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. Here’s this week’s review . . .
Episode Title: ”Business Trip”
The Plot: Michael takes Andy and Oscar on a business trip to Canada.
My Analysis:
- Issue: Race/National Origin Harassment
Description: In a training session on how to conduct international business, Michael made inappropriate remarks about virtually every ethnic group. My advice to the company: To avoid an international incident, Michael should be banned from any and all travel outside U.S. borders (and, quite possibly, any and all contact with human beings in general).
Risk: $$$ - Issue: Sexual Harassment
Description: Once again, virtually every employee harassed virtually every other employee. Kevin slapped Jim on the rump. Creed caressed Jim’s shoulders. Jim openly expressed that the conduct was unwelcome, calling it “inappropriate” and “weird.” Michael, Andy and Oscar made multiple inappropriate sexual comments before, during and after the trip. The company’s CFO encouraged Michael to ”enjoy the night life” in Winnipeg, which set in motion various inappropriate encounters between Michael and the hotel concierge. Andy made inappropriate comments to his fiancee (and co-worker) Angela and to Oscar about his sexual orientation. Kelly and Ryan made inappropriate comments and had a romantic encounter on the company premises. None of the above was addressed in any way by management.
Risk: $$$$$ - Issue: Violation of Company Policy
Description: Michael informed the CFO that he planned to violate company policy by spending his per diem on a sweater. The CFO failed to take appropriate action. The CFO also allowed Michael to yell at him in a phone conversation without repercussions.
Risk: $ - Issue: Worker’s Compensation
Description: Michael injured his leg to an undetermined degree when a flight attendant smashed a drink cart into it. Michael may attempt to claim that because he was traveling on company business, it should be covered.
Risk: $ - Issue: Emotional Distress
Description: The company’s CFO may face allegations of intentional infliction of emotional distress for forcing employees to travel to Winnipeg in November. (My apologies to all the fine folks in Winnipeg, but Michael was clearly showing signs of severe distress by the end of the episode. If it’s any consolation, my home state of Wisconsin ain’t much better — it’s June and it feels more like February right now.)
Risk: $ - Issue: Criminally Bad Taste
Description: Andy publicly displayed criminally bad taste in movie viewing by watching Harry and the Hendersons on the plane on his DVD player.
Risk: $
OFFICIAL “ARE YOU SMARTER THAN A LAWYER?” CONTEST: As always, anyone who spots an employment law issue I missed will be entitled to a valuable prize. If you think I missed something, either leave a comment below or shoot me an e-mail at blawg@manpower.com. If you didn’t get a chance to see the episode, you can view it on NBC’s official web site here.
BONUS TIP OF THE WEEK: Don’t assume that just because conduct occurs off-site and off-duty that an employer is insulated from liability. Some of the worst harassment cases I saw when I was in private practice involved off-duty conduct, particularly where (1) an event is company-sponsored, (2) alcohol is involved, (3) the bad actor is a supervisor and/or (4) it spills over into the workplace.
