The best and worst of hiring, firing and quitting in 2012

This year was all about the election, which meant lots of talking about the economy and jobs. By the time November rolled around, the unemployment rate became a talking point you heard about again and again until it became white noise. But in all of the employment figures, you might forget that there are individual stories behind those figures. Every person who gets hired, laid off or fired has a story.

While each of these occasions is significant and life-changing, some are more notable than others. Not everyone gets hired after a few interviews or decides to quit with a professional resignation letter. Some stories are more entertaining than others, and we found the best and worst hiring, firing and quitting stories of 2012: 

Best use of multimedia to quit: Teacher reads resignation letter on YouTube
An elementary-school teacher decided to resign from his position, because he didn’t think he was being allowed to teach effectively. He had been tutoring students with dyslexia and seeing great progress in their time together, but the school administrators forced him to stop his methods and stick to the standard process. He was so passionate about quitting that he didn’t just resign, he read his letter on video and posted it on YouTube for his boss and community to see. To ensure his intention was not lost on viewers, he sternly and loudly exclaims that he is “gone, gone, gone.” Source: Turnto10.Com

Best hiring stunt that actually paid off: Job seeker buys “Hire Me!” billboard and gets a job
Usually, we tell job seekers to be creative but reasonable in their search methods. Have a memorable story to tell during an interview, for example, but don’t show up wearing a clown costume just to be memorable. Job seeker Bennett Olson lost his job at a casino and wanted to get an employer’s attention. So he put up a billboard with his picture, the address to his website and the text “Hire Me!” in bold letters. It cost $300, but it landed him a job with a new company as a sales and marketing associate. Source: Business Insider

Worst reason to get fired: Lifeguard fired for trying to save drowning swimmer
A Florida lifeguard was fired for saving the life of a swimmer. The problem is that the drowning swimmer was outside of the lifeguard’s zone, which means the lifeguard broke his employer’s rules. However, what makes the story weirder is that six of the lifeguard’s co-workers were also fired when they admitted they would have done the same. Source: Gawker

Worst way to find out you’re unemployed: Laid off via text message
On a Sunday night in September, workers in Florence, Ala., received a text from their boss that they didn’t need to come in to work on Monday. The owner decided that, due to low sales, there wasn’t any reason to continue the business. While the news came abruptly and unconventionally, the owner did schedule the shutdown so that he had enough money to pay employees another four weeks of salary. Source: WAFF

Best way to tell off your boss: Local TV anchors quit on air after evening news broadcast
At some point in your career you’ve probably been fed up with your job and wanted to quit in a glorious fashion. You either wanted to tell your boss what you really thought about her or wanted to get up one day and walk out the door, leaving your boss in a jam. Two TV anchors in Bangor, Maine did get to live out their resignation fantasies. Both were no longer happy working for the TV station, and they knew if they resigned privately station managers would probably not let them back on the air. So they kept their plans a secret and, at the end of a Tuesday evening broadcast, told viewers (and their equally unaware colleagues) that they would no longer be with the station effective immediately. Source: Bangor Daily News