'AITA for 'abandoning' my coworker on the side of the road because of his bad hygiene?'
"AITA for 'abandoning' my coworker on the side of the road because of his bad hygiene?"
Title makes it sound bad but that’s how my boss is describing it. I was asked to drive a coworker to the company’s warehouse so he could pick up a vehicle and bring it back to the office.
This coworker has the worst hygiene of anyone I’ve ever met. He constantly comes into work without showering and he’s admitted he doesn’t brush his teeth because it makes his gums bleed. Dude smells like sh*t 99% of the time and can stink up our average sized office so I was not excited to be giving him a ride in my car.
I drove with my windows down and on the way to the warehouse we passed through an area that was a residential neighborhood with a bunch of small dairy and livestock farms.
He told me to (not asked) roll the window up because the farms smelled like sh*t. I told him they still smell better than his body odor and the windows are staying down. It’s worth noting that me and this coworker do not get along for reasons other than his poor hygiene.
We start arguing back and forth and he tells me to “pull your f*cking car over”. So I did just that and he got out on a street that had a bunch of houses and a small convenience store and told me to f*ck off, so I promptly left.
Not long after I got a call from my boss screaming at me for “abandoning” that a**#@le in the “middle of nowhere” and not doing what he asked me to.
I tried to tell him that he voluntarily got out of my car in a residential area but he wasn’t hearing it and I got told to go pick him up. I replied that I would only get him if he popped a breath mint and I got told to start my weekend early and not come back to the office until Monday. Feels like a reward to be frank but am I the a**#$le?
Here are rthe top rated responses from readers:
NTA. Boss has no right to expect you to put up with toxic fumes in your personal vehicle. Work should have paid for an Uber.
So he thought it was stinky outside so he wanted you to let him outside? NTA, boss is unprofessional. You shouldn't be that person's cab driver just because your boss said so, that's your vehicle. To me, that's equivalent to a boss making him stay in your house.
If he would brush his teeth more, his gums would stop bleeding. NTA.
Be TA. Delf accountability. You have to have proper hygiene. Especially in a working environment. Like WTF!? Subjecting others to your sub standard respect of yourself and expect others to respect that? No, what kind of clown BS is that?
I like how the pastures smelled better than coworker argument, that definitely did emotional damage. AH move, great burn. He wanted to get off, you respected it. Perfect. Early weekend given by boss, PERFECT.
I'd have a civil conversation with the boss to clear up any misunderstandings here, but if coworker smells that bad, I think mentioning the theoretical possibility of the boss giving him a lift would be... what's the word... enlightening to listen to from your superior. Helps with team building and all that.
NTA. Whatelse could you do if your coworker wanted to get out the car? He made the decision himself so it’s not your fault.