If you’re getting bored of your 9-5 and each working day is beginning to feel the same, fear not, because things could be a lot worse. There are some strange vocations out there, from Armpit Sniffer to Professional Thief, and we’ve compiled a quick list of the Top 12 Weirdest Jobs to bring a hint of comedy to your daily routine, while making you realise that things could be a lot worse: your boss could ask you to masturbate a pig…
Professional Prostitute Tester
Believe it or not this is a real job title; a Chilean brothel has hired a man to keep an eye on quality. Girls with ambitions to become VIP escorts are photographed, interviewed and given psychometric tests to complete, before the Professional Prostitute Tester completes the arduous applicant screening process with the obvious. Apparently he completes up to six ‘interview’ sessions a day.
Train Pusher
Tokyo subways are notoriously crowded, with rush hour trains sometimes over capacity by 200%. Hence the authorities thought it necessary to employ ‘pushers’ to squeeze everyone onboard. As this video (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=STNWc7Rlpfk) demonstrates, they’re not afraid to use force!
Armpit Sniffer
This job has got to be up there with the worst. Skincare firms employ a handful of professional ‘noses’ to smell other testers’ armpits in a bid to determine which antiperspirant and/or deodorants perform best throughout the day. Yuk.
Pig Masturbater
Sounds bizarre, but this role exists to extract semen from pigs for scientific purposes (why else?). The job requires a fair bit of stamina and is definitely not for the faint hearted, or weak-wristed.
Chicken Sexer
This sounds worse than it is. Farmers employ ‘sexers’ to sort through newly hatched chicks and determine whether they are male or female. The sexer then sends the chicks down the appropriate conveyer belt en route to a bleak future.
Pearl Diver
If you want to earn big bucks then this could be the profession for you. Firms will ‘shell out’ up to £800 a day for your catch. However, there is a downside: it’s extremely dangerous and you might die.
This job is tedious but necessary, particularly when paint manufacturers are testing new products. It’s certainly not how I’d like to spend my working week. Still, it’s better than jerking off a pig.
Professional Thief
Convenience stores employ light-fingered covert thieves to steal from shops in order to check that the store’s security team is on the ball. Similar to a secret shopper, but more suited to adrenaline junkies.
Disneyland Character
Dressing up in an uncomfortable and itchy suit, in 30-degree heat, and having to be continuously happy whilst hyper children continuously torment you. Sound appealing?
Hair Boiler
Enough to make you call in sick… this job is fairly self-explanatory: in the name of scientific research, animal hair is boiled in huge containers. It looks rather like a hair soup but with an undesirable scent, and aftertaste!
Snake Milker
If a paper cut is the closest you get to pain and danger in your workplace, then spare a thought for snake milkers. Yep, some poor soul is paid to extract venom from poisonous snakes in the name of medical research. It’s an important role, though – the anti-venom they produce saves thousands of lives every year.
Ostrich Babysitter
This is necessary, apparently, as these birds are valuable and are at risk of being stolen. They put up a good fight too, and are capable of pecking each other to death. Hence they need a full-time babysitter. Tough job.
