What's The Worst Job You Ever Had?

arctictree · 14-09-2018 3:12pm

Ragnar Lothbrok wrote: »

It's official: THAT has to be the worst job ever!

I've seen worse.

Spent some time working in Nigeria. The odd day we would have lunch at a local golf club. The clubhouse overlooked this water feature that looked and smelled like an open sewer. The odd time a golf ball would land in this 'water' and some local boys would dive in to try and retrieve it. In addition, there were massive crocodiles lying around on the banks. Now that is the worst job I've seen.

BeerWolf · 14-09-2018 3:31pm

Town maintenance; i.e. a road sweeper basically.

Fun

Ave Sodalis · 14-09-2018 3:31pm

Ragnar Lothbrok wrote:

It's official: THAT has to be the worst job ever!

The teaser usually covers the foster mares, I wouldn't feel too bad for him!

facehugger99 · 14-09-2018 3:33pm

Back in the late 90's I went to London with friends. I got a job in an Elonex computer factory.

The shift was 12.5 hours long. 9am to 9.30pm. Left our house at 8am and was home at 10.30pm. You got a 30min lunch and a 15min break later in the afternoon. Pay was £4 per hour.

Other than that you were standing at a production line screwing components into a circuit board. Just doing the same repetitive thing minute after minute, hour after and day after day.

You had to work Saturdays from 9am until 2.30pm too because doing over 60 hours during the week apparently wasn't soul destroying enough.

The managers there were absolute *****. It was liked they all attended the same training course where they received really specific training on how to be a **** to people you work with.

I lasted 6 weeks - then I got another job thank fcuk.

I have a real respect for people who have to suck up a job like that to put a roof over their families heads and pay the bills - it saps the humanity out of you.

TheBoyConor · 14-09-2018 3:35pm

D3V!L wrote: »

They exist alright. A cousin of my ex worked on an industrial pig farm in Cork. They had people that collected the semen from the pigs. All very scientific like :pac:

They also have to collect piss from the boars as a friend of mine who manages a piggery tells me. You see for mating the pigs you have to get the sow aroused first. They do this by spraying boar urine around the sow or into her pen. When a sow smells this they get an immobility response and a service posture if they are at the right stage in heat for mating. Then they know she is ready and they bring in the boar to her. Apparently they also have to check that the boar doesn't service into the rectum and they have to correct this if it happens. If the boar is new they have to "help him in" by hand.

Laois_Man · 14-09-2018 4:00pm

In the summer of 2001, I had a summer job as a "List developer" which involved working US hours and cold-calling into US corporations getting contact names, phone numbers, e-mail addresses, whatever I could of people in high powered roles. Most of my calls were into the World Trade Center and I finished the job on the Friday before 9/11 to go back to college

Most people either hung up straight away of gave lip and then hung up

Soul destroying job, terrible company to work for, terrible hours and terrible pay!

TheBoyConor · 14-09-2018 4:08pm

What for ?

What would they have wanted all these lists of number and emails for?

Was it even legal with data protection laws?

Grayson · 14-09-2018 4:09pm

Hector Savage wrote: »

I used to work in Supervalu ... back in 1996, the wage was £2.83 an hour - but we had to stay an extra hour if we were on the last shift which I usually was since I was still in school - to clean up and we didn't get paid for that extra hour.

My God the managers, special place in hell for those c*nts.
I was there recently at the same branch and couldn't believe one of the weedy f*ckers was still there.

22 years he's been in that ****hole, jesus I'd shoot myself.

I worked in the supervalu in mullingar about the same time. We had the same sh1t there. The owner was a really religious woman who closed down the butchers on good friday so people wouldn't be able to buy meat. I remember the code for the lotto machine was 8246 because the movement around the keyboard was "the same as blessing yourself".

Laois_Man · 14-09-2018 4:24pm

TheBoyConor wrote: »

What for ?

What would they have wanted all these lists of number and emails for?

Was it even legal with data protection laws?

