'Ben had been living in the office since late May': Intern gets away with sleeping in the office for two months before getting caught by another employee

Author image for Ben Weiss
Ben Weiss • Writer and Editor
Aug 3, 2025 8:00 AM EDT

Let this story serve as further proof that rent is simply too high. No intern should have to sleep at the office because they cannot afford an alternative. Not only is that indicative of a problem with affordability in this urban area, but it also shows how underpaid these folks are (and yes, we are talking about folks at the intern level as well!).

It's not like this guy wants to sleep at the office. It does not seem like Ben is a workaholic, the kind of guy who decides that living at work is more convenient from a productivity standpoint. No, this was a guy who couldn't afford a decent space to sleep or even food to consume. 

So when another employee began suspecting that something was off, and when that employee inevitably discovered that Ben had been sleeping at the office for more than two months, perhaps he should have extended a little more compassion before passing judgment.

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    BEEB
    via Vitaly Gariev

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

  • Several members of this online community pointed out that Ben was likely doing what made the most sense given his financial situation. After all, there was so much space in those corporate offices, not to mention so much food in the communal refrigerator. What would you have done in Ben's situation? 

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    "My coworker was secretly living in our office for two months, and no one noticed"

    I work at a mid-sized marketing agency in a city where rent has gotten ridiculous. Back in May, we hired an intern named Ben. He
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    was kind of quiet but super polite. Always the first one in the office and usually the last to leave. We just figured he was eager to impress.
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    Then things started to feel a bit off. Our cleaning lady casually mentioned that someone was using the shower in the basement gym in the middle of the night.
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    Then our team fridge started missing stuff, not just lunches but entire cartons of eggs, packets of cheese, and once, a rotisserie chicken.
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    One day, I stayed late prepping for a pitch and noticed some movement in the supply room. I walked over and found Ben
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    sitting cross-legged on a yoga mat, eating cereal and watching Netflix on his tablet. Next to him was a sleeping bag, a laundry basket, and an electric kettle.
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    Turns out Ben had been living in the office since late May. His lease ended, and with no family nearby and no affordable housing available fast enough, he decided
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    to crash at the office until he could figure things out. He showered at our gym, cooked with an electric burner in the back room, and did laundry at the laundromat on weekends.
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    Honestly, it was weirdly impressive how clean and unnoticeable he was. HR obviously couldn't ignore it once it was reported, but they handled it surprisingly gently.
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    They gave him a week to move out and even helped connect him with a housing program for young workers. He's still with us and actually more respected now for being open and honest about everything. The dude was just surviving.
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    We still joke about "Ben's Studio Apartment (Broom Closet Edition)," but now we all keep a closer eye on each other, and it's in a good way.
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    Cheezburger Image 10537227776
    via JC Gellidon

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

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    Flashy_Cartograph... 2h ago Wait, was you the one who told HR OO
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    alaskawolfjoe 2h ago How much do your interns get paid? Honestly, if you are not paying enough to cover rent, this is going to continue with interns in the future.
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    gadget850 2h ago I worked for a small company and the boss let one of the engineers crash on the couch for a few months.
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    jersey8894 2h ago Mad props to Ben!!!!
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    Slight_Sherbert_5... • 2h ago Please tell me you didn't report him. Kind of wholesome, everyone struggles and needs a hand up on occasion, props to Ben for just making it work.
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    Very-very-sleepy ⚫ 2h ago . well done Ben. doing what most of us wish we could do to save rent. lol
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    GeorgeThe13th • 2h ago Wanting to remain unnoticable and eating people's food is like oil and water.
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    Alert_Letterhead_... . 1h ago so instead of paying him a livable wage they directed him to get housing assistance. Say less about how dystopian our society is right now
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    LeseMajeste_1037 • 2h ago Did you see Ben sleeping in the office? No, you didn't.
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terrible coworkers workplace-stories work stories toxic-workplace job intern work coworkers employees company toxic-work-environment
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