Worst Employees of 2007

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Worst Employees of 2007
By Rachel Zupek, CareerBuilder.com writer
They cheated, stole, scammed and assaulted. They lied, got arrested, used illegal drugs and committed lewd acts. No one is perfect – workers included – but even knowing that, you’ll be surprised at what you’re about to read. Here are some of the crazy stunts employees pulled throughout the year to make our list, “Worst Employees of 2007.”

This year’s most awful employees…

Sell drugs at work
The founder of a California pot-lacing food factory was arrested on drug charges for conspiring to manufacture and distribute marijuana. He originally said he made his products for medical marijuana clubs in the state. The founder and three of his employees allegedly produced such marijuana-laced products as cookies, barbecue sauce, honey and soda. During an investigation, the Drug Enforcement Administration seized pot-laced candy bars called Buddafingas and Stoners, which were wrapped in packages similar to Butterfingers and Snickers. (Source: The Associated Press, MSNBC.com)

Use drugs at work
An ambulance driver in West Virginia faces an impaired driving charge after he ran two red lights with a patient in the back of the ambulance. The driver allegedly forgot to turn on the lights and sirens of the ambulance, then failed a field sobriety test after he was pulled over. He went to jail on a charge of driving under the influence of a controlled substance, according to police authorities. (Source: The Associated Press, MSNBC.com)

Counterfeit DVDs
An employee at a Baltimore elections warehouse was charged with the possession, manufacturing and distribution of 415 illegally copied movie DVDs, including such recent releases as “Shrek the Third,” “The Nanny Diaries” and “3:10 to Yuma.” Authorities found the counterfeit DVDs at the elections warehouse and in the employee’s car and home. (Source: The Baltimore Sun)

Commit green card scams
A former federal immigration employee and his sister pleaded guilty to charging people between $8,000 and $16,000 to obtain green cards through fake marriages in New York. In return for money, the siblings prepared phony documents for customers to acquire marriage licenses and other legal documents. Americans were paid to participate in phony marriages with the customers. The siblings will spend about three years in prison and pay $1.5 million in fines. (Source: The Associated Press)

Embezzle mail
A former letter carrier pleaded guilty to embezzling and stealing mail from patrons along her route in Texas. The carrier was convicted after admitting to opening and removing such contents of mail as greeting cards and money for approximately one year, according to the U.S. Department of Justice. (Source: States News Service)

Forget about clients
The last employee to leave a child’s day care center in Dallas accidentally left a 14-month-old girl locked inside alone; not realizing the child was still there. The girl was found safe and sound, according to police reports. (Source: The Associated Press)

In a separate incident, while a 73-year-old woman looked through her safe deposit box, employees of a California Bank of America accidentally locked her in the building, according to authorities. The cleaning person called police when she found the woman unconscious and cold to the touch. The woman apparently passed out because she hadn’t taken her diabetes medication. (Source: The Associated Press, MSNBC.com)

Use bad judgment
A former Chicago television reporter was videotaped with her two young children, wearing a swimsuit at the home of a man whose estranged wife has been missing since April 2007. The reporter said she was on her way to the pool with her kids when she received a call from the missing woman’s sister to come to the home to discuss the case with her.

Display violence on the clock … and off
An employee in England took matters into his own hands when he confronted his manager for wages he said he was owed. He opened a register and took the money, pushing his manager out of the way and allegedly punching her in the cheek. The employee pleaded guilty to theft and assault, saying he accepted pushing the bar manager but not punching her. (Source: Halifax Evening Courier)

An off-duty airline employee was arrested on assault charges after he sat down next to a woman trying to sleep and allegedly touched her inappropriately, according to an affadavit filed with a complaint from the woman. The employee was charged with simple assault and was suspended from the airline until further review of the incident. (Source: The Associated Press)

Finally, a man strangled his boss by putting him in a neck hold after an argument during a party in Alaska. The employee was charged with killing his boss, according to police. Apparently, the two were good friends, as well as co-workers, and they frequently roughhoused after a few drinks. (Source: Anchorage Daily News)

Jog in the nude
A Catholic priest in Colorado went jogging one morning before sunrise – naked. The priest said that he didn’t think anyone would be around so early in the morning, and that he sweats profusely if he wears clothes while running because he’s heavyset, according to police reports. The priest was placed on administrative leave. (Source: TheDenverChannel.com)

Disobey orders
A bakery employee in Canada resisted an order to stay home from work while he was sick with salmonella poisoning. He was required to stay home until his tests came back negative, but he never submitted samples for testing and returned to work without permission. He was fined $1,000 and there’s no evidence customers became ill as a result of his negligence. (Source: CanWest News Service)

Don’t listen to complaints
An employee for the Department of Human Services in Oklahoma allegedly didn’t believe a 5-year-old girl who said she had been sexually abused while in foster care. The employee failed to report the claim because she said the little girl was prone to lying. Later, a teenage boy admitted to the crime, which resulted in a misdemeanor for the employee. (Source: The Associated Press, The Oklahoman)