Toxic Workplace? It's Insult Your Boss Day.
Posted by: eyoung on July 23, 2008 at 8:59AM CST

So apparently today is "Insult Your Boss Day." And there’s a news release to prove it. We got the following press release from the holiday’s creator, A.C. Kemp, who is a lecturer in English Language Studies at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology; director of Slang City, a Web site on popular culture; and author of the March 2008 book "The Perfect Insult for Every Occasion: Lady Snark’s Guide to Common Discourtesy."

Since we would never insult our bosses, the day’s in your hands, readers. (Of course, given today’s economy, it may be wiser to keep your insults to yourself.) Either way, the list of horrible TV bosses at the end is an entertaining one. Can you think of any other — fictional would be wise — bosses to add to the "Bad Boss Hall of Shame"?

Insult Your Boss Day!: Press Release
If you’ve ever suffered under a terrible supervisor, you’re not alone. In a 2007 survey by Florida State University’s College of Business, roughly 30 percent of respondents said that their boss had criticized them to other managers or coworkers, and even more accused their boss of breaking promises or withholding credit for a job well done. (See the "Bad Boss Hall of Shame" below.)

"Most people can identify with ‘The Office’ because unfortunately, most of us have worked for a boss like Michael Scott," says author and MIT lecturer A. C. Kemp, who created a special holiday as a response to these workplace tensions. Insult Your Boss Day — which takes place today — gives disgruntled employees permission to let off steam. "In this economy, I’m not sure how many people will actively participate," says Kemp, "but hopefully, it will bring a little levity to employees who suffer in silence."

IYBD 2008 is chaired by Lady Arabella Snark, a fictional socialite who gives bad advice on the official Web site. "Of course, it’s tongue-in-cheek," laughs Kemp.

The main event of IYBD will take place at 3 p.m. Eastern Standard Time today, when, according to the IYBD Web site, "all workers should insult their bosses simultaneously, followed by a communal drink at the nearest bar."

Bad Boss Hall of Shame
Does your boss deserve an insult? See how he stacks up against these fictional bad bosses.

Nigel Wick: Drew Carey’s boss at the fictional department store Winfred-Louder is a boorish lout and former cocaine addict who coerces Drew into a same-sex union so he can get a green card.

Gordon Gekko: The slimy villain of Wall Street destroys lives while spouting mottos like, "Lunch is for wimps" and "If you need a friend, get a dog."

Miranda Preistly: Played by Meryl Streep in the film ‘The Devil Wears Prada,’ Priestly is a fashion magazine editor who sets her sleep deprived assistant the impossible task of finding an unpublished Harry Potter manuscript in three hours.

Montgomery Burns: Not satisfied to merely flout OSHA laws at his nuclear power plant, Homer Simpson’s evil boss once tried to increase the need for electric lights by blocking the sun.

Franklin Hart, Jr.: After the egotistical, credit-grabbing manager in the film ‘9 to 5’ spreads rumors that he’s sleeping with his sexy secretary (Dolly Parton), she threatens to change him "from a rooster to a hen with one shot." In the end, Parton and her cohorts are satisfied to kidnap him and use his authority to change the office for the better.

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