There are some pretty obvious ways to get in trouble on Wall Street: screw up a huge project, upset an important client, stop showing up to work, losing a ton of money, etc. These are standard.
But there are other ways we've heard of — really weird ways — that have gotten Wall Streeters in serious trouble, or worse, fired.
These stories involve everything from mooning the boss to getting mad at a co-worker for passing gas.
So yeah, they could happen to anyone ... right?
Bringing an inappropriate item such as a fake grenade to work.
It's probably not the best idea to order something that resembles an explosive and have it sent to your office.
EXAMPLE: A Nomura employee had a UPS package sent to the office containing a novelty grenade on a wooden plaque with a sign reading "Complaint Department: Please Take a Number," sent to the office.
The object was discovered during a routine screening, causing parts of World Financial 2 to be evacuated on initial fears that it might be a real explosive.
It was later determined to be a fake grenade, but the bank placed the employee on administrative leave for bringing an "inappropriate item" to work.
Blowing up on a co-worker for passing gas.
Passing gas is not cool. But who knew getting angry at a co-worker for letting one rip could get you fired?
EXAMPLE: In 2003, a Swedish bank IT person was dismissed after blowing up on a colleague who had farted in the office, newspaper Aftonbladet reported.
The computer tech took his case to court.
"Provoked by a terrible fart - a real Mok - 07.30 on my study, which I am mad as a hornet react to the event. The person sh**s so bad that he basically has its own toilet at the office where no one else goes and could not possibly put a fart by accident," a Google translation of the article shows.
He was awarded 850,000 crowns (or about $100,000) in compensation, the report said.
Source: Aftonbladet via Here Is The City
Mooning your boss at the office
Don't expect to keep your job after showing your boss your naked rear end.
EXAMPLE: Back in 2005, Chicago-based investment banker Jason Selch was fired and forfeited his $2 million partnership when he mooned his bosses.
At the time, Selch was an employee with Wagner Asset Management when it merged with Columbia Asset Management, a subsidiary of BofA. Shortly after the merger, Selch learned that a friend of his had been fired for not accepting lower compensation with Columbia.
This really ticked him off, so he went into the conference room where some execs, New York-based COO Roger Sayler and Chicago-based CIO Charles McQuaid, were meeting, and asked if he had a non-compete agreement. He did not.
That's when he dropped his pants and mooned his superiors and told Sayler he hoped he would never return to Chicago. He was fired and later lost his lawsuit.
See the rest of the story at Business Insider