It may be illegal now with GDPR but that's barely 3 months old and it doesn't apply to them anyway because they have abandoned any physical European presence. But it certainly was not illegal in 2001.

It was a technology sales leads list.

Ragnar Lothbrok · 14-09-2018 4:26pm

TheBoyConor wrote: »

They also have to collect piss from the boars as a friend of mine who manages a piggery tells me. You see for mating the pigs you have to get the sow aroused first. They do this by spraying boar urine around the sow or into her pen. When a sow smells this they get an immobility response and a service posture if they are at the right stage in heat for mating. Then they know she is ready and they bring in the boar to her. Apparently they also have to check that the boar doesn't service into the rectum and they have to correct this if it happens. If the boar is new they have to "help him in" by hand.

So if you're a really good pig-w@nker, you might get promoted to pig-piss-sprayer, or is it the other way round?

mrcheez · 14-09-2018 4:30pm

Worst job was working on a banana plantation in Carnarvon Australia. Many people don't know this but when you slice down a fresh banana stalk essentially pure acid sprays out.. permanently stains all your clothes too. Then trying to carry the heavy stalk without bruising the bananas while trying not to trip up on old logs or slipping in the mud... getting attacked by black-flies, and the boss was an ass who refused to pay me in the end.

Lasted a day.

Loves_lorries · 14-09-2018 4:44pm

Milking cows in new Zealand, up at 4.30 each morning and the boss who was Scottish made the late Ian paisley seem fond of irish Catholics.

She once rammed into me in the middle of a thirty acre field with her quad bike (I was also driving a quad bike) and claimed she couldn't get past me.

Radiant Cool Crazy Nightmare · 14-09-2018 5:08pm

Chasing walls during the summer of 2000. To those that don't know it involves cutting into the walls of a newly blocklaid house and then chiselling out a gap so the electricians can do their thing and put in sockets, light switches etc flush with the wall. Caked in dust head to toe from the consaws and no sign of a dust mask or goggles, the room filled with dust and petrol fumes and the arms hanging off me from the consaw and kango going all day, good times!

Jimmy. · 14-09-2018 5:18pm

Radiant Cool Crazy Nightmare wrote: »

Chasing walls during the summer of 2000. To those that don't know it involves cutting into the walls of a newly blocklaid house and then chiselling out a gap so the electricians can do their thing and put in sockets, light switches etc flush with the wall. Caked in dust head to toe from the consaws and no sign of a dust mask or goggles, the room filled with dust and petrol fumes and the arms hanging off me from the consaw and kango going all day, good times!

Only a clown chases walls with a con saw. Get a twin cutter/chasing machine. You’re a winner alright.

Radiant Cool Crazy Nightmare · 14-09-2018 5:20pm

Jimmy. wrote: »

Only a clown chases walls with a con saw. Get a twin cutter/chasing machine. You’re a winner alright.

18 years ago and I 15 years of age!

Mark25 · 14-09-2018 5:42pm

valoren wrote: »

I did the static security guard role during college and during the summer. It's boring for sure with the actual work involving staying awake, patrolling the site to scan the digital fobs but got plenty done in terms of course study and general reading e.g. I read the Lord of the Rings and was effectively paid to do so.

Have done many jobs but did static security overnight as well and found that tough. All night 12 hour shift ,minimum wage on my own and trying to stay awake and not miss any checks. I had just qyut the Army and had got it through a mate so did it for a while but that was the worst job Ive done and that includes eime as a cleaner on the wing in prison.

Roger Hassenforder · 14-09-2018 6:17pm

arctictree wrote: »

My sympathies are with the old nag that they bring in to get the mare aroused. He can spend hours at this caressing her while being kicked constantly. Just when she's ready and he's about to mount her, they throw him out in the field and bring in the stallion to finish the job!

I kinda feel bad now for that chap that does my the foreplay for me on my behalf...

Roger Hassenforder · 14-09-2018 6:21pm

Another friends dad was an AI man. He had catalogues of bulls, the farmer would select the straw he wanted.

