Funny Moments in HR
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11/12/2019
Working within the Human Resources Field, and working with other humans, is a blessing. Having a career where you work with people is rewarding for many reasons. Being able to offer someone their dream role or helping an organisation implement appropriate policies and procedures are just two of the positive components of my job. However, working with people means that you do come across some quirky and interesting stories. Here are some of the funniest experiences I have encountered whilst working in HR.
Mistaken Identity
I look through an alarming number of resumes every day. You stumble across resumes that have their similarities. They may be the same layout, similar phone numbers, identical names and employment at some of the same agencies. However, on one occasion when I came across two completely different resumes with the same name and the same mobile number, I was dumbfounded. One of these resumes had *candidate A* as a Social Worker with 10 years’ experience and the other resume has the same candidate as a Training Coordinator. Two resumes that ran parallel in terms of timing, but in completely different fields. Not only this, but when I asked the candidate about the dual resumes, she denied even sending one resume to us.
How could someone possibly send through two ‘different’ resumes to the same agency and expect that it wouldn’t be found out?
Kangaroo on New Years?
Everyone loves to have a drink to celebrate the end /beginning of a year. However, some people do have to work on the 1st of January meaning they need to be responsible the night before, or think of a good excuse as to why they can’t come in. The most bizarre excuse I have heard was an individual calling their boss on the morning of the 1st of January to say they had hit a kangaroo on the way to work and could not make it. An extreme excuse which did result in this individual not needing to go to work, however resulting in them having to park their undamaged car 5 blocks away and walk to work for the next month whilst it was getting ‘repaired’
Ideally, never call in sick when you are not ill, but if you do, think about the future implications!
Memory Loss
We all love a holiday and that is what annual leave is for. So, when faking sickness for a week, it is smart to not use the same forged doctors’ certificate you have used every year for the last 3 years. One employee handed us a doctor’s certificate at the same time, every year for three years and thought we wouldn’t notice. Fortunately, in this instance the candidate was granted a long (somewhat permanent) type of leave. Termination.
Horsing Around
We get a large quantity of resumes for each role we post and we take the time to go through each and every one to ensure the right person is considered for the role. One time, we were screening resumes and came across a candidate called “Phar Lap”. Thinking this is rather odd and that surely someone hasn’t named their son or daughter the same name as a legendary racehorse, we endeavoured to read through their resume like we usually would. This is where the candidate really had a sense of humour… the entire resume was set out like a CV, however every single word read “neigh”. Fair to say we laughed about this for a long time and we still can’t believe someone took the time to actually write a resume, format the headings and spacing with every word being that of a horse. Fantastic!
HR and Recruitment is an incredible space to work in. It keeps you on your toes and sometimes you just have to have a laugh! I hope you enjoyed the read and had a laugh at our expense. If you are in the market for a new position or are seeking HR consulting advice please get in contact with us and a member of KLC will happily help you out – if your name isn’t Phar Lap or Skippy the Bush Kangaroo!
