“Not My Job”: 80 Funny Times It Looked Like People Didn’t Even Try (Best Of All Time)

Working a job you don't like can be a drag. Here's a sad statistic for you: according to LinkedIn, 85% of employees don't like their workplace. Whether it's their boss, the location, their colleagues, the customers, or just the nature of the job itself, many people would rather slack off or do something else instead.

When a person hates their job, they probably don't do it very well. That's where the subreddit "Not My Job" comes in. They collect the best and funniest instances where employees are doing the absolute bare minimum that's in their job description. And today, we're featuring the best of the best pics from the community. Work smarter, not harder, right?

To discuss the 'Not my job' attitude in more detail, Bored Panda reached out to Louise Carnachan. She's an organization development consultant and award-winning author of Work Jerks: How to Cope with Difficult Bosses and Colleagues. Carnachan told us more about why some people feel unmotivated in the workplace and how employers can increase their motivation.

More info: Louise Carnachan | LinkedIn | Facebook

#1 Finished The Road Surfacing, Boss

Image credits: Nikoklis

Organizational development consultant Louise Carnachan says that the r/NotMyJob subreddit is full of woefully executed work we've all probably seen in daily life. She says the "I'll show you" type behavior the subreddit is famous for can be the consequence of being micromanaged. However, while it's one way to claim power, it's not a particularly healthy way, Carnachan says.

"Obviously, some of the images [are] of acts committed by the inattentive, disinterested, or vindictive. But it's unlikely that all were saying 'Screw you, boss' or were a consequence of incompetence. Some workers may have been assigned jobs for which they had no training [and] were given poor or no instruction and/or inadequate materials."

"Some of the goofs are clearly process problems, such as not having sweepers move debris away before the road striping truck came through. In other instances, I suspect the worker was never clued into the big picture, so their part was out of context and executed inadequately. Or, they just didn't apply common sense and think about what they were there to accomplish and why," Carnachan adds.

#2 The Chosen One

Image credits: ilostmyremote

#3 The Clock In My School’s Band Practice Room

Image credits: Hawkthemanaaaaaaa

"Mistakes involving language are ubiquitous in our global economy," Carnachan notes. These types of mistakes, she says, are often done by accident. "Mistranslations abound, spelling errors aren't caught, sometimes word orientation is upside down or sideways. (You'd hope signs could be hung up accurately, though.)"

"No doubt we've all been the recipient of form emails sent without the personalized information inserted, reminiscent of the speaker who begins their talk with, 'Greet the audience and say your name.'"

Other times, mistakes, whether they're intentional or not, can have a pretty funny result. "Typos are the best," Carnachan says. "As demonstrated on a sandwich label stating it contains 'Criminalized onion relish.'"

#4 Rail Installed, Boss!

Image credits: theshrike

#5 They Will Never Know The Difference

Image credits: HeartyHemlock

#6 Care To Elaborate??

Image credits: NeitherBandicoot

Mishaps can happen in any and all work settings, of course. "No one job classification has the corner on poor performance, but some jobs certainly have more public visibility," Carnachan tells us. "And some workers are self-motivated to be high performers, while others are not."

When scrolling through the r/NotMyJob subreddit, some people may label these types of workers as lazy. Yet, the reality is much more nuanced. "Effort is hard to evaluate because we only see results. We can't measure an individual's exertion," Carnachan explains. 

"One worker may put in a lot of effort yet achieve mediocre results, while another puts in less effort but obtains good results. Skill, ability, training, and personality traits impact this. There are people who are just in the wrong jobs," she also adds.

#7 Painted The Lines Boss

Image credits: Riresurmort

#8 Completed The Road Marking Boss

Image credits: lekshmikutty

#9 “I’m A Painter, Not An Exterminator.” -This Person Probably

Image credits: DimitriTooProBro

However, even the most dedicated and hard-working employees might not produce the best results sometimes. "There are many factors out of the worker's control," Carnachan notes. "Examples are the quality of the training and materials provided and how compensation or rewards are calculated (i.e., tied to production quotas or quality measures?). If I get paid by the piece and there aren't any real quality standards, I'll put out a lot of pieces."

