The New CEO Fired a Man Who Wasn’t Even an Employee—And the Whole Company Couldn’t Stop Laughing
The new CEO of a large company was determined to make a good impression.
He had recently taken over after the previous CEO retired, and he wanted everyone to know that things were going to change.
His first announcement was simple:
“From today forward, laziness will not be tolerated. Everyone must contribute, work hard, and justify their salary.”
He spent the morning walking through different departments, inspecting desks, asking employees about their responsibilities, and making notes on his clipboard.
Most employees straightened up whenever they saw him approaching.
Some quickly closed shopping websites.
Others suddenly became very busy typing.
The CEO was enjoying himself.
He believed he was identifying all the people who had been taking advantage of the company.
Then he entered a large room filled with workers.
Everyone was busy doing something.
Well, almost everyone.
Near the back wall stood a young man leaning casually against a cabinet, his hands in his pockets.
He wasn’t typing.
He wasn’t carrying paperwork.
He wasn’t talking to anyone.
He was simply standing there.
The CEO stopped immediately.
He pointed at the young man.
“You! Come here!”
The young man looked around.
“Me?”
“Yes, you. What exactly are you doing?”
The young man shrugged.
“Just waiting.”
The CEO frowned.
“Waiting? And you’re being paid to stand around?”
“Well, technically, yes.”
The CEO’s face turned red.
“How much do you make every week?”
“About $400.”
The CEO couldn’t believe his ears.
“Four hundred dollars a week to stand around doing nothing?”
The young man nodded.
“Something like that.”
The CEO pulled out his wallet.
He counted sixteen $100 bills and shoved them into the young man’s hand.
“Here! That’s four weeks’ pay. You’re fired! Take your money and get out of this building immediately. And don’t ever come back!”
The young man stared at the cash.
Then he looked at the CEO.
“Are you serious?”
“Absolutely! Now move!”
The young man didn’t argue.
He put the money in his pocket, turned around, and walked straight out of the room.
The CEO stood proudly, watching him leave.
He turned toward the employees.
“That’s how we do things around here from now on. Nobody gets paid to stand around doing nothing!”
A few employees exchanged uncomfortable glances.
The CEO folded his arms.
“Now, can anyone tell me what that lazy man’s job was?”
There was a brief silence.
Then a voice came from the back of the room.
“He was the Domino’s pizza delivery driver, sir.”
The CEO blinked.
“What?”
The employee pointed toward the empty space where the young man had been standing.
“He was delivering lunch to the accounting department. They ordered pizza about ten minutes ago.”
The entire room went silent.
Then someone started laughing.
Another employee covered their mouth.
Within seconds, the entire department was roaring.
The CEO looked at the sixteen hundred dollars he had just handed away.
Then he looked toward the door.
“Wait a minute! Does anyone know which branch he came from?”
Another employee raised a hand.
“Yes, sir. The pizza box is still on the reception desk.”
The CEO closed his eyes.
He had wanted to fire a lazy employee.
Instead, he had paid a complete stranger four weeks’ wages to deliver a pizza.
And just when he thought the embarrassment couldn’t get any worse, his assistant walked into the room.
“Sir, your lunch has arrived.”
The CEO stared at her.
“Please tell me you didn’t pay for that pizza.”
She looked confused.
“No, sir. The delivery driver said you already paid him.”
The room exploded with laughter again.
The CEO slowly returned to his office.
That afternoon, he called an emergency management meeting.
His first announcement was:
“Effective immediately, nobody is allowed to fire anyone without checking their employee identification.”
And from that day forward, whenever someone in the company saw a delivery driver standing near a wall, they made sure to ask one question before doing anything.
“Excuse me, are you here to deliver something?”
Because nobody wanted to become the next CEO who accidentally paid a pizza delivery guy $1,600 to quit his job.
He walked into the company looking for lazy workers.
He walked out having made the most expensive pizza delivery tip in company history.
