Author Topic: What items do YOU pilfer from Work?  (Read 14793 times)

Sailor Sam

  • CMTO 2023 Attendees
  • Walrus Stache
  • *
  • Posts: 5731
  • Age: 43
  • Location: Steel Beach
  • Semper...something
Re: What items do YOU pilfer from Work?
« Reply #50 on: November 20, 2017, 03:15:09 PM »
Oh! Remembered something.

Life rafts have to be serviced every year, and anything expired removed. Usually the servicing company just tosses the expired food and medicines, but generally let me take the expired stuff if I ask nicely. I put the food rations into my BOB and GHB.

It's pretty much how imagine Soylent Green must look.


Bracken_Joy

  • Walrus Stache
  • *******
  • Posts: 8927
  • Location: Oregon
Re: What items do YOU pilfer from Work?
« Reply #51 on: November 20, 2017, 03:19:08 PM »
Oh! Remembered something.

Life rafts have to be serviced every year, and anything expired removed. Usually the servicing company just tosses the expired food and medicines, but generally let me take the expired stuff if I ask nicely. I put the food rations into my BOB and GHB.

It's pretty much how imagine Soylent Green must look.

If you ever have extras, I have plenty of room in our BOBs =)

libertarian4321

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1395
Re: What items do YOU pilfer from Work?
« Reply #52 on: November 20, 2017, 03:30:42 PM »
NOTHING.

Why would you STEAL something as petty as pens or paper or whatever when they cost next to nothing to buy?

I'm not a shrink, but it seems like anyone who does this has some sort of mental illness?  Pilfering inexpensive items from an employer just seems like some sort of obsessive- compulsive disorder?

It sure as Hell isn't "frugal" to steal...

Debts_of_Despair

  • Pencil Stache
  • ****
  • Posts: 544
  • Location: NY
Re: What items do YOU pilfer from Work?
« Reply #53 on: November 20, 2017, 04:03:23 PM »
NOTHING.

Why would you STEAL something as petty as pens or paper or whatever when they cost next to nothing to buy?


Which you could conceivably be fired for.  Not worth it at all.

teen persuasion

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1226
Re: What items do YOU pilfer from Work?
« Reply #54 on: November 20, 2017, 08:27:51 PM »
Pilfer, as in steal?  None.

That said, there's lots of things that get brought home gratis...

Swag from vendors or system meetings.  One book seller had the oddest goodie bag, including pens, notepads, bookmarks, granola bars, gumdrops, and potted lily plants for each of us.
Just curious: why is that odd?

I have never been offered a potted lily. Can't imagine transporting it all day.
Yeah, it was the 2' tall plant that struck me as odd, on top of all the other semi random stuff.  Maybe it was in the way he presented it - he'd spent the morning with the director, I wasn't part of the deal at all.  As he was wrapping up, the director pulled me aside and said he (the seller) wanted to talk with me.  He offers me the swag bag with compliments, and then says he has something else for me out in his car.  That's when he brings in the huge lily.
Yup. That's odd.

When I was with my last company, we had biannual major client trade shows at a fancy resort in CO Springs. In addition to reams of reports, we always put together care kits, which were a lot of work. Except for live plants, they sound kinda like what you described. We didn't particularly want to do them; it was just expected of us. I asked, because I wondered if that's what our customers thought, too.
Lots of it made sense, in a marketing kind of way: reusable bag with their name and logo, ditto for pens and bookmarks and paper pads.  Gumdrops were their shtick, so ok, got it.  The granola bars were when I started going eh??? No logo or anything, just regular snacks, I guess. 

But wait, there's more!



