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: “The Chump.” Here’s NBC’s official summary: “Michael reacts well to learning bad news; Pam and Jim have issues staying awake while at the office; Angela confronts Dwight about their contract.”

My Analysis:

1. Issue: Radon Riddance
   Description: Michael admittedly threw away several radon testers — two mistakenly and one just to “spite” HR “professional” Toby. He also repeatedly disrupted Toby’s radon training session by making farting noises (in response to a remark by Toby about radon being “silent but deadly”). Michael’s actions could open the company to significant liability if any employees develop radon-related medical issues.
   Risk: $$$$$
2. Issue: Workplace Violence
   Description: Michael made a highly inappropriate comment indicating that if he was in a room with Toby, Hitler and Osama bin Laden and had a gun with only two bullets, he would shoot Toby twice. Dwight then demonstrated in graphic detail how he could kill all three with a “single shot to the throat.” Given all the previous other workplace violence incidents (particularly by Dwight), the company could face humongous liability at some point.
   Risk: $$$$$$$
3. Issue: Theft of Company Time (and Other Bad Stuff)
   Description: Once again, no employees did any discernible work. Most of the staff spent the episode trying to convince Michael to break off his relationship with Donna. Michael wasted additional time by ordering the entire office to observe “ten minutes of silence” in honor of Michael Jackson. Andy and Michael left the office on company time to stalk Donna’s husband. Dwight and Angela met with a mediator in a company conference room to resolve their “birthing contract” dispute. Jim and Pam each took a pair of naps. After Gabe discovered the first nap, he did little to address it other than lamely scold them. Daryl (now a manager) sanctioned the second nap and even recommended a sleeping spot that he helped set up in the warehouse. Dwight and Angela agreed to an unlawful arrangement bordering on prostitution and then engaged in unspeakable acts in the warehouse within earshot of Pam and Jam, clearly causing them severe emotional distress.
   Risk: $$$$$
4. Issue: Workplace Injury?
   Description: Dwight intentionally (and repeatedly) injured himself on company property. If he tries to file a workers’ comp claim, there should be plenty of evidence that it isn’t compensable.
   Risk: $
5. Issue: Unethical Leadership
   Description: Michael’s refusal to stop seeing Donna despite the fact that she’s married led to various of his subordinates openly questioning his ethics and character. Michael compounded the problem by (1) asserting that he is entitled to do whatever he wants whenever he wants and then (2) stealing another employee’s orange and (3) eating Meredith’s birthday cake without permission. His reprehensible behavior rubbed off on Ryan, who propositioned Erin in a clearly unwelcome manner. Unethical leaders can poison an entire organization and create significant liability. Just ask Enron.
   Risk: $$$$$$$
6. Issue: Loss of Consortium
   Description: It’s a stretch, but Donna’s husband could potentially file a lawsuit against the company for loss of consortium (a fancy legal term for “your bad acts ruined my marriage”), given the fact that several managers are aware of Michael’s affair with Donna but failed to take appropriate steps to stop it.
   Risk: $$
7. Issue: Don’t Let Michael Talk to the Press
   Description: Michael confessed his affair live on the air to a news reporter. In doing so, he potentially opened himself and the company to a variety of claims from Donna and her husband (e.g., defamation, invasion of privacy, etc.). He also may have inadvertently admitted that the company should bear responsibility for its printers bursting into flames (since that’s what the reporter was actually asking him about).
   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!

If you were unable to attend, click here to view the replay.

Enjoy!

In recognition of Sherry’s efforts, she will receive a $100 gift certificate good for any of the fine merchants on giftcertificates.com.

The correct answers to the were B, B, B, C and D.

Thanks to all who participated!

In my humble opinion, The Office is the world’s greatest employment law training aid. All you have to do is (1) watch it and (2) do the exact opposite of everything you see.

TONIGHT’S EPISODE:

The Chump. Here’s NBC’s official description: “Michael reacts well to learning bad news; Pam and Jim have issues staying awake while at the office; Angela confronts Dwight over their contract.”

OFFICIAL “ARE YOU SMARTER THAN A LAWYER?” CONTEST. Tune in tomorrow to see my detailed analysis of the episodes and exactly what I would tell Dunder Mifflin if I were its lawyer. Anyone who spots an employment law issue that I missed will be entitled to a valuable prize.

Enjoy!

• Question #1: Nathan ($25 gift certificate)
• Question #2: Amy (The Office gift pack)
• Question #3: Ed ($50 gift certificate)
• Question #4: Lisa ($100 gift certificate)

We’ll text each of you to give you all the details. Thanks for all your participation!

The rules are simple: the first person to leave a comment below with the correct answers to the following questions wins. The prize: a $100 gift card to any of the fine merchants on giftcertificates.com.

Here are the questions. All you have to include is the question number and your answer. Enjoy!

1.  The new Dodd-Frank law applies only to financial institutions.
     A.  True
     B.  False
     C.  I was napping at that point in the webinar and thus don’t know the answer

2.  In addition to all the health care changes, what else does PPACA require?
     A.  Extension of the COBRA subsidy to December 31, 2010
     B.  Breaks for nursing mothers
     C.  All U.S. citizens to move to Canada

3.  True or False? Employers win the majority of employment lawsuits.
     A.  True
     B.  False
     C.  It is unlawful in most states for employers to win

4.  Whom should you call first when confronted with a tricky accommodation issue?
     A.  Your favorite employment lawyer
     B.  The EEOC’s new Disability Accommodation Center (DAC)
     C.  The Job Accommodation Network (JAN)
     D.  The employee’s spouse

5.  What is the finest workforce solutions company in the history of the universe?
     A.  Manpower
     B.  Manpower
     C.  Manpower
     D.  All of the above

Thanks again for your participation!

Every other week or so, I send out a brief summary of all the major employment law developments in an easy-to-digest format.  The goal is to give you the news you need to stay on top of the law and out of jail.

The next Alert will be coming out shortly.  Enjoy!

Hope you can join us!

New DOL Fact Sheet

Click here for a new fact sheet issued by the Department of Labor to help employers comply with this new requirement. Here are the highlights:

• The requirement lasts for one year after birth.
• The amendment is silent on the number and duration of breaks that must be allowed.
• Employers are required to provide a nursing break area “other than a bathroom, that is shielded from view and free from intrusion from coworkers and the public.”
• Organizations with fewer than 50 employees are exempt if compliance would impose an “undue hardship by causing the employer significant difficulty or expense when considered in relation to the size, financial resources, nature, or structure of the employer’s business.”

Compensable?

The breaks typically won’t be compensable. However, the fact sheet notes two exceptions:

• An employer allowing paid breaks must compensate a nursing employee in the same way it does others if the mother uses such a break in order to express breast milk.
• The lactation break is compensable if the employee is not “completely relieved from duty” during the break.

Beware State Law

The amendment doesn’t preempt any state law that “provides greater protections.” Several states, including California, Illinois, New York and more than twenty others already have workplace breastfeeding laws in place. For that reason, we strongly suggest that you consult with your own legal counsel before making any significant changes.

Our last webinar had 2,233 total attendees. We’re shooting for at least 2,233,233 on this one. Hope you can join us!