GET TO WORK ON TIME

Get To Work On Time...Or Else
Best Excuses For Being Late

By F. John Reh, About.com Guide

Mar 1 2011
In economic times like these, when there are at least 10-15 applicants for every job opening, employees who still have jobs are making more of an effort to get to work on time according to a recent survey by CareerBuilder.com. But that doesn't mean that those who are late don't have interesting reason or excuses for their tardiness.

The survey, conducted in November and December 2010, found that 15 percent of workers admitted to being late for work at least once once a week, down from 16 percent the previous year and 20 percent in 2008. It may be worth noting that the economic downturn did not begin until late in 2008. According to the survey, one-third (32 percent) of employers said they have terminated an employee for being late. Some are more lenient.

Reasons For Being Late

The survey found the most often used excuses were

* traffic-related (30 percent),
* lack of sleep (19 percent),
* bad weather (9 percent), and
* childcare issues (8 percent).

Our Survey

An About.com survey of managers revealed a variety of creative and interesting excuses used by employees who are late for work. These include:

* My wife's brother got arrested on our front lawn, and we were fighting whose fault it was.

* I had to go to the doctor because I have triple pneumonia. (And, were those his exact words.)

* A young lady, who lived a short distance away, did not arrive on time (because) having a pencil skirt on, she could not walk quickly.

* The cat was sick and I had to clean up after her.

* her boyfriend was involved in a fender bender and ended up getting in a shouting match with the other driver who then stabbed him in the neck and drove off.

* He had to take time off to shop for a new phone because he'd dropped his in the toilet that AM and he couldn't live a minute without a cellphone. He's no longer with us.

* She and her spouse argued whose turn it was to stay home when their son woke up sick that morning.

* He had to go and search for his wedding ring, which he thought he had dropped on a gravel road the night before while hunting.

* Her electric garage door opener wouldn't work because of a blown fuse and she had to wait for her husband to come manually raise the door.

* Her son woke up with a loose tooth missing and she had to stay home till he pooped so she could find it.

* The storm knocked out my power and the alarm did not go off.

* I will be late cuz last night there was a storm and I could not get my underwear to dry.

* The Army have exercises in the morning and they blocked the only exit from the complex.

* I would have been here on time if all those other cars weren't on the streets.

The employee whose excuse was "I was too tired to come in on time, so I decided to sleep in and rest up to be more productive" no longer works there.

What's Your Excuse

What is the best, most amusing excuse you have heard? Or have used yoursef? Share the best one you've heard.

MY THOUGHTS

i doubt managers find these excuses amusing. especially if the person concerned is an habitual latecomer. if he's habitually late, i'm surprised he's still allowed to make these excuses (if e still had the job!)