Back to pilfering: DS2 once brought home a 12' pole for vaulting.  On his bike.  They were cleaning out the equipment shed at school, and it was on the discard pile.  It sat in our garage until one of his friends realized he needed a 12' pole for vaulting.

kimmarg

  • Pencil Stache
  • ****
  • Posts: 750
  • Location: Northern New England
Re: What items do YOU pilfer from Work?
« Reply #55 on: November 21, 2017, 05:01:11 AM »
scrap paper gets taken home for kids to color.  Otherwise nothing. "Fraud, waste, and abuse" is pretty much the easiest way to get fired. I don't mess with your tax dollars.  I do take pens home in my pockets, although not maliciously. They usually eventually migrate back. When I worked in the field and wore cargo shorts I would often find screwdrivers in my pocket when I went to do laundry, again they go back eventually.

MightyAl

  • Stubble
  • **
  • Posts: 132
Re: What items do YOU pilfer from Work?
« Reply #56 on: November 21, 2017, 05:42:49 AM »
Batteries, obviously, but what else?

One of the most expensive things that come out of my budget.  I would fire anyone pilfering those.  My budget is already extremely tight.

Ann

  • Bristles
  • ***
  • Posts: 295
Re: What items do YOU pilfer from Work?
« Reply #57 on: November 21, 2017, 05:56:00 AM »
Batteries, obviously, but what else?
I've never heard of people taking batteries as "a thing".  Batteries are expensive.  I would say pens would be the most common work item to make it home in general.  And that is what I am guilty of: I take the BIC pens with our work logo (not on purpose).  I don't intent to take them home, but I do keep a few and don't return them all.  My boss is aware, though (I've joked about how much I loved them) so it isn't covert.  And I spent my own money on packs of highlighters and sticky notes to resupply us on the weekend, so I hope that makes it fair trade monetarily (I can't imagine a BIC pen even with a logo costs that much per pen).

sequoia

  • Pencil Stache
  • ****
  • Posts: 614
Re: What items do YOU pilfer from Work?
« Reply #58 on: November 21, 2017, 11:50:28 AM »
Batteries, obviously, but what else?
One of the most expensive things that come out of my budget.  I would fire anyone pilfering those.  My budget is already extremely tight.

You can get batteries for next to nothing or even free after using rebate, but I guess that is too much work for some people...smh


MBot

  • Pencil Stache
  • ****
  • Posts: 506
Re: What items do YOU pilfer from Work?
« Reply #59 on: November 21, 2017, 11:55:09 AM »
Nothing.

Notepaper sheets I use to write grocery lists on during a break maybe? That are already from the pd of recycled scrap paper? That's enough.   Haha.

Ann

  • Bristles
  • ***
  • Posts: 295
Re: What items do YOU pilfer from Work?
« Reply #60 on: November 21, 2017, 02:09:47 PM »
Batteries, obviously, but what else?
One of the most expensive things that come out of my budget.  I would fire anyone pilfering those.  My budget is already extremely tight.

You can get batteries for next to nothing or even free after using rebate, but I guess that is too much work for some people...smh

Yes, I suppose they are free if you steal them, too.  Are you justifying stealing them from work, or just giving tips?  Because I would be interested on the tips!! Not the stealing, though.

sequoia

  • Pencil Stache
  • ****
  • Posts: 614
Re: What items do YOU pilfer from Work?
« Reply #61 on: November 21, 2017, 02:37:56 PM »
Batteries, obviously, but what else?
One of the most expensive things that come out of my budget.  I would fire anyone pilfering those.  My budget is already extremely tight.

You can get batteries for next to nothing or even free after using rebate, but I guess that is too much work for some people...smh

Yes, I suppose they are free if you steal them, too.  Are you justifying stealing them from work, or just giving tips?  Because I would be interested on the tips!! Not the stealing, though.

This is a quote from my post above:
------
While I understand this is MMM, and everyone is trying to come up with some clever trick to save a couple of bucks so they can FIRE a few days earlier (and brag here), stealing is never ok.
------

No I am not justifying stealing!!

I was saying that batteries can be had for very cheap, so there is no need to steal them from work. I would imagine right now, around Black Friday - Christmas time, there should be plenty of deals to be had for batteries. I do not know any in particular since we already have a small pile of them at home. You can look on Slickdeals.

