That's funny... I was once not fired because I missed an email. The email was to meet with my boss, and as I later found out, his plan was to fire me. By missing the email, that bought some time, and brought it to the attention of my boss's boss, who pointed out that I was highly valued, hadn't done anything to warrant being fired, and that my boss was just being a dick, though of course not in those words.. Also HR chimed in basically saying he'd have to do more to prove his case. I ended up quitting not long after, but it seemed a small win.