A new survey of close to 3,000 full and part time UK staff has shown that 50 per cent of workers felt that they had made a gaffe on their first day of work.
Many of the first day blunders and mistakes are pretty familiar – such as arriving late or blurting out something stupid because of nerves – but other gaffes were more obscure and might surprise you.
The research, commissioned by 4imprint, a printed products firm, revealed that many people fret about what to wear to work on their first day, with almost 3 in 4 respondents wishing they could have had a uniform to make things easier. More than 4 in 5 workers said they would have felt more comfortable on the first day of work if they had been confident about what clothes to wear.
Some people admitted that they had sent a ‘sensitive’ email, supposed to be for the eyes of one individual only, as a ‘send to all’ email throughout the company. Other people had been told that they weren’t the company’s first choice for the role.
Some first day workers found they had no desk or computer, while others found that they did have a computer but couldn’t work out how to turn it on.
Commenting on the survey’s findings, a spokesperson for 4imprint said: “Starting a new job can be intimidating for a variety of reasons. From not knowing who you’ll be working with, not being 100 per cent sure how to get to your new workplace and worries over what to wear can make for a nerve-wracking first day. Our study found the importance of what you wear to work can make you feel as comfortable as possible on a first day and help create a great first impression.”
“A decision can be made about a person within 26 seconds of meeting them, which is why appearance is so important. Corporate work wear can provide reassurance to new starters and if your organisation operates in the service or retail sector then staff uniforms can also be vitally important for customers,” added the spokesperson.
Here’s the full list of UK full and part time workers first day mistakes:
- Learned someone’s name then immediately forgotten it
- Got someone’s name wrong
- Was just too nervous
- Finding they had no computer/desk to work at
- Said something stupid due to nerves
- Arrived at the wrong work address
- Turned up completely overdressed compared to everyone else
- Worn shoes that ended up being agonisingly painful by the end of the day
- Had to have something simple explained numerous times
- Got there late due to traffic
- Being told they wasn’t the ‘first choice candidate’
- Forgotten the code to get in or out of the office
- Got there late due to public transport problems
- Put their foot in their mouth during a conversation with someone
- Turned up completely underdressed compared to everyone else
- Been over-friendly
- Accidentally sent a sensitive email as a ‘staff all’
- Made someone’s tea wrong
- Said something inappropriate to a new colleague
- Got there late due to other reasons
- Damaged company property
- Spilled tea everywhere
- Took too long on a lunch break
- Got the company name wrong
- Went to the wrong address
- Asked how to turn their computer on
- Had a wardrobe malfunction like trousers splitting
- Took a personal call that was frowned upon
- Worn a tie when nobody else was wearing one
- Had to leave early due to a family emergency
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