'I got called into HR': Coworker accidentally reports themself to HR after stealing bait lunch from fridge

Author image for Brad Dickson
Brad Dickson • Managing Editor
Oct 23, 2023 9:00 AM EDT

Your things are your own, and while it can be nice to share, you need to respect other people's stuff and not take things without asking. This is essentially the first lesson that we're ever taught in school, and yet, a frightful amount of people can't seem to get that one right.

We're not saying that you should go around teaching people lessons; there's far too much chance of you getting the facts wrong, but it's mighty infuriating when those around you won't respect your stuff. 

This worker found that their lunch was repeatedly getting taken out of the fridge. In order to solve the problem, he took to printing a warning label and putting it on his food, seeking to deter any would-be lunch thieves. Sure enough, the thief took the bait and reported the worker to HR for the health risk the supposed warning presented, ironically self-reporting themself as the lunch thief. Lucky for the thief that the worker didn't go the route that others have gone in the past and put in the actual hottest hot sauce ever without any sort of warning. 

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  • 01
    Font - AITA for labeling my food as having hot sauce to deter food thieves at work? Simple as that. My lunches were being taken while I was working. So I photocopied the label from one of my husband's hot sauce bottles and put it on my food. With a label that said it was one of the hottest sauces in the world.
    via u/Ok_Mathematician887
  • 02
    Font - I got called into HR for contaminating the fridge. I asked how I did this with a sealed Tupperware container. They said one of my co-workers grabbed it by accident and was about to heat it when they noticed the label.
    via u/Ok_Mathematician887
  • 03
    Font - I asked them to produce my container and my co-worker's container so we could determine how this mix up could possibly have happened. Now I don't want to hurt anyone, and my husband's tolerance for hot stuff is beyond insane, so I DID NOT actually put hot sauce on my food.
    via u/Ok_Mathematician887
  • 04
    Font - The HR lady asked me to wait a minute. She came back and said that there had been a mistake. And that the person who took my food had not brought in a container that day. So I asked if I could file a complaint for someone taking my food. She looked p but she had hauled me in and I wasn't going to let it go.
    via u/Ok_Mathematician887
  • 05
    Font - I recieved a copy of my complaint but now my boss has asked me to drop it. I don't know who was stealing my food but it must be someone they don't want to get rid of. My husband says I should just let it go. But he hasn't had multiple lunches go missing. AITA?
    via u/Ok_Mathematician887
  • 06
    Font - JetItTogether. 6 hr. ago NTA- Look someone straight up just keeps stealing your lunch (a famous problem with shared fridges at work)... And then they tried to file a complaint against YOU for bringing your lunch to work... Which they stole... You can follow up on the complaint, sure, but my guess is that HR is just upset about having to deal with this AT ALL.
    via u/Ok_Mathematician887
  • 07
    Font - Tell your boss that you want the complaint kept on file and you'll drop any pursuit of it unless it happens again... And if your lunch gets stolen again you expect the company to fully deal with it, no third chances....
    via u/Ok_Mathematician887
  • 08
    Font - But the fact that you're at 'lying about hot sauce' levels of lunch theft tells me that maybe you're over this enough to just plain push the complaint through anyway... You wouldn't be an AH especially because someone had the nerve to file a complaint about stealing your lunch and HR acted on THAT nonsense. 8.4k Reply Share
    via u/Ok_Mathematician887
  • 09
    Font - IamNotTheMama If HR is upset then they should have shut it down before the OP was ever contacted. Now it's their turn to suffer the consequences of their AH'ness 2.4k Reply Share
    via u/Ok_Mathematician887
  • 10
    Font - Total-Being-4278 I bet it's that person from HR. Someone is definitely protecting someone else here. Completely 100% sketchy and there is nothing illegal about putting hot sauce in a company fridge, so great idea - and yes, file that complaint. People never cease to amaze me. All this, so they can eat someone else's lunch? That's a whole new level of sucking as a human being. ΝΤΑ 2.2k Reply Share
    via u/Ok_Mathematician887
  • 11
    Rectangle - fargoLEVY13 Either that or it's the boss. NTA. 682 Reply Share Marzipan-Various Or the bosses side piece 261 Reply Share
    via u/Ok_Mathematician887
  • 12
    Font - Justafukingegg What is it with people stealing food in the workplace?! No, of course you're NTA for trying to protect your lunches. Whomever had the gall to try to steal your food, then file a complaint with HR about the contents....? That takes chutzpah beyond the next level ... all the way to the penthouse!!! 979 Reply Share
    via u/Ok_Mathematician887

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terrible coworkers aita coworkers reddit story etiquette entitled reddit thread coworker entitled people
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