Man Skips Work for Six Years – Discovered Only When Nominated for an Award

Yes, you heard that right. Joaquín García, a 69-year-old building supervisor from Cádiz, Spain, managed to stay off the radar for six years without showing up to his job at a water treatment plant. Despite his absence, he continued to draw his €37,000 annual salary, all thanks to a bureaucratic mix-up where two government departments each assumed the other was overseeing his work.

The ruse unraveled when García was nominated for an award honoring his 20 years of service. "I wondered whether he was still working there, had he retired, had he died? But the payroll showed he was still receiving a salary," said deputy mayor Jorge Blas, according to Spanish newspaper El Mundo. When confronted, García was at a loss for words, unable to account for his daily activities over the years.

As a result, García was fined €27,000, the equivalent of one year’s salary after tax, for his extended absence, according to the BBC. However, García denied the accusations, claiming he had been bullied because of his family’s political views and insisting there was no work for him at the water company, which he believed was an intentional move to sideline him.

A cautionary tale for anyone thinking about skipping work…


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