Maintenance technician warns boss about faulty pipe, boss refuses to pay him overtime to fix it, resulting in a flooded office: ‘Pipe didn’t want to wait till Monday’

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Bar Mor Hazut • Senior Editor
Apr 28, 2025 1:00 PM EDT

Every adult knows that when one notices something is broken, or about to be broken, they should consider the pros and cons of getting it fixed, and how urgent it is. The main component of why people often decide to wait, is the money. If one does not want (or can't afford) to pay to get something fixed, they might decide that it is not that urgent, and that they can wait a little while. 

However, there are some things one should never wait to get fixed, and do it as soon as a problem arises, otherwise it would cost them a lot more. If your car's 'check engine' light turns on, for example, you should get that checked right away, even if that means spending money on a mechanic. Waiting can result in more serious damage and, of course, cost more money to fix. 

A faulty pipe on the verge of bursting is also a great example of something you should not wait to address, because a pipe that is about to burst is a lot easier to maintain than a pipe that has already burst. And the story below is proof.

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  • The boss in the story below, like many others, was not eager to waste money on problems he did not see as urgent enough. So when a maintenance technician told him about a dangerous pipe in the office, the boss decided to pass on paying the tech overtime to get it fixed, and told his employee to wait with it until after the weekend. 

    Well, as we mentioned, sometimes it is much better to pay a little extra and get something fixed right away, than wait it out and regret it soon after…

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    Cheezburger Image 10498882048
    via Monkey Business Images

    The image does not depict the actual subjects of the story. Subjects are models.

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    "Pipe Exploded on the Weekend — But Hey, At Least We Saved on Overtime!"

    In 2006, I worked as a maintenance technician in a small office building. My job was to make sure everything works properly air conditioning, plumbing, electricity, all that stuff.
    via Ivotia2025
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    Then we got a new boss from some big corporate office, and he was obsessed with cutting costs. First week he tells us all, in a very serious voice: "From now
    via Ivotia2025
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    on, absolutely no overtime. No matter what. No exceptions." We all kind of looked at each other like, "Is he serious?"
    via Ivotia2025
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    So, Friday afternoon, around 4:30 PM, I get an alert from the boiler room. Pressure is in one of the water pipes is very high. I check it and pipe is
    via Ivotia2025
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    vibrating like crazy. I know if we don't release the pressure or fix it, it's going to explode. I go to the boss and tell him, “This pipe is
    via Ivotia2025
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    dangerous. I need maybe 1- 2 hours overtime to fix it tonight." He looks at the clock, and says, "It's past 5 soon. No
    via Ivotia2025
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    overtime. We'll handle it Monday." Okay, boss. No problem. So I go home.
    via Ivotia2025
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    Saturday morning, I get a call from the security guy who works weekends. He's freaking out. "Water is pouring out of the boiler room! It's flooded the hallway! What do I do?!"
    via Ivotia2025
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    I laugh. I say, "Too late. Nothing we can do now, perhaps swim?" On Monday, the boss walks in and smells wet carpet and disaster. Half the
    via Ivotia2025
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    ground floor is underwater. Documents ruined. IT equipment drowned. Rest in peace. He comes to me angry: "Why didn't you stop this?!"
    via Ivotia2025
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    I just say, "You told me no overtime. Pipe didn't want to wait till Monday." Cleanup cost thousands. And guess what? From that day, boss never said no to
    via Ivotia2025
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    overtime again. In fact, from then on when we reported just an inkling of a suspicion that something might be wrong, he simply said, "Do what you have to
    via Ivotia2025
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    do. Just don't tell me the hours." Sometimes, pipe is the best teacher.
    via Ivotia2025
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    Day nday esday esday rsday day rday day WEEKLY WEEKLY TIME SHEET TIME O R. HOURS OIT HOURS OVER TIME Week Start: Rate hour: per December Saturday, $70.00 13. Overt Day saturday Date 12/13/14 Time Out In Time Time In 2 Time Out 2 12/14/14
    via vinnstock

    The image does not depict the actual subjects of the story.

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    MeatofKings The burnt hand makes the best teacher.
    via MeatofKings
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    AutoRedux I see why he went from a big office to your company. Probably canned his stupid a for wasting so much money.
    via AutoRedux
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    ShadowDragon8685 You can schedule maintenance downtime, or your equipment can schedule the maintenance without telling you.
    via ShadowDragon8685
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    You had the very rare butter- zone intersection where the equipment scheduled the maintenance but actually gave you a few hours' notice.
    via ShadowDragon8685
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    Something MoreToSay And guess what? From that day, boss never said no to overtime again. I'm genuinely surprised that he was still the boss after this episode.
    via SomethingMoreToSay
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    andres57 What kind of idiot hears an issue with a PIPE and thinks is good to leave it for next week?
    via andres57
  • 22
    Few Television3921 the boss just couldn't handle all of the pressure!
    via FewTelevision3921

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Tags

boss maintenance workplace-stories employee manager job malicious compliance tales-from-the-workplace reddit story workplace overtime pipe Reddit company funny
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