MBot

  • Pencil Stache
  • ****
  • Posts: 506
Re: What items do YOU pilfer from Work?
« Reply #62 on: November 24, 2017, 12:55:46 PM »
FWIW, if anyone here needs a LOT of AA or AAA batteries (and doesn't mind replacing them maybe a little more frequently), ask your cardiologist's office. (edited to add I think we have AA ones at the current office I'm at, but other models of heart monitors may use AAA).

The Holter monitors (heart rate and rhythm monitors) patients wear for 24 or 48 hours need new batteries every time we send them out... and they don't get anywhere near fully depleted.

The odd place I've worked has had an employee that took them home, but most often they just get recycled or trashed. And since they're kept inside of the monitor the whole time and never actually touch the patient, and then the entire monitor is heavy-duty cleaned and tape-adhesive-removed after -- I wouldn't be too worried about germs.
« Last Edit: November 24, 2017, 12:57:44 PM by MBot »

I'm a red panda

  • Walrus Stache
  • *******
  • Posts: 8186
  • Location: United States
Re: What items do YOU pilfer from Work?
« Reply #63 on: November 24, 2017, 01:08:08 PM »
I take advantage of the fresh vegetables that often show up in the break room, but I never take anything work pays for it and you shouldn't either.

10dollarsatatime

  • Pencil Stache
  • ****
  • Posts: 703
  • Age: 39
  • Location: Utah
Re: What items do YOU pilfer from Work?
« Reply #64 on: November 24, 2017, 02:55:19 PM »
Pilfer? Not so much.

I suppose the occasional piece of tie line comes home over my shoulder if I don't notice it.  They get thrown in my bag and used wherever I might need a piece, which is still usually at work.

We get batteries for free...  Instead of chucking batteries that come out of microphones, we chuck them in the rehearsal battery box.  We would never go through them all, so the staff is allowed to take them home as needed.  They're industrial AAs.  I haven't purchased a battery for my xbox controllers in years.

I borrow tools sometimes.

spicykissa

  • Stubble
  • **
  • Posts: 157
Re: What items do YOU pilfer from Work?
« Reply #65 on: November 28, 2017, 05:46:37 AM »
FWIW, if anyone here needs a LOT of AA or AAA batteries (and doesn't mind replacing them maybe a little more frequently), ask your cardiologist's office. (edited to add I think we have AA ones at the current office I'm at, but other models of heart monitors may use AAA).

The Holter monitors (heart rate and rhythm monitors) patients wear for 24 or 48 hours need new batteries every time we send them out... and they don't get anywhere near fully depleted.

The odd place I've worked has had an employee that took them home, but most often they just get recycled or trashed. And since they're kept inside of the monitor the whole time and never actually touch the patient, and then the entire monitor is heavy-duty cleaned and tape-adhesive-removed after -- I wouldn't be too worried about germs.

Yep. Our inpatient telemetry monitors have to be changed weekly, but most patients aren't on them that long, and the batteries are "soiled" (from inside the monitor somehow), so can't go back in the supply room. We at least have a giant recycling bin, but I would not feel bad about taking those home if I needed some. The waste in health care in insane.

KarefulKactus15

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1283
  • Location: Southeast
Re: What items do YOU pilfer from Work?
« Reply #66 on: November 28, 2017, 08:52:08 AM »
As others said,

Internet access and time.   

I'm definitely not being productive 100% of the time with those 2 items.   

Other than that, nothing... And I work in a job where my spending limit is 25,000$ PER transaction without anyone questioning it. . . .     

You've got to be a real bonehead to get caught stealing, but it's happened.    I think recently an individual was fired for stealing tools and selling them at the flea market.    Little suspicious selling  5,000$ test equipment  for 40$...     

He had something like 70,000$ of stuff in his locker that he was slowly loading into his lunch box / backpack + an untold amount that had already been to the flea market.

