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Derek Macon

Amory Orchard

ENG 103-5

4-10-17

Women in the Workplace

There is no question that there is a divide in the workplace involving

gender norms between men and women. How women are perceived in a

professional setting is not always equal to their male counterparts. We have

all heard the stereotypes that permeate the workplace involving women.

Some of these stereotypes originated in the 1960s when women were

expected to be homemakers and to take care of the children as their main

responsibilities. Also they were expected to be subordinate to their

husbands. While the men in the relationship were expected to be the

breadwinners and provide for the family financially. These traditional roles

seemed to have seeped into the modern workplace in a less extreme form

but are existent nonetheless. One way that these gender roles have

continued to persist is in the form of media, specifically the TV show The

Office. The primary issue with the TV show The Office is the crude portrayal

of sexual objectification and harassment toward women.

We, as a society, have made leaps and bounds since the 1960s in

redefining gender roles and gender norms. Women are not just working but

in some cases are taking the reigns as the breadwinner of the family shifting

and reversing the gender norm. This is only a small example of the ways that
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gender roles and norms are evolving. However, there still exists many

problems associated with women and their employment. One of the critical

issues is the sexual objectification and harassment of women in the

workplace. This is an obstacle that affects so many women worldwide.

According to Charlesworth et al, it was not until the mid 1970s in the

United States that sexual harassment was first legally recognized as a form

of sexual discrimination (142). It is absurd to think that protection from

sexual harassment has only been in effect for a little over 40 years. By

allowing sexual objectification and harassment of women to persist

especially in the media is demeaning and degrading of women to the point of

being an appealing object to look at. This kind of mentality and attitude

deprives women of their basic humanity. As stated by Schooler, participants

judged women in more objectifying photographs as less competent than

women in photographs where the face was given more prominence (200).

This can lead to the serious issue for women of even gaining employment. If

women are already deemed as less competent by the interviewer based

solely on their physical appearance this puts them at a massive

disadvantage. This manner of thinking totally disregards womens

qualifications and reduces them to objects instead of people.

Perhaps no show on TV explores the sexual harassment and

objectification of women more crudely than The Office. There are several

male characters in the show that on a routine basis exhibit behaviors and

attitudes that harass and objectify (intentionally or not) the female

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characters on the show. Two of the most notorious characters on the show

that represent these behaviors are Michael Scott and Todd Packer. Michael

Scott is the regional manager of the office and is popular for his crude,

usually sexualized jokes and his infamous tagline: thats what she said!

Todd Packer is also a lot like Michael in this regard as he uses very sexist and

inappropriate jokes that usually pertain to women. In one episode in

particular Michael states that, I am upper management and it would be

inappropriate for me to take a bath with Pam. As much as I might want to

(Sexual Harassment). This statement shows that Michael is stating

something that has no place in a professional work environment and is

objectifying Pam in the process. Another instance of Michaels misogynistic

behavior is when he comments on Pams hair being down instead of up:

Wow-wee Mikey likey, why dont you wear your hair like that all the time,

its much sexier? (The Secret). In this example Michael suggest that Pam

change her appearance to appease himself which in effect is reducing her to

a sex object for his own viewing pleasure. Furthermore, when Michael is

asked by Jim what he likes most about Pam he responds, her boobs (The

Secret). This is a clear example of how Michael has reduced Pam to a sexual

object, failing to recognize her personality and character.

Another prominent male character on the show that demonstrates

objectifying behavior is the assistant to the regional manager or the assistant

regional manager, Dwight Schrute. In one particular episode, Phyllis is

flashed by a mystery man as she is entering the building and as a result

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Dwight produces a memo that states that the women of the office will be

sent home if they were makeup or heels that exceed one quarter inch

(Boys and Girls). This memo that Dwight distributes to the women of the

office blames their appearance for their sexual harassment which shows that

Dwight is in return objectifying the women.

There are a number of different excuses that people will employ to try

and skate over and cover up the fact that they have committed sexual

harassment in the workplace. One excuse people will apply is that it was

just a joke and that the offended person has no sense of humor (The

Federal Practice Group). This is the defense that Michael Scott often utilizes

on the show to try and excuse the fact that he is displaying harassing

behavior with his sexual, crude jokes and side comments. When the other

employees on the show go to HR to complain about Michaels sexist behavior

it often yields little to no progress. Michael usually reverts back to his old

ways even when he receives verbal warnings from his superiors to cease that

behavior. His defense is usually that it is just his style of humor and that it is

not meant to offend anybody. However, he always seems to offend the other

characters regardless. These usually being the female characters. Even

though people may have a more risqu sense of humor that is no excuse for

sexual harassment. This is true because its not humorous to degrade people

and objectify them even if it was intended as a joke. This is extraordinarily

inappropriate in a professional, workplace environment.

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To conclude, I believe The Office is a show that can be very off-putting

for a lot of people notably for women with its sexist jokes and misogyny. The

shows display of sexual harassment towards women can be very cringe-

worthy. That being said I understand that the show is a satire and uses its

comedy to highlight important and controversial issues in society. With this

being an extremely popular show some viewers may get the wrong idea that

the show is promoting sexual harassment in the workplace. However, I

believe by showing this type of sexual harassment next to the disgusted and

disapproving faces of the other characters distinctly the female characters it

will help to reinforce the idea that sexual harassment of anyone male or

female is never justified, particularly in the workplace. Hopefully this show

will teach people to respect each other and to not reduce, degrade, or

objectify. All in all, I feel the show uses humor in a controversial yet

constructive way to point out this grievous issue that we as a society are

battling.

Works Cited

Boys and Girls. The Office, created by Greg Daniels, performance by Rainn

Wilson, Season 2,

Episode 15, Deedle-Dee Productions and Universal Media Studios,

2012.
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Common Excuses for Sexual Harassment at Work: Dont Fall For It. Federal

Lawyers. Cf,

n.d. Web. 25 Mar. 2017.

Fielden, S.L., Davidson, M.J., Woolnough, H. et. al. A Model of Racialized

Sexual Harassment of

Women in the U.K. Workplace. Sex Roles 62.1 (2010): 20-34. DOI:

10.1007/s11199-009-9715-4. Web. 23 Mar. 2017.

Schooler, Deborah. The Woman Next to Me: Pairing Powerful and

Objectifying

Representations of Women. Analyses of Social Issues and Public

Policy, vol 15, no.1, 2015, pp198-212. (2015): 198-212.

Ebscohost.com. Web. 29 Mar. 2017.

Sexual Harassment. The Office, created by Greg Daniels, performance by

Steve Carell and

David Koechner, Season 2, Episode 2, Deedle-Dee Productions and

Universal Media Studios, 2012.

The Secret. The Office, created by Greg Daniels, performance by Steve

Carell, Season 2,

Episode 13, Deedle-Dee Productions and Universal Media Studios,

2012.
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