Undercover Boss
I watched the first show last week and the episode this week. It's about as entertaining as a reality show could be. Once again, though, the reality of the show is disturbingly contrived.
First the cover story. Why is there a film crew following this toiler scrubber around? If I was a boss I'd have a lot of questions about this. I suppose the concept of a news organization doing an investigative report is vaguely plausible. And with everyone seemingly on the lookout for their 15 minutes one can get away with this.
Secondly, in both shows the CEO is under an assumed name working at his (so far both are men) company in entry level jobs. In both shows the CEO stays at a hotel with the line, "this is the where anyone trying out for a full time job would be staying." As far as I can tell they don't tell any of the employees they meet where they are living but how much BS is that? How many people trying out for a job as a garbage truck driver (last week) or a restaurant bus boy (this week) are staying at hotels?
Finally, today's boss is from the Hooters Restaurant. He goes into one restaurant as a manager in training. The current manager has the waitresses compete in a no-hands, bean eating contest to earn the right to go home early. Again, really? I can't help but wonder how scripted this show might be. I'm not so naive to think this kind of sexual harassmant doesn't happen. Especially in the bar and service industry. Especially at an establishment as sexually charges as Hooters. I guess I am naive enough to think people are "smart" enough not to do it with the cameras rolling.
To add to my suspicions that this was nothing but a gratuitous sex display at the end of the show the offending manager was said to still have his job after apologizing to the staff. He is said to have changed his management style. If the event was real and the manager wasn't fired there are about 5 Hooters waitresses that once had beans on their faces and should now have millions in their bank accounts.
The formula seems set: a manager doing a great job, an employee busting her butt (always a woman so far) that keeps her away from her family, and the one employee just doing bad work. And they find all of these in the 7 days they are undercover. Just... suspect.
First the cover story. Why is there a film crew following this toiler scrubber around? If I was a boss I'd have a lot of questions about this. I suppose the concept of a news organization doing an investigative report is vaguely plausible. And with everyone seemingly on the lookout for their 15 minutes one can get away with this.
Secondly, in both shows the CEO is under an assumed name working at his (so far both are men) company in entry level jobs. In both shows the CEO stays at a hotel with the line, "this is the where anyone trying out for a full time job would be staying." As far as I can tell they don't tell any of the employees they meet where they are living but how much BS is that? How many people trying out for a job as a garbage truck driver (last week) or a restaurant bus boy (this week) are staying at hotels?
Finally, today's boss is from the Hooters Restaurant. He goes into one restaurant as a manager in training. The current manager has the waitresses compete in a no-hands, bean eating contest to earn the right to go home early. Again, really? I can't help but wonder how scripted this show might be. I'm not so naive to think this kind of sexual harassmant doesn't happen. Especially in the bar and service industry. Especially at an establishment as sexually charges as Hooters. I guess I am naive enough to think people are "smart" enough not to do it with the cameras rolling.
To add to my suspicions that this was nothing but a gratuitous sex display at the end of the show the offending manager was said to still have his job after apologizing to the staff. He is said to have changed his management style. If the event was real and the manager wasn't fired there are about 5 Hooters waitresses that once had beans on their faces and should now have millions in their bank accounts.
The formula seems set: a manager doing a great job, an employee busting her butt (always a woman so far) that keeps her away from her family, and the one employee just doing bad work. And they find all of these in the 7 days they are undercover. Just... suspect.
posted by Eric at
9:14 PM
1 Comments:
Yeah, I saw the first episode and kind-of wondered that, as well.
I was intrigued until I started realizing how formulaic it seemed.
Ahh, reality t.v.--you never fail to NOT disappoint. *grin*
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