The weird workplace

Lions, tigers and bears, oh my; Too much of a proposition; Free delivery – but with attitude; Driving (a big boat) under the influence; Shaking it off

Free delivery – but with attitude
THORNHILL, ONT. — Maybe he was having a particularly bad day, but a pizza delivery person took things too far recently when he sent angry texts to a customer, according to CityNews. When Nadisha Mendes’ pizza arrived later than the 40-minutes-or-free deadline, she was told by Pizza Pizza customer service her food would be free. But after the delivery guy left, Mendes started to receive increasingly nasty texts from him, with one saying: “I don’t know how you can enjoy eating a cheated pizza with a straight conscience.” He then went on to mention the customer’s weight: “Maybe u shouldn’t be eating such a big pizza all to urself this late at night even if it’s free cuz u looked like u could lose a few pounds.” Mendes later complained to the company. “How are you supposed to trust Pizza Pizza anymore because who knows how many (employees) can text you now… they have your information.” she said. The employee was subsequently fired. “I’ve been doing this for 30-plus some-odd years and it is totally unacceptable what this gentleman did,” said Pat Finelli, chief marketing officer for Pizza Pizza.

Lions and tigers and bears, oh my
JAKARTA — We’ve heard about employees being replaced by robots, but what about crocodiles? In Indonesia, the chief of the National Narcotics Agency recently said he was considering using crocodiles to keep death-row convicts from escaping from an island prison — and possibly tigers and piranhas, according to Reuters. Budi Waseso said he was studying the power and aggression of the reptiles, and he may ultimately use up to 1,000 crocodiles as guards. “The number will depend on how big the area is or whether perhaps to combine them with piranhas,” he said. “Because the (prison) personnel numbers are short, we can use wild animals. We could use tigers too — for conservation at the same time.” 

Too much of a proposition
LOS ANGELES — No stranger to controversy, American Apparel found itself in hot water recently when it asked retail workers to wear shirts that said “Ask me to take it all off.” The outfits, in anticipation of Black Friday sales in late November, were said to be optional but “highly encouraged” and employees who declined were encouraged to wear a button with the same message. “American Apparel is giving my consent to our customers to harass me, if I wear that shirt,” one store employee told Jezebel. “I find this slogan really disgusting and in poor taste… There’s no question in my mind that anyone wearing the shirt will face inappropriate comments from customers.” In the end, the company decided to discontinue the practice, saying, “American Apparel is a company that values free speech and, most importantly, creating an environment where employees feel valued, protected and safe. As such, we have decided to discontinue this slogan and will seek other ways to stay creative and push the envelope.”

Driving (a big boat) under the influence
KILCHOAN, SCOTLAND — — Fulfilling two stereotypes, a drunken Russian sailor managed to crash a 7,000-ton, 129-metre-long cargo ship off the coast of Scotland last winter, according to a report from the U.K.’s Marine Accident Investigation Branch. A mariner who drank half-a-litre of rum before work apparently slammed into the rocky shoreline near Kilchoan in the early morning hours of Feb. 18 — at full speed. A breath test taken a few hours later found his breath alcohol was at 2.71 mg/ml — almost eight times the U.K. limit for professional seafarers. The ship’s owner has a zero tolerance alcohol policy onboard and was supposed to carry out random alcohol and drug testing, according to CNN. But the investigation found the Lysblink Seaways carried a bonded store, which included a stock of spirits, beer and wine, and crew members often ignored the zero alcohol rule. In the end, the ship was so badly damaged, it had to be scrapped.

Shaking it off
WASHINGTON, D.C. — A Washington, D.C., police officer has become an online celebrity after she tried to defuse a heated situation — by dancing. After police broke up two groups of kids, a female officer asked them to disperse, according to the Washington Post. Instead, Aaliyah Taylor walked up to the officer and started playing a popular song on her phone, and started dancing. The office responded by saying she had far better moves, and a dance-off ensued — to be filmed and posted online, of course. “Instead of us fighting, she tried to turn it around and make it something fun,” said Taylor. “I never expected cops to be that cool. There are some good cops.” But these sorts of personal interactions between officers and residents aren’t unusual — it’s just that most don’t make it to the Internet, according to Marinos Marinos, secretary of the D.C. police union.

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