My broken office printer has more job security than me: Corporate employee's rant on why a machine can't be disposed unlike humans goes viral

A corporate employee's account of a broken office printer that has remained unused since 2021 but cannot be disposed of because of company policies has sparked conversations about workplace bureaucracy and the irony of corporate asset management. In a post shared online, the employee described how repeated attempts to remove the faulty machine were rejected by different departments, eventually making him its official custodian.

The employee said the printer had not worked since 2021, and the Facilities team had asked the IT department to arrange its disposal last month. However, what appeared to be a straightforward task turned into a prolonged administrative exercise involving Finance, Facilities, IT and an auditor.

According to the employee, company policy required a signed Asset Disposal Authorization before any equipment could be removed. The form had to be printed, signed by the department head and attached to the equipment.


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Broken printer becomes an accounting problem

The employee said his first disposal request was rejected by Finance because the printer still had a book value of $14.62. The department reportedly said the asset could not be written off until the next depreciation cycle.

With disposal ruled out, the employee attempted to move the printer into storage. However, Facilities rejected the request, explaining that storage space was reserved for operational equipment. When he pointed out that the printer no longer worked, he was told that its disposal was an IT issue.

The employee then tried another approach by submitting a repair estimate of $480. However, Finance rejected the proposal, arguing that replacing the printer would be more economical than repairing it.

His next attempt was to request a replacement, but that too was rejected because the office already had enough printers.

He also attached Finance's rejection of the replacement request to the disposal application, hoping it would help resolve the matter. However, the disposal request was rejected again.

Auditor's intervention makes employee printer's official custodian

The situation took another turn last Friday when an auditor questioned why a broken printer had been left in the office hallway.

The employee explained the repeated rejections and the difficulties involved in getting the machine disposed of. However, the auditor reportedly pointed out that keeping unused equipment in a hallway created an asset management compliance risk and recommended assigning someone to oversee it.

The employee's manager subsequently informed him that he had been made the printer's official custodian.

Despite being non-functional for five years, having no toner and being unable to print, the machine now had an assigned owner, a depreciation schedule and a quarterly compliance review.

The employee ended his account with an ironic observation that the printer had more job security than he did, drawing attention to the contrast between how companies handle underperforming equipment and their employees.

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