Court rules man should not be fired for not being ‘happy’ at work
No need to make small talk at your desk or go to “happy hour” when you just want to go home for a while Main reason More and more people are choosing to work remotely. Recent surveys show only one in six Americans Working in an office feels “highly connected” to others there.
Number of remote workers feeling “disconnected” from their co-workers, the opposite of what some CEOs would argue, lower for those who work remotely than for those who go to the physical office.
And that doesn’t even have the optional but real happy hours and other corporate socialization events, which when one is on the shyer side or doesn’t feel connected to a co-worker, can can be a major source of stress. In November, a court in Paris determined that a consulting firm was wrong in fired a man who refused to participate in them.
You can’t get fired for skipping drinks in France
The Parisian man who is known as “Mr. T.” through court documents, worked for the consulting firm Cubik Partners from 2011 to 2015.
Providing business consulting services to corporate clients, Cubik builds a work culture based on social connections and “personality over competence”. Cubik’s website describes the company’s values say employees “need to know how to have fun at work.”
That aspect of the company culture doesn’t mean well to Mr. T, who was promoted in 2014 but repeatedly refused to participate in various team building activities and happy hours at the office.
After being fired in 2015 for “lack of professional competence”, Mr. T took his employer to court claiming he was fined for “excessive alcoholism” and “promiscuousness”.
While the legal battle dragged on and there was at least one appeal, the Court of Cassation (the highest court in the French legal system) ultimately sided with Mr. Participation in optional social activities is also a “fundamental freedom”. as a “freedom of speech.”
Cubik Partners was ordered to immediately pay Mr T 3,000 euros ($3,161). The court will review all damages at a later date. Mr T’s previous claim of 461,406 euros ($486,206) was rejected by the French appeals court.
Employers trying to build a ‘Fun’ or ‘Family’ culture should pay attention
Such a legal victory is unusual given how difficult such claims are to prove in court. Cubik Partners previously stated that Mr T was also fired for his hostile responses to feedback and criticism as well as his “harsh and dismayed tone” towards subordinates.
More often, adopting Mr. T’s approach will not lead to immediate dismissal but also lost opportunities for not being seen as “dedicated” or “fit”. That said, criticisms of this kind of “fun” or “family” corporate culture have begun to emerge. take off before the pandemic inadvertently solved the problem of employment in some industries that are very suitable for working from home.
Manfred FR Kets de Vries said: “Some cult-like companies have gone so far as to see the workplace as an alternative to family and community, isolating their employees (perhaps inadvertently, with intentionally) from such support networks”. wrote to the Harvard Business Review in 2019. “They encourage people to focus their lives on their work, which leaves them with less time to relax, entertain, or go on vacation.”