15 Photos That Perfectly Capture Why Nobody Wants to Go Back to the Office
Working from home has its distractions, but at least nobody steals your lunch or leaves a mystery substance in your microwave. Going back to the office means dealing with shared refrigerators, questionable furniture, broken equipment, and coworkers who apparently missed the memo about cleaning up after themselves. Then there are the little things, like finding somewhere to sit, getting the printer to cooperate, or trying to adjust a thermostat nobody is allowed to touch. Reddit users have documented plenty of these workplace headaches, and some of the photos are painfully familiar to anyone who has spent eight hours under fluorescent lights. Here are 15 photos that explain why working from home sounds pretty good.
Your New Office Is a Closet
A Reddit user shared a tiny workspace with a desk facing the wall and barely enough room to move around.
The Chairs Are Not for Employees
One office has comfortable chairs that employees aren’t allowed to use, while the actual break area has six seats for more than 15 people.
Someone Exploded Their Lunch
A worker photographed the inside of an office microwave after someone heated their food, made a spectacular mess, and left without cleaning it.
One Person Owns the Entire Fridge
Almost everything inside this shared refrigerator belongs to one supervisor, leaving seven other employees to figure out where their lunches should go.
Even the Celebration Pastries Aren’t Safe
Someone brought pastries to celebrate a coworker’s pregnancy, only to discover that another person had gotten to the box first.
The Thermostat Has Its Own Agenda
An employee photographed a temperature reading that didn’t match the office thermostat, which workers reportedly couldn’t adjust themselves.
The Toilet Paper Is Practically Transparent
A worker photographed an almost see-through sheet of toilet paper supplied in an office building reportedly worth $145 million.
The Printer Has Been Fixed. Allegedly.
An employee’s coworker ignored a warning note on a jammed printer, restarted it, and attempted to print 47 pages before it broke again.
A Farewell Gift Nobody Wanted
On her last day, an employee left her office in a mess and reportedly refused to clean it when management asked.
Welcome Back, Your Dog Misses You
A Toronto office building displayed a return-to-work advertisement referencing employees’ dogs waiting at home, which didn’t go over particularly well on Reddit.
Even Water Comes With a Price
An employee shared a photo of their workplace water cooler, where workers were expected to pay for drinking water.
Parking Is Already a Problem
A worker photographed two coworkers’ cars parked across the spaces at their workplace, claiming both drivers did this every single day.
The Ceiling Has One Job
An office worker noticed a single missing hole in an otherwise regular ceiling pattern and shared the tiny detail they couldn’t stop staring at.
The Fridge Has Started Growing Things
Employees complained about refrigerator cleanouts while someone had apparently left food sitting long enough for visible mold to develop.
The Office Has Rules for Everything
An employee photographed a workplace break-room notice threatening workers with a $25 fine for leaving a mess.