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Rules often sound wonderfully precise until the person enforcing them discovers that precision works both ways.

An irritated meter reader demanded exactly 18 inches of clearance from the nearby tables before beginning her work.

That instruction reached a quality-control coordinator who spent every day reading codes and following specifications literally.

The tape measure came out before the coffee kicked in.

Ok well. Electrical meters require 18(?) inches of space between them and any object.

I was not aware of that until I was informed in an angry voice by the person who read the meters.

The type of meter is on the side of a house.

I actually just said good morning to that person and offered them a cup of coffee, so I was somewhat taken aback by their angry words.

This man pulled out a tape measure.

Silently, I reached into my desk drawer (yes, my office was in the utility room, that’s how I ranked), and I pulled out my tape measure.

My job was that of a QC coordinator in a boiler shop.

All I did all day was read codes and customer specs.

He measured the gap between the electrical meters and got exactly 18 inches.

I was somewhat familiar with the idea of malicious compliance, so I walked over to the folding tables covered in customer final documentation in progress.

I extended the tape measure 18 inches or whatever it was, I forget.

I pulled the tables out exactly 18 inches.

He was so satisfied to show this to the angry person in front of him.

I walked back to my desk, sat in my chair, and sipped my coffee while she squeezed her much larger than 18-inch bottom down the eight-foot-long gap from the end of the table to the meters.

She stared laser beams at me the entire way.

It was one of the more satisfying coffees I have had.

See? I had not had my coffee yet. She could have used one as well, probably.

Let’s read the responses of other people to this story on Reddit.

This user shares their personal thoughts.

Your malicious compliance game was on point, says this person.

This person gives their honest opinion.

Lol. Possibly.

If you enjoyed this story, check out this post about a woman who finds herself in a tough spot when a coworker reports her for the “policy violation” of having her personal water bottle at the register.

Finally, this user loves the compliance.

The coordinator silently moved the tables exactly 18 inches, satisfying the rule without providing the comfortable access the meter reader expected.

Faced with an eight-foot route around the tables, she squeezed through the narrow gap while the employee calmly enjoyed his morning coffee.

She requested code compliance and received the factory-certified edition.