20 Employees Share the Absolute Worst Company Perks Ever Offered

Apr 22, 2025 01:00 AM EDT

Worst company perks

At my first real office job, I distinctly remember being told that free coffee was a "generous perk." Turns out, it was powdered instant coffee packets next to lukewarm water. If you think your workplace incentives are laughable, these stories about the worst company perks will make your job feel luxurious by comparison.

Scrolling through this collection of terrible workplace incentives, you'll quickly realize how some employers truly misunderstand what a "perk" should be. Photos and anecdotes range from bosses proudly touting basic legal requirements as employee benefits—like lunch breaks—to offering supplies such as pens and notepads as if they were extravagant bonuses. These hilarious and cringe-worthy examples of employee dissatisfaction reveal that some companies are out of touch with reality, believing trivial office supplies and bare minimum workplace standards are reward-worthy.

During my first job interview, they hyped up their "unlimited PTO". Turns out, no one actually used it because the boss would guilt-trip you every time you requested a day off.
Another company had "casual Fridays", but when I showed up in jeans, my manager pulled me aside and said it was "only for certain employees" (aka, not me
If companies offer free breakfast, lunch and dinner, nap pods, etc, they expect you to work so many hours a day that you would need them.
"Fantastic health insurance" meant fantastic coverage, not fantastic prices. Like cool, I have a lot of doctors who accept this but my monthly payment is awful.
Unlimited vacation days... but take more than 2 weeks and you'll find out.

After browsing through these ridiculous company perks, you probably found yourself laughing and shaking your head at the absurdity. From painfully basic items like branded pens to so-called perks that are legally mandated, this collection likely left you feeling more grateful for your own job perks.

Enjoyed these hilariously awful workplace incentives? You might also appreciate our collections on funny workplace fails, laughable corporate policies, cringe-worthy management mistakes, and relatable employee memes.

Roy has been one of the internet's meme tastemakers for more than a decade. He and Phil started Thunder Dungeon in 2012 by posting the stuff they found funny, and it grew into viral photo and video creations, one of the largest meme community apps and one of the best sites for daily meme content. If you've spent any time online, you've probably laughed at one of his memes.
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