Employees reveal the worst things they've seen customers do on Black Friday

Rob Stothard/Getty Images

Black Friday is no fun when you're working.

The INSIDER Summary:

Shopping on Black Friday might be tiring - but working during Black Friday is even worse. 
We sourced stories from real retail employees who've had a shift on the biggest shopping day of the year.

For shoppers, Black Friday is a chance to get some major savings (and maybe feel like you're participating in a real-life version of the Hunger Games.)

But for employees, Black Friday is the most dreaded shift of the entire year - a day full of sleep-deprived, touchy customers, insane hours, and (in some cases) the risk of bodily injury. 

Of course, with managers always monitoring performance, employees usually can't express their Black Friday frustrations out loud. That's why INSIDER found out what Black Friday really looks like from behind the register.

We spoke with some former retail employees and got no-holds-barred tales from the front lines. Though INSIDER cannot independently verify all of these tales, you'll be shocked by these horror stories.

Here's a sampling of the craziest anecdotes.