The Most Shocking Job Ads From Around the World

Jobs may be monotonous, but at least they don’t involve hiding Easter eggs for someone else. This job poster on Craigslist was looking for someone to enter his apartment when he wasn’t there, hide a selection of candy-filled Easter eggs, and be paid for their trouble. Think Jason is clowning around? He makes it very clear that he wants ‘Serious inquiries only’.

In an attempt to create a special evening for his wife at a local McDonald’s, this poster was actively recruiting for a waiter to tend to their romantic dinner for up to two hours. The job required the temporary professional McDonald’s waiter to wear ‘formal attire’, greet the couple at the door, lead them to a booth set up a table with tablecloth, napkins, nice plates, and wine glasses, and take care of all ordering and delivery of food. Though it may sound like a fairly bizarre job, for $50 (€42.41) plus tip, it seemed like a reasonable proposition.

Ever been at work and hoped to just blend into the background? This job may not be the best fit. According to the BBC, a 22-year-old man was recruited to wear a bright orange coat, play an accordion, and clang a cowbell in the middle of a field to attract attention and scare away partridges that were eating a local farmer’s crops. For £250 ($294.74) a week, it doesn’t seem like such a bad gig.

Fans of waterparks may find this bizarre job perfect for them. In 2013, a resort marketer in the United Kingdom advertised for a professional waterslide tester to evaluate various rides at its SplashWorld facilities. As a hint towards the job poster’s real intentions, the ad suggested there was an emphasis on actual waterslide experience and social media influence.

While beard and moustache growth may come naturally to some, it’s a more difficult process for others. This Craigslist poster in the United States decided to take matters into his own hands by recruiting a beard mentor. According to the post, he had ‘tried styling it in the past but just can’t seem to get it to the next level’. The applicants were requested to submit a beard and moustache résumè along with pictures of achievements.

In direct contrast to the job posters who required Easter egg hiders and rented bridesmaids, this individual can’t seem to keep up with his or her popularity. ‘I get 40-50 texts an hour, I can’t handle my workload plus texting responsibilities’, reads the Craigslist ad. ‘My phone gets too full and needs texts deleted every couple hours. This is a full-time position and you must be where ever [sic] I am at, [sic] because my phone is always with me’.

In a throwback to days of old in South Africa, one job advert recently sparked national controversy when it called for ‘Only white candidates’ to apply. The position, which was for a senior user experience designer, attracted a good salary of R420,000 (€26,464.23; $31,200) per year. Surprisingly, the advert stayed up on the internet for 20 days before social media outcry led the company who posted it to take it down.

Although pet walkers and caretakers are not uncommon job postings in the online world, one San Francisco couple took it the next level with a totally bizarre advert. The couple, who claimed to no longer have time to maintain their personal lives, listed a seemingly impossible list of criteria for their future pet caretaker. In one massive paragraph, they requested someone who isn’t ‘dramatic or tightly wound’, but also not ‘lazy or sloth-like’. The additional requirements, such as incredible personality traits and the willingness to clean after the dog seven days a week, 10 am to 6 pm, excluded anyone but the most determined and qualified animal lovers.

A marketing firm recently made headlines with an ad that called for dyslexics only to apply for their vacant position. According to the advert, which included a picture of well-known dyslexic Steve Jobs, they were looking for someone who thinks differently. ‘We require people with a unique mind, so only dyslexics (like Steve) should apply’.

In a true case of rent a crowd, this bridesmaid posted a desperate plea on Craigslist for a crew of bridesmaids in order to match her future husband’s eight groomsmen. The job ad requested ‘girls who are attractive and around my age….You can be single or taken. It doesn’t matter….You just have to be hot. But, not hotter than me’. The poster didn’t mention any pay package, but she does suggest that compensation would be in the form of a free wedding.

If asked to list the worst job in Ireland, being an assistant to an airline CEO may not make it on there. However, in a widely publicised job opening, RyanAir called for interested parties to apply for the worst job in the country—that of assistant to their sometimes unpredictable and abrasive CEO Michael O’Leary. According to the advert, O’Leary was looking for someone with ‘thick skin’, ‘saint-like patience’, ‘ability to operate without sleep or contact with the outside world’, and an ‘aversion to bolloxology’.