While going through the interview process for a government-owned agency tasked with developing IT products for my city, I was told that as per regulation I had to pass some kind of test organized by a third-party HR company.

The interviewer explaining that to me was like "we're sorry but you'll have to go through this test even though it's annoying, but that's the rule and we all had to" (big red flag).

So next week I went to that HR company expecting some kind of technical/programming assignment (it was a Python position). Instead had to take part in some weird theater play in which I was playing as a clerk at the municipal office. I was given 30 minutes to study documentation about an imaginary new regulation (related to noise pollution IIRC), and then some actor entered the room and pretended to be a stubborn and angry citizen complaining about that regulation.

After that confusing and embarrassing experience, I tried to explain that I didn't understand the point of this thing since I was applying to a programming job with no customer/citizen-facing component. But they were adamant that it was relevant, because it was a government job, and apparently everybody in government is a city clerk.

The full thing went on for 3 hours (I hadn't been informed it would take so long). As a compensation for my time I was given a tuna sandwich (I wish I was joking).