Nearly lost my job over a jokey comment taken out of context.
I was a manager in a company where the long-term admin girls who worked on the reception desk were notorious for bullying the temps they didn't like, forcing them to quit. One morning there was a new victim for them sitting at the telephone desk.
I walked past her, greeted her and walked into the neighbouring kitchen where I bumped into one of the admin staff (who was a friend). I glibly quoted her analysis of the last victim,"So it looks like you've got another one of those 'lazy useless' temps to get rid of hey?"
I made my morning coffee and walked back past her to my office. A little later one of my colleagues who worked on the same floor as she phoned me up and told me she'd started crying and stormed out of the office because of what I'd said to her.

About an hour later the recruitment company had put in a formal complaint about me.

I was summoned to head office an hour or so's drive away and made to wait outside the Managing Directors office for over an hour like a naughty schoolboy waiting for the Headmaster.
After he'd decided I'd stewed long enough he summoned me in and started his routine,"So I hear that you've verbally abused the new receptionist by saying to her,'Hello, so you're another one of these evil lazy bitch temps. You won't last very long here.'
He carried on with a diatribe about official disciplinary processes, industrial tribunals and a whole load of other threatening nonsense where he told me my career could be over.

I was initially stunned. Then annoyed that I'd been summoned into the city to justify myself to the Group Managing Director on the words of a girl who'd barely been in the building for 5 minutes. I'd worked at the company for over 10 years by then.

After explaining exactly what I had said and done and to whom, putting context into my comments he decided that perhaps things had been somewhat blown out of proportion and dismissed me from his office without any further ado.

The more I thought about everything the more bitter I got.
The next 4 years at the company was a game of brinksmanship between me, the senior directors and management as we all knew that I was too important to a major project to get rid of no matter what I got upto.

I got away with all sorts.
( Airman Gabber Living life like a 70's BBC presenter, Thu 22 Aug 2013, 16:27, 3 replies)

I used to work in a newsagents. I got caught nicking fruit pastilles but I still got away with all sorts.

( scarpe We Stole Bikes, Thu 22 Aug 2013, 16:31, closed)

Aye. They are small enough to jam a whole bag down your Japs eye.
they never think of frisking you there.
( Airman Gabber Living life like a 70's BBC presenter, Thu 22 Aug 2013, 16:33, closed)

i frisk all my paperboys down there
but all I ever get out is some half-chewed sherbet

:(
(alright alright, Thu 22 Aug 2013, 16:50, closed)