When you're working for someone else, and you're getting paid an hourly wage, whatever you do, pranks are find as long as they don't get in the way of productivity.
When you're working for yourself and you're keen to get the job done as quickly as possible, pranks are not really part of my day. Working on site with other guys we do have a laugh and a joke, and may do something silly but you've got to choose your times - ie when the jobs going well and there is a bit of slack in the day.
Probably the best prank I played whilst at work was around April 1st.
As an introduction, the company I worked for NEVER spent any money on new furniture for the offices or shop floor without a huge fight. One day I voiced an opinion that successfully released some £17k for new chairs for the shop floor. The company employed a large number of skilled assembly workers. These were the first new chairs they were going to have for about a decade. Most of the chairs didn't meet current health and safety regs. These new ones were going to be great.
As I was the one who had successfully twisted the management arm, I was awarded the task of collating all the requirements on the shop floor. I spoke to all the team leaders separately and got their requirements and submitted them all to the Site Services Manager who's task it was to raise the order via procurement. This job wasn't easy for me as a lot of the team leaders had 'heard it all before'. They had been asked to work out their requirements several times and each time it had come to nothing. I was convinced that this time it would be different, so I played every card in my hand to get them on board, including the guild card 'how would you feel if you told me to go forth and multiply then the other teams got the new chairs?'. They were still very sceptical.
The order was duly placed and we were given a much anticipated delivery date. Still very many didn't believe me. "We'll believe it when they come Hugo!" was the common cry.
Anyway, they arrived. Some 150 odd chairs turned up. Pretty much one for each shop floor worker if I remember correctly. As I said, the date was around April 1st.....
Now, to further set the scene - the company had gone crazy about saving money, and had a suggestion scheme that seemed to pay the suggesters well but provide little to the company, apart from getting people to think more, which was no bad thing I suppose. However ideas, such as banning kettles on site in favour of using free hot water from the vending machines to make a brew to save a bit of electricity, and doing away with a cheque cashing facility saving about 1/2 hour per day of someone's time, meaning employees would have to spend all their lunch hour walking into and from town were seriously considered, and some even more obscure ones were introduced! These were hailed as major developments in how the company was going to cut costs. So the company was cost cutting mad - penny wise but pound foolish.
I felt that there was to much euphoria about. I was worried that I had performed a miracle, so I decided to e mail all shop floor supervisors as to how these chairs should be allocated.
My e mail stated broadly that there was not enough money to buy all the chairs that were needed. Hence one employee had come up with an idea that each team should organise tea breaks and team leaders should draw up a time table for each chair, which would be given an asset number. The time table would stipulate who was to use the chair in each 20 minute period. Deviations were only permitted with the say so of the team leader.
I expected everyone to have a good laugh. It wasn't my intention to get people to believe me, but some very intelligent people actually fell for it. The company had gone so far down the road with implementing stupid cost saving ideas that this seemed plausible to a frightening number of people.
Senior management received one complaint about it from an aggrieved team leader. Fortunately the senior manager who received the complaint had a sense of humour and had a good laugh about it. He told me himself. Some technitians thought it was a good idea, and wished they'd thought of it.
After a few days the whole company were laughing about it. The shop floor had their new chairs, which were well deserved and well overdue, and everyone enjoyed a good laugh into the bargain. I never thought I could pull a prank on so many people. I've never played such a huge prank before and I doubt I'll ever be able to top it!
We were in stiches 
