Here in New England, we’re used to long, snowy winters, but this year we’re just beginning to see snow, and it’s been very mild. This means we haven’t had too many excuses to be late to work. However, that hasn’t stopped CareerBuilder® from compiling its annual list of the most outrageous excuses for being late to work!
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According to a press release from CareerBuilder, 25 percent of employees surveyed say they are late to work at least once a month, while 13 percent they are late at least once a week! And the reasons behind the tardiness aren’t your usual “I was stuck in traffic” excuses either! From the survey, employers shared the most outrageous excuses; here are some of the wackiest:
- I thought of quitting today, but then decided not to, so I came in late.
- My hair caught on fire from my blow dryer.
- I was detained by Homeland Security.
- I had to chase my cows back into the field.
- A black bear entered my carport and decided to take a nap on the hood of my car.
- My lizard had to have emergency surgery in the morning and died during surgery. I had to mourn while deciding whether to have the lizard disposed of by the vet or bring the lizard corpse with me to work.
- There was fresh powder on the hill. I had to go skiing.
- There was a store grand opening, and I wanted to get the opening day sales.
- I had to finish watching “My Name is Earl.”
- All of my clothes were stolen.
- I was confused by the time change and unsure if it was “spring forward” or “fall back.”
- A Vaseline truck overturned on the highway, and cars were slipping left and right.
CareerBuilder should have followed up with the employer who had to hear the lizard excuse. It would be interesting to know whether that employee actually did bring in the lizard corpse!
Coming from rural Connecticut, this author can attest to chasing cows back into the field! My mother once had to chase the neighbor’s pigs out of our garden, and when they wouldn’t budge, she called the local dog warden to come help! Needless to say, she was late to work!