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Court orders company to pay €3,000 to Frenchman fired for being too boring

Malay Mail
Malay Mail

KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 28 — A Frenchman, who was fired for being too boring, has been awarded €3,000 (RM13,919) by the Court of Cassation in Paris.

The court ruled in favour of the man, identified as Mr T. The court agreed that his former company’s definition of fun violated his rights, New York Post reported.

Mr T was working as a senior advisor for the Paris-based consultancy firm Cubik Partners, which is notable for its fun and pro approach to work.

They would throw a series of mandatory soirees for staffers to help boost team spirit and prevent training sessions from becoming too boring.

Employees are forced to take part in seminars and end-of-week drinks frequently ending up in excessive alcohol intake, encouraged by associates who made very large quantities of alcohol available.

The sordid shindigs also included simulated sexual acts, sharing beds with colleagues during seminars, as well as cruel nicknames and other forms of hazing.

Mr T abstained from the activities on grounds that he didn’t agree with Cubik Partners’ definition of fun.

He also declared that he was entitled to critical behaviour and to refuse company policy based on incitement to partake in various excesses.

As a result of his refusal, Mr T was subsequently sacked in 2015 on the basis of professional inadequacy and failing to embody the party atmosphere that the consultancy was trying to cultivate.

Other reasons for Mr T’s sacking included being boring, bad at listening and difficult to work with.

The Parisian appeals court ruled that Mr T was exercising his freedom of expression by abstaining from the compulsory parties, which they linked to “promiscuity, bullying and incitement to get involved in various forms of excess and misconduct”.

They ultimately concluded that Cubik Partners’ culture of fun violated Mr T’s fundamental right to dignity and respect of private life.

While the court ordered the company to pay Mr T €3,000, he had demanded another €461,000 (RM2.14 million), which the court will consider at a later date.