Weekly Office Review and Contest
In my humble opinion, NBC’s The Office is the world’s #1 employment law training aid. All you have to do is (1) watch it and (2) do the exact opposite of everything you see.
To help enhance your viewing experience, each week I provide a critique of the action from an employment lawyer’s perspective.
Last Night’s Episode: “Broke.”
The Plot: Michael maneuvers Dunder Mifflin into buying his quickly-going-bankrupt company and giving him, Pam and Ryan their jobs back.
My Analysis:
- Issue: Emotional Distress
Description: Michael forced his employees to deliver paper with him at 5:00 a.m. every morning. His over-the-top perkiness, bad jokes and refusal to provide coffee could easily result in emotional distress claims.
Risk: $$ - Issue: False Imprisonment
Description: Michael bought a used bus from the Hallelujah Church of Scranton to use as a delivery truck. He didn’t change the sign on the side, which resulted in several confused church members boarding the bus. One was driven around town for awhile without explanation.
Risk: $$ - Issue: Wage and Hour Violations
Description: It’s unclear whether Pam and Ryan are exempt employees. As a result, Michael could be liable for potential overtime claims, given the long hours they appear to be “working.’
Risk: $$ - Issue: Inappropriate Comments
Description: By my count, Michael has now topped the one million mark in inappropriate workplace comments. This week, he made inappropriate comments about Jim’s anatomy, Pam’s sleeping arrangements and football. Dwight made several inappropriate comments as well, including one referencing his former relationship with co-worker Angela.
Risk: $$$$$$ - Issue: Theft of Clients
Description: Using confidential and proprietary information stolen from DM, Michael’s new company drove the Scranton branch to the brink of financial disaster by undercutting it on prices and stealing most of its big clients. Rather than filing the world’s most easily winnable unfair competition lawsuit, DM caved. DM should fire its legal staff.
Risk: $$$$ - Issue: Breach of Fiduciary Duty
Description: Pam shared confidential information about the financial condition of Michael’s new company with Jim. Jim shared DM’s confidential negotiation strategy with Michael.
Risk: $$$ - Issue: Galactically Bad Management
Description: Charles continued to show bad judgment by making Dwight his #2 and by listening to his advice. Having Dwight in a position of power is never a good thing.
Risk: $$$$ - Issue: Homicide
Description: Dwight proposed several rather bizarre negotiation strategies, including filling Michael’s office with killer bees. Thankfully, that strategy was rejected.
Risk: $ - Issue: Negligent Hiring
Description: DM agreed to hire back Ryan, despite the fact that he was convicted of felony fraud while previously employed by the company. Not a good move.
Risk: $$$$$ - Issue: Michael’s Back
Description: By hiring back Michael with full knowledge of his world-class incompetency and multitude of prior misdeeds, the company exposed itself to claims from virtually every employee.
Risk: $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$
OFFICIAL “ARE YOU SMARTER THAN A LAWYER?” CONTEST: Anyone who leaves a comment below identifying an employment law issue that I missed will win a valuable prize. If you didn’t get a chance to see the episode, you can view it on NBC’s official web site here.
As always, thanks for your participation!
