Workplace Bullying in Office Space Movie (1999)

Running head: 1
Student’s Name
Institutional Affiliation

2
Workplace Bullying in Office Space Movie (1999)
Bullying is a serious issue in the workplace. Workplace bullying does not only hurt those
involved but the entire workplace resulting in lost productivity which costs organizations dearly.
Bullying is a common issue in nearly all organizations as about one in six employees have been
bullied. Workplace bullying may entail verbal, social, physical or psychological abuse by an
employee to another employee, employer to an employee or vice versa. In most cases, bullying is
usually carried out to undermine an individual through humiliation. The movie Office Space is a
perfect example of various variations of workplace bullying.
Workplace bullying in the movie is highlighted when management decides to eliminate
Michael and Samir’s job without informing them (Judge et al., 2002). They learn about the
elimination through their colleague, Peter, who relays the news to them. Milton who is a loyal
employee also gets bullied by the management when the management decides to lay him off
without informing him. The management even decides to move Milton’s office into the basement
and decides to cut off his paycheck without warning. This is a workplace bullying situation.
Milton's boss is deceitful by not informing him that he is being laid off. The decision by Milton's
boss to move his office to the basement is a deliberate move aimed at hurting Milton's feelings.
Finally, Milton's boss shows no remorse for what he does to Milton because he knows that the
boss-subordinate relationship he has with Milton makes it hard for Milton to confront him.
People who are bullied often experience serious psychological and physical ailments
which can adversely affect their work and home life. They tend to feel scared, stressed and
depressed. Bullying can also make people lack confidence in themselves as well as take away
their happiness which often make people irritable and results in bitterness. In the movie, Michael
and Samir who are being bullied by the management are probably feeling irritated and bitter.