An office worker faces the sack after telling friends to plant a fake bomb so he could escape work and enjoy the sunshine.
Matt Jones, 21, posted a request on Facebook suggesting someone should leave ‘a mysterious looking package’ at the HQ of Southern Water.
He said they should then call police to say they had planted a bomb so the office would be evacuated.
Bosses at the firm were alerted to the post before any call was made and Jones was sent home in Littlehampton, Sussex.
He has now been suspended for a week on full pay while management consider his future.
The company also called informed police who advised them to deal with it as an internal matter.
Jones’ first Facebook post read: “Depressed is not the word I think I’d rather be a bum this summer than work in an office again!!”
He followed that with: “Ok this is a serious request: If someone wants to earn a bullseye come to southern water and place a ‘mysterious looking package’ in the building and call the police telling them you have placed a bomb… Then I can enjoy the sun and get messssyyy!! (£50 bonus if we get sent home in the next half hour)”
A spokesman for Southern Water confirmed the incident at their HQ at Durrington nr Worthing, Sussex on Tuesday, March 5 which was a sunny day.
They said: “A member of staff has been suspended on full pay, pending an investigation into a comment left on a social networking site which was deemed to be gross misconduct.”
Sussex Police said Southern Water called them the day after the comment was posted.
After receiving advice, the company decided they would deal with the situation as an internal matter and police intervention wasn’t needed.