VP of such and such. I emailed that person directly and was told they never received anything either semester. I asked HR what happened and was told my current position doesn't require a college degree so it was never sent for approval. This is the same company that each year you have to complete and have your manager approve an IDP - Individual Development Plan. Each year I wrote I wanted to go into finance or underwriting which requires a degree. Yeah, F them to hell and back.
Tuesday Next 4 years ago
I worked at a tourist site for a while that A) allowed us to purchase items from the gift shop at cost... including the t-shirts we had to wear to work if we wanted to wear anything other than the one uniform shirt they gave us that didn't breathe at all, which was important because B) a significant part of the job involved moderately heavy lifting and shoveling dirt in an outdoor area that could get over 110 F in midsummer, which was also the busiest time of the year. Management said they'd give us water, but all that meant was they'd buy one case of water bottles from Sam's Club at the beginning of summer and that was it.
bumble bee 4 years ago
What this goes to show is how coercive, manipulative employers really are towards their workers. People need to start standing up against places that practice these outrageous and often illegal policies.
Freya the Wanderer 4 years ago
Why are so many managers, bosses and supervisors such @s$holes? Too many of the folks at the top are concerned with only the bottom line, and not the health or happiness of the employees on whom they depend.
Load More Replies...
Melissa Hollowell 4 years ago
I was once rewarded for my amazing performance...with an @$$load of more work. I literally asked them out and they said yes as if this was the most normal and logical thing in the world.
Huddo's sister 4 years ago
"Educator appreciation day" One day where you get a massage or a box of chocolate is meant to make up for the way they treat you the rest of the time.
Khavrinen 4 years ago
The one that makes my blood boil isn't quite as bad as most of these, it's just the ridiculous cynicism of it that bothers me. I get 3-5 envelopes every month with big "Employer Benefits!" labels on them, and they're almost always ads for insurance companies. Oh boy, [ Employer]!! What a tremendous benefit -- *more* *junk* *mail*!!! Such generosity!
Jo Choto 4 years ago
I bow down and give thanks at the altar of self-employed small business owner/contractor where I do the work I love on my own schedule. May I never, ever have to work for anyone else ever again.
Gaby Almodovar 4 years ago
From what kind of work-slave countries are these answers? Real workplace-benefit are 13. month salary, Christmas-money, share-money or working in hotel-industry discounts for you and family members booking rooms in the hotels of the hotel-chain, where are you working. Using for free the facilities of the hotel, where are you working at: like gym, sauna, tennis-playground or having discounts in the hotel's shops, if you want to buy something there.
K Witmer 4 years ago
These are all from the American dream capital of the world good ole USA. These are all commonplace and they are actively trying to bully and shame people into thinking this is great for us and were so privileged. The brainwashed trump supporting conservatives all worship this ideology too while not being able to afford to eat. We have a workers shortage now but the people in charge are still making their millions of dollars in bonuses.
Load More Replies... ben woskje 4 years ago
First "career" job out of uni - was on a starting salary in the 90's - approx $25k pre-tax. Got chewed out by my manager, as a 20 year old, because i didn't use the salary packaging solution the MD was getting kickbacks from. I was living at home, had a $300 car... at that stage in my life my money went towards savings (for a house) or beer... Still remember that psycho b*tch to this day.
Bob Belcher 4 years ago (edited)
I took a job at Travlers Insurance when I was starting college. One of the main reasons I took the job was because they offered tuition reimbursement up to $5000 a year. Sounds great for a college student. After the year long probation period I applied for it. Never heard anything back. 2nd semester I applied again and again never heard anything back. I asked my manager what was up and she referred me to HR. HR said all applications have to go to the VP of such and such. I emailed that person directly and was told they never received anything either semester. I asked HR what happened and was told my current position doesn't require a college degree so it was never sent for approval. This is the same company that each year you have to complete and have your manager approve an IDP - Individual Development Plan. Each year I wrote I wanted to go into finance or underwriting which requires a degree. Yeah, F them to hell and back.
Tuesday Next 4 years ago
I worked at a tourist site for a while that A) allowed us to purchase items from the gift shop at cost... including the t-shirts we had to wear to work if we wanted to wear anything other than the one uniform shirt they gave us that didn't breathe at all, which was important because B) a significant part of the job involved moderately heavy lifting and shoveling dirt in an outdoor area that could get over 110 F in midsummer, which was also the busiest time of the year. Management said they'd give us water, but all that meant was they'd buy one case of water bottles from Sam's Club at the beginning of summer and that was it.
bumble bee 4 years ago
What this goes to show is how coercive, manipulative employers really are towards their workers. People need to start standing up against places that practice these outrageous and often illegal policies.
Freya the Wanderer 4 years ago
Why are so many managers, bosses and supervisors such @s$holes? Too many of the folks at the top are concerned with only the bottom line, and not the health or happiness of the employees on whom they depend.
Load More Replies... Melissa Hollowell 4 years ago
I was once rewarded for my amazing performance...with an @$$load of more work. I literally asked them out and they said yes as if this was the most normal and logical thing in the world.
Huddo's sister 4 years ago
"Educator appreciation day" One day where you get a massage or a box of chocolate is meant to make up for the way they treat you the rest of the time.
Khavrinen 4 years ago
The one that makes my blood boil isn't quite as bad as most of these, it's just the ridiculous cynicism of it that bothers me. I get 3-5 envelopes every month with big "Employer Benefits!" labels on them, and they're almost always ads for insurance companies. Oh boy, [ Employer]!! What a tremendous benefit -- *more* *junk* *mail*!!! Such generosity!
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