The only reason he got caught was because he messed up inventory levels and that triggered an investigation, not the $ amounts. . .
« Last Edit: November 28, 2017, 09:00:32 AM by Kroaler »

MrGville

  • Stubble
  • **
  • Posts: 118
  • Age: 33
Re: What items do YOU pilfer from Work?
« Reply #67 on: November 28, 2017, 09:00:54 AM »
Mugs (mugs out number employees by about 10 to 1 in my office haha), pens, and stamps every once in a while.

I'm a red panda

  • Walrus Stache
  • *******
  • Posts: 8186
  • Location: United States
Re: What items do YOU pilfer from Work?
« Reply #68 on: November 28, 2017, 09:17:54 AM »
FWIW, if anyone here needs a LOT of AA or AAA batteries (and doesn't mind replacing them maybe a little more frequently), ask your cardiologist's office. (edited to add I think we have AA ones at the current office I'm at, but other models of heart monitors may use AAA).

The Holter monitors (heart rate and rhythm monitors) patients wear for 24 or 48 hours need new batteries every time we send them out... and they don't get anywhere near fully depleted.

The odd place I've worked has had an employee that took them home, but most often they just get recycled or trashed. And since they're kept inside of the monitor the whole time and never actually touch the patient, and then the entire monitor is heavy-duty cleaned and tape-adhesive-removed after -- I wouldn't be too worried about germs.

Yep. Our inpatient telemetry monitors have to be changed weekly, but most patients aren't on them that long, and the batteries are "soiled" (from inside the monitor somehow), so can't go back in the supply room. We at least have a giant recycling bin, but I would not feel bad about taking those home if I needed some. The waste in health care in insane.

When I was discharged after my C-section, the nurse took off my wound pack and said "do you want a few batteries, these are great quality but we have to throw them away"

GreatLaker

  • Stubble
  • **
  • Posts: 150
  • Location: Canada
Re: What items do YOU pilfer from Work?
« Reply #69 on: November 28, 2017, 04:59:53 PM »
Electricity. I take all my rechargeable devices to work and charge 'em up.

KarefulKactus15

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1283
  • Location: Southeast
Re: What items do YOU pilfer from Work?
« Reply #70 on: November 29, 2017, 06:09:12 AM »
Electricity. I take all my rechargeable devices to work and charge 'em up.

I hope this is out of necessity and not cheapness, like an electric bike or cell phone or something.

Other than a car, I cant think of much work charging that would make a noticeable difference on your power bill.

chaskavitch

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1029
  • Age: 38
  • Location: Fort Collins, CO
Re: What items do YOU pilfer from Work?
« Reply #71 on: November 29, 2017, 06:57:53 AM »
Apparently OTHER people pilfer things here.  I left my headphones on my desk last night, and now they are gone :(  I don't want to accuse the night cleaning crew of taking them, so I'm still looking, but I'm super irritated right now.

Linea_Norway

  • Walrus Stache
  • *******
  • Posts: 8569
  • Location: Norway
Re: What items do YOU pilfer from Work?
« Reply #72 on: November 29, 2017, 07:42:42 AM »
Apparently OTHER people pilfer things here.  I left my headphones on my desk last night, and now they are gone :(  I don't want to accuse the night cleaning crew of taking them, so I'm still looking, but I'm super irritated right now.

No, you cannot accuse anyone without a clear suspicion. But you should report it to a central person. Just in case many people experience theft, then there might be a pattern.
Or they might just be in a place where you didn't look. Let's hope for that.

GuitarStv

  • Senior Mustachian
  • ********
  • Posts: 23129
  • Age: 42
  • Location: Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Re: What items do YOU pilfer from Work?
« Reply #73 on: November 29, 2017, 08:13:08 AM »
There isn't even anything that I really want to steal from work.  :P

The last time that I got laid off I just dumped the contents of my desk drawers into my backpack and left.  Ended up stealing several thumb drivers, a stapler, and some mechanical pencils when it was all sorted out at home.  I don't feel bad about that though.