In one catalogue was a chap sitting in some kind of a trailer, with an imitation cows rear, with a bucket. The bulls who were to donate were lined up ready... Don't think he even had safety glasses...

Loves_lorries · 14-09-2018 8:57pm

Roger Hassenforder wrote: »

Another friends dad was an AI man. He had catalogues of bulls, the farmer would select the straw he wanted.

In one catalogue was a chap sitting in some kind of a trailer, with an imitation cows rear, with a bucket. The bulls who were to donate were lined up ready... Don't think he even had safety glasses...

Bull sh1t story ( pun intended).

Sassygirl1999 · 14-09-2018 9:01pm

Worst job was packing raw meat

Hotblack Desiato · 14-09-2018 9:51pm

somesoldiers wrote: »

Putting Irish film cert stickers over English ones on DVDs and videos in a warehouse....mind numbing...while I finished college and was looking for a real job

I always presumed that that job was outsourced to Rehab. You were perhaps a little overqualified

arctictree wrote: »

My sympathies are with the old nag that they bring in to get the mare aroused. He can spend hours at this caressing her while being kicked constantly. Just when she's ready and he's about to mount her, they throw him out in the field and bring in the stallion to finish the job!

I think I fulfilled that sort of role in a nightclub more than once. Didn't get paid though.

Kevin Finnerty · 14-09-2018 9:54pm

Hotblack Desiato wrote: »

I think I fulfilled that sort of role in a nightclub more than once. Didn't get paid though.

And to make matters worse, it didn't cost the nag a stitch. I have that sticker too:-)

Grueller · 14-09-2018 10:39pm

Picking strawberries
Picking potatoes
Rubbing down cars for a panel beater to spray them
Feeding a cement mixer in a pre cast factory (using a 22 ton tipper load of aggregates every two days, with a shovel)
Planting seedling trees in a coillte nursery
Drawing silage
Joiner
Packing in a food factory
Pouring concrete for a large building firm
Teaching
Addiction counselling
Beef farming
Landscape gardening
Tile salesman
Firewood processing
They are the ones I remember, but the worst of all was mixing the slurry and straw together in a factory to make compost for mushroom growers. The rats were absolutely everywhere due to the filth and the loose grains in the straw.

Roger Hassenforder · 14-09-2018 11:24pm

Loves_lorries wrote: »

Bull sh1t story ( pun intended).

I think he would have been outside with his bucket at the other side of the bull for that!

14-09-2018 11:29pm

Lady Spangles wrote: »

In a call centre in Belfast, just off the Falls Road. We were cold-calling senior citizens in England and selling them crap they didn't need. We were expected to be making calls constantly, had a few minutes to sell them stuff (they usually just hung up on us, anyway) and straight on to the next. What we sold changed frequently. But one, getting donations to some dodgy sounding animal charity, was a step too far for me. I'd been working there a month and I just unplugged the headset and walked out, unable to take it any more.

I worked there too. Horrible place, logging time spent going to toilet and trying to flog switching gas and electricity to pensioners in england.....worst place ive been in.

Hotblack Desiato · 15-09-2018 11:56am

If they were targeting OAPs not just ringing random numbers, how did they get the phone numbers?

duffman13 · 15-09-2018 12:14pm

All of mine were in a 6 month period in Australia

I lasted 19 minutes working in a cold calling office selling solar panels to people over the phone. It was scripted and I made five phone calls, grabbed my back and left. The HR person who interviewed me seen me getting into the lift and asked what I was doing. I just said grabbing a coffee as the doors closed. Cringy looking back

I did door to door sales for 4 weeks, money was actuslly ok and the product was free energy bulbs and plugs which was easy to give away. I got home from work one night and they had a 7 news special about a bunch of Irish Travellers ripping people off doing driveways etc. Every door I knocked the next day, id half of them told me to **** off, I was only a dirty Irish gypsy

This led me to a job which was the most pointless I ever did. I worked for a mobile phone company and basically they offered a service instead of voicemail where me or a colleague would answer instead of it going to voicemail, we would then text the reciever of the call the message. I literally got about 400 calls a day where I had to say "Your message please?" The stupid thing is people were opted in automatically and on the weekends you could spend 20 mins on the phone to a person who was drunk, ringing their own phone that they had lost. They assumed you'd taken their phone while they were out etc. Money was stupidly good as I did shift work in there.

