Alleged Hospital Microwave Payment Usage Sign For Employees Goes Viral

An anonymous Reddit user posted a photo of an alleged sign suggesting that hospital workers at an undisclosed location are being charged for microwave use.

Reddit user Berezis, believed to be from Florida, uploaded the photo to the subreddit titled “Mildly Infuriating” – a popular forum that has over 5.7 million members and allows people to share images of boring instances.

“Sign posted at my friend’s work (hospital behavioral health unit),” Berezis wrote on Wednesday, May 17.

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The single sheet of white printer paper appears to be glued to a wooden surface and claims that one microwave use costs $2. A monthly, unlimited microwave pass would cost $30.

Reddit users had a lot of questions about the sign’s legitimacy, including whether the typed sign applies to workers or patients and whether it might be a joke.

Berezis provided additional details in the comments section of the post, explaining that the sign applies to hospital employees and that it was recorded in a staff break room, according to a text message Berezis allegedly sent. by a friend.

The acronym BHU SW that appeared on the sign would stand for Behavioral Health Unit Social Workers, Berezis explained.

The anonymous Reddit user declined to say at which hospital the sign is displayed.

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Berezis wrote that she doesn’t work at the hospital and has received limited information from her friend, so she doesn’t know how the microwave transactions are enforced – if at all.

“My friend just started work, saw it, took a picture and sent it to our newsgroup saying ‘look at that bull—-‘, and I thought that sub would appreciate it,” Berezis wrote. “That’s all I know.”

Berezis said he was told more microwaves were available in other areas of the hospital, but the social work department in the behavioral health unit still showed the odd sign.

Fox News Digital reached out to Berezis for comment on Monday, May 22.

The Reddit post received over 36,700 upvotes and generated over 1,600 comments.

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Some reviewers saw the humor in the microwave pay panel.

“Buy the unlimited pass and make everyone else pay $1 to reheat their food,” wrote the top commenter of the post, which got more than 9,000 upvotes.

“I would buy the whole microwave for $2.00 as advertised,” wrote another Reddit user, who got 2,400 upvotes.

Employers often provide appliances in staff break rooms, such as refrigerators and microwaves, to help with on-site lunch preparation. (Stock)

“Tonight I will peacefully drift off to sleep with the image of a manager’s face finding $2 on the counter where the microwave was nestled snugly in my head,” another user joked.

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One Reddit user jokingly suggested that an employee should “buy another microwave and put it next to the other” and charge co-workers $1.

At the same time, many commentators seem skeptical of the sign and think it’s probably a joke.

“The lack of mention of a ‘signed by management’ type policy or line makes me think it’s a sign of joking on the part of the employees, poking fun at the already likely greed there- low,” wrote one Reddit user.

“Yeah honestly sounds like a joke or someone abused the microwave enough for this to happen,” another user wrote.

Employees can use the microwaves provided to heat up drinks and food during breaks, but the communal device is apparently not without its challenges, according to Reddi (Stock)

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Several Reddit commenters have noted that $30 for a single monthly microwave pass could be enough to buy a small or portable microwave.

A few Reddit users have shown their support for the Microwave Pay Panel based on negative workplace experiences they have had.

“Having worked in environments where shared devices aren’t supported, lunches stolen, mess done, I don’t think this is out of place at all,” one Reddit user wrote. “If they have a separate part of a floor for their unit to congregate, it’s their right to manage their space as they see fit.”

“I used to bring a George Foreman to work to make toasted sandwiches. It was like a month before he got so covered in s—that I brought him home and then the guy i know [messed] he complained for months [sic] about me taking care of my own business,” another user shared.

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Proponents of the microwave sign have noted that charging employees for microwave use likely deters messy co-workers, especially if the main culprits of the mess are from other departments.

Reddit users say they’ve had to deal with dirty microwaves and similar appliances in break rooms because not all employees make sure to clean up after themselves. (Stock)

Other Reddit users who think the microwave sign might be real have claimed to have experienced something similar in employee break rooms.

“My workplace did it in the break room, so I bought a microwave for $10 at a yard sale, put it on top of theirs, and put a “free unlimited use” sign on the front,” one commenter wrote.

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“One of my former employers tried to do this and they put a code on the microwave that you had to type in to use it,” another commenter wrote. “Everyone just shared the code, nobody paid the money.”