#10 Edited The Picture, Boss!

Image credits: beerbellybegone

#11 Sorted Out The Emergency Phone Boss!

Image credits: Professional-Stick82

#12 There, That Should Do It

Image credits: bopaqod

Workers should get this information from their supervisors, Carnachan says. "Managers and crew leads are responsible for communicating the 'why' of the work and how it ties into an entire project. When people have no idea of what follows their labor, they work in a vacuum, and then, it's easy for them to make assumptions and bad decisions."

#13 Made The Title For The Ad Boss

Image credits: kings005

#14 Made The Error Message Boss

Image credits: PainOfClarity

#15 Installed The Water Faucet, Boss

Image credits: CoolJabez0404

In an office environment, corporate culture also comes into play. Carnachan lists some questions that might impact an employee's performance. "Is teamwork expected? Are folks responsible for noting and correcting mistakes regardless of who made them? Are service and customer satisfaction important, or is the mentality to just mark it [as] done?"

#16 Installed The Playground Boss

Image credits: IcyLaw651

#17 Thanks, Associate's Name

Image credits: tacochickenstrips

#18 Made The Name Tag, Boss

Image credits: SandiPsych

Seeing others do the bare minimum at work might be entertaining. That is until it happens at your own workplace. Indeed, sometimes, people might adopt the "Not my job" mentality to the extreme, and that might even be dangerous to others.

"The willful desire to create a safety hazard for others is beyond 'Sticking it to the man,'" Carnachan tells Bored Panda. "If it's a training issue and can be remediated, that's okay -- if not, this is the wrong person for the job, regardless of their motivation."

#19 Cr*ppy Submission:

Image credits: dbnp19

#20 My Contract Never Stated I Had To Move Rocks Away. Thank You Very Much

Image credits: ZeCerealKiller

#21 Security Dog

Image credits: Karm_Me_up

"When people are treated poorly, they tend to want to act out by sticking it to the boss," Carnachan explains the possible cause of the "Not my job" mentality. "But pushing back by refusing to do unpopular chores, like [taking] out trash, wash[ing] up, or restock[ing], becomes childish. 'We'll just see how bad it gets before somebody does something' should turn, instead, to a discussion about what needs to be done, who is doing it, and when."

#22 Clothing Display Done Boss!

Image credits: inste0

#23 Made The Engraving, Boss

Image credits: awesomeduuuu

#24 Cool Cake!

Image credits: jmvbmw

"Every job has elements that are less interesting, even downright unappealing," Carnachan points out. "But if there's a fair distribution and rotation and everyone knows what the rules are, it goes better. If the boss won't step up to [initiate] this conversation, then a staff member can."

#25 Fixed The Broken Clock, Boss

Image credits: theglasscat

#26 Got The Actors Boss!

Image credits: TheGasMove

#27 Workin For The Big Man

Image credits: parkinsonslaw

"Job descriptions don't get into details like restocking the printer," she adds. "It's up to the manager to set the stage for teamwork in their department and the expectations for communication, dealing with disagreements, being attentive to safety, owning the work of the entire team instead of just their own contribution, and [contributing] to the little tasks that are required for a smooth operation."

#28 I Posted The Job Offer Boss

Image credits: Kadus500

#29 Not My Job To Add The Subtitles

Image credits: til-f

#30 Amblivious

Image credits: Anonymous

Carnachan says that a team should adopt the view that each member "owns the work of the team." Employees, thus, should have a less individualistic approach to their work. "When people feel responsible solely for their own work, coworkers may start evaluating each other to monitor who they think is not pulling their weight."

"If a colleague's inattentive or their inaccurate work compromises safety or the team's outcomes, speaking to the manager about your concerns makes sense. But withholding help or engaging in stupid power plays to punish the colleagues or the boss isn't okay."

#31 Shower Vent Installed, Boss!

Image credits: lixjl7

#32 Installed Those TV's In The Headrests!