Farm work was a doddle compared to all that crap

Graces7 · 15-09-2018 1:13pm

Hard to say as I have enjoyed many things that were work... The Christmas Post was great especially when I got moved int o primary sorting.

At 16, I loved potato picking. Had I been older when War broke out, would have been a Land Girl

some of the supply teaching was hard; apprentices on day release to colleges of further ed who did not want to be there.
Edifying listening to their hobbies, like "paki bashing"...:eek:

15-09-2018 1:23pm

Hotblack Desiato wrote: »

If they were targeting OAPs not just ringing random numbers, how did they get the phone numbers?

Plenty of databases out there that contain DOB & phone number, back then they were widely available to be bought by marketing companies.

16-09-2018 8:47pm

Hotblack Desiato wrote: »

If they were targeting OAPs not just ringing random numbers, how did they get the phone numbers?

I dont know about targeting oaps but when i did it, it was either from electoral register or from a loyalty card from a certain big supermarket in Uk....both of which as we were calling during the day were more likely to get through to retired people as they were there to answer

mistersifter · 16-09-2018 9:39pm

368100 wrote: »

I dont know about targeting oaps but when i did it, it was either from electoral register or from a loyalty card from a certain big supermarket in Uk....both of which as we were calling during the day were more likely to get through to retired people as they were there to answer

I used to pretend to be a crazy old woman when these sales reps used to call me while living in the UK. It was great craic turning the tables on them. They'd quickly realize there was no chance of making a sale and want to cut me off, but I'd keep them on the line for ages talking jibberish in an old womans voice. Maybe loads of people were at that.

Hector Savage · 17-09-2018 11:21am

Grayson wrote: »

I worked in the supervalu in mullingar about the same time. We had the same sh1t there. The owner was a really religious woman who closed down the butchers on good friday so people wouldn't be able to buy meat. I remember the code for the lotto machine was 8246 because the movement around the keyboard was "the same as blessing yourself".

ah jaysus!

Avatar MIA · 17-09-2018 12:02pm

Hector Savage wrote: »

ah jaysus!

Yes, and Father and Holy Spirit! :pac::pac:

razorblunt · 17-09-2018 12:53pm

Graces7 wrote: »

Hard to say as I have enjoyed many things that were work... The Christmas Post was great especially when I got moved int o primary sorting.

At 16, I loved potato picking. Had I been older when War broke out, would have been a Land Girl

some of the supply teaching was hard; apprentices on day release to colleges of further ed who did not want to be there.
Edifying listening to their hobbies, like "paki bashing"...:eek:

I think you're looking for the "Jobs you loved" thread.

Hercule Poirot · 17-09-2018 1:00pm

Selling outer wall paint door-to-door about fifteen years ago. About four of us would get in car and head to a set of streets and go around knocking, personally demoralising - one of the guys was excellent and was constantly getting referrals and people to sign up, but I was useless and you only got paid if you got X number of referrals - I lasted five days and hated every minute of it.

joe stodge · 17-09-2018 1:26pm

I worked for a German retailer in Coolock, Dublin for two years.

the place really depended on the manager who worked there.

I had 3 in 2 years the one in the middle made the place hell.

she had no life outside the place and would regularly work 12-16 hr shifts herself and expected the same dedication from the staff there.

constant calls to come into work on days off, the same for coming in early on the days you were in.

customers were absolute savages, there was very few days without an incident (ranging from shoplifting to people sh*tting in the aisles)

Glad Im out now.

17-09-2018 1:39pm

Door-to-door sales spouting canned yibberish, instructive lesson for a naive teenager.

Hector Savage · 17-09-2018 1:58pm

joe stodge wrote: »

I worked for a German retailer in Coolock, Dublin for two years.

the place really depended on the manager who worked there.

I had 3 in 2 years the one in the middle made the place hell.

she had no life outside the place and would regularly work 12-16 hr shifts herself and expected the same dedication from the staff there.

constant calls to come into work on days off, the same for coming in early on the days you were in.

customers were absolute savages, there was very few days without an incident (ranging from shoplifting to people sh*tting in the aisles)

Glad Im out now.

People ****ting in the aisles ??????
In a supermarket ? WHAT ?

joe stodge · 17-09-2018 2:23pm

Hector Savage wrote: »

People ****ting in the aisles ??????
In a supermarket ? WHAT ?

yep, no joke.

happened at least twice.

once in a box of broccoli.

Mollyb60 · 17-09-2018 2:24pm

Worst job for me was in a housing association in Belfast. I was taking calls from tenants who needed repairs done to their house/flat. It was just so demoralising and the sense of entitlement from some of the tenants was just unbearable.
I regularly got shouted at for not booking a repairman to go change someone's lightbulbs. Or for not sending someone out to fix a thing that was constantly being broken due to misuse by the tenants. Or for not personally coming to fix a thing if there was no repairmen available to fix it. Or for not being able to get a repairman out to the tenant's house within the hour.
Worst of all was the bad weather at Christmas 2011 (I think). A woman screamed at me for a solid 40 minutes about how she was going to hold me personally responsible if her mother died from the cold because I couldn't guarantee a repairman would be out to fix her boiler within an hour. Another customer threated to get the UDA after me because I wouldn't book a replacement radiator in for him. I think he had ripped the rad off the wall in a fit of rage about something else and expected us to replace it for free.
Lasted a year and looking back it 100% impacted on my mental health.

Ragnar Lothbrok · 17-09-2018 2:56pm

This thread is beginning to make me think that most people are absolute cnuts. Managers, colleagues, customers: all seem to conspire to make the workplace as nasty a place as possible.

(Thank God I have a job that I love!)

Roger Hassenforder · 17-09-2018 3:01pm

joe stodge wrote: »

yep, no joke.

happened at least twice.

once in a box of broccoli.

Was the broccoli in it?

Deebles McBeebles · 17-09-2018 3:03pm

Roger Hassenforder wrote: »

Was the broccoli in it?

Plenty of sweet corn in it anyway.

uch · 17-09-2018 3:28pm

I had a Job in a London Bakery taking the old bread and cakes off the Lorries when they returned from their rounds, feckin Stinking work, smelled like sour cream all the time

CBear1993 · 28-08-2020 11:47pm

Quantity surveyor and I’m still doing it

ILoveYourVibes · 29-08-2020 3:21am

Beta Ray Bill wrote: »

I worked in bookies on Pearse street in Dublin.

It was appalling. Dreadful work, dealing with awful people.

One day this regular came in with docket with odds on it for a horse at 11/1, the live odds on the screen we had said 9/1.
I told him I had to change the odds on the docket and he went mental, and told me to "Just put it f**king on" so I changed the odds docket and put it on.

Horse came in and your man came to collect his money, he was €400 short as I'd changed the odds.
He told me I was f**king dead. He was a total scobe so I ignored it for the most part explaining to him that he told me to put it on.

Anyway 5:30pm rolls round and I'm leaving, guess who's waiting for me across the road with a load of his mates with sticks and sh*t.
Got chased to Pearse Train station.

Never went back.
Worst. Job. Ever.

me ..poker dealer ..same...boring nerds with no life and no social skills

also have friends who worked at the dog track ...punters are awful.

Agricola · 29-08-2020 12:51pm

Call center. Modern day Victorian work house.

sligojoek · 29-08-2020 4:40pm

Cleaning the sh1t out of cuckoo clocks.

Ipso · 29-08-2020 4:57pm

sligojoek wrote: »

Cleaning the sh1t out of cuckoo clocks.

Better than rocking horses.

29-08-2020 5:05pm

Agricola wrote: »

Call center. Modern day Victorian work house.

Did they ever allow you to work from home?

What's The Worst Job You Ever Had?

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