Image credits: TaurineCrinoid783

#33 "I Decided It Was Faster To Draw The QR Codes, Boss"

Image credits: speederaser

#34 My School Bought Modern Stuff. The Projector Was Placed Under The Screen

Image credits: batata_flita

#35 Got You All Wired Up, Sir

Image credits: oomenya333

#36 Added Subtitles, Boss

Image credits: -ksguy-

#37 A Fork In The Road

Image credits: animatorguy2

#38 Put The Signs On The Fuel Pumps, Boss!

Image credits: TragedyMaskBand

#39 Wrote The News Boss

Image credits: SlitheryScales

#40 Delivered The Package Boss

Image credits: nims_2525

#41 Just Told The Whole City No Crime Boss!

Image credits: Tommy_Adams09

#42 I Mean, It’s Important To Follow Safety Protocols

Image credits: HertzFrequently

#43 Updated Our Working Hours, Boss

Image credits: destinyspie

#44 Get Paid For Painting Not Moving Plants

Image credits: hellivvy

#45 Pasted The Poster Boss!

Image credits: MarryBorger

#46 Installed The Light Switch, Boss

Image credits: TyrTwiceForVictory

#47 Screens Up Boss

Image credits: notjustthemenyo

#48 Not Sure How This Made It Through Proofreading, Peer Review, And Copyediting

Image credits: fishsticks40

#49 Wrote The Fish Finger Copy, Boss

Image credits: mrbritchicago

#50 The Return To School Is Coming Strong

Image credits: ContributionOpen3966

#51 How I Bang Your Mother

Image credits: reddit.com

#52 That’s Good To Hear

Image credits: InternalEssayz

#53 Just Put Monday

Image credits: Toukoxxx

#54 Just Moved Into My New Apartment And Saw This

Image credits: anderscandor

#55 Labeled The Sports Boss

Image credits: valleykat25

#56 Got The Chatbot Working, Boss

Image credits: iwannadie469

#57 Proud Of The Local Crew And It Only Took Them A Month

Image credits: sandybeach82

#58 Wheelchairs Having Some Fun

Image credits: Tenchi_Muyo1

#59 Tbh This One's Kinda Impressive

Image credits: ShitStainedBallSack

#60 Straight Lines Painted Boss!

Image credits: -acid--rain-

#61 Placed The Sticker Boss

Image credits: its_brookelol

#62 I Dressed The Mannyqween Boss

Image credits: Rickqw22

#63 Finished Putting Up The Sign Boss

Image credits: Anonymous

#64 Took The Driver’s License Photo Boss

Image credits: awsome_repost_bro

#65 I Hung That Sign In The Parking Garage, Boss

Image credits: Gaggamaggot

#66 Got The Un Logo Boss

Image credits: jaquis89

#67 A New Hobby? Alright

Image credits: BlueYoshiFox6

#68 Godamnit Roy

Image credits: ntheg111

#69 Packed The Violin Bow, Boss

Image credits: selective_mutist

#70 The Brids

Image credits: elikessler

#71 Yup Boss, I Ordered A Normal-Sized Amount Of Fries For Our Normal-Sized Store

Image credits: LegoCMFanatic

#72 This Kind Of Belongs Here

Image credits: Grufffinance15

#73 Weather Update Posted Boss

Image credits: mad_shad123

#74 Yep Lockers Are Done Boss. What Do You Mean There Is A Problem?

Image credits: Previous_Reporter_63

#75 Everything Is Fine Boss

Image credits: sadPigeon18

#76 Made The Warning Label Boss

Image credits: Jazzlike_Sport_1417

#77 Ok What The F**k

Image credits: Aztery

#78 Apparently 2 City Planners In My Home Town Hated Each Other. We Call Them The Slant Streets

Image credits: Patsthlm

#79 Fixed Bridge, Boss

Image credits: Leandropr

#80 Translation Complete, Boss

Image credits: Mickwillie



source https://www.boredpanda.com/not-my-job-fails-best-of-all-time/
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