The Office turns 20 today, so obviously we wanted to celebrate with Paul Lieberstein, who was not only a writer and showrunner on the sitcom, but played Toby Flenderson, the hated, yet beloved, HR head at Dunder Mifflin, Scranton. In a recent interview with HR Brew, he reflected on his character and the connection he’s built with the HR community, thanks, in part, to the show's millions of fans.

Before The Office. Lieberstein didn’t originally set out to be a television writer, but he always loved comedy. “That’s not one of the jobs that is presented to you in Connecticut,” he told HR Brew. “So I kind of acted as if it was never really a possibility.”

Lieberstein earned an economics degree from Hamilton College in Central NY before a brief stint as an auditor in corporate America. As it turned out, corporate life wasn’t the right fit for Lieberstein, who found his work “unfulfilling.” He decided to pursue his passion and moved to Los Angeles to pursue television writing. He wasn’t an overnight success, but before long, his talent and new connections landed him a job writing for the ’90s sitcom Weird Science.

Toby as a stop-gap. After writing for comedies like Clarissa Explains it All and King of the Hill, he got a gig writing for a show that would eventually become the American version of The Office. But the character he would end up playing came about later, and almost by accident.

For more on Lieberstein’s experience working on The Office, keep reading here.—KP

Do you still laugh every time Michael Scott asks Toby Flenderson, “Why are you the way that you are?” Well, you’re not alone.

In honor of the 20th anniversary of the premiere of The Office, we asked HR leaders (and Paul Lieberstein) for their thoughts on the show.

We found that not only has The Office had a profound impact on the HR community, but several people leaders empathize with Scranton’s own HR contact.

“The Office employees routinely dismissed Toby despite his role being designed to create a more productive, safe, and enjoyable workplace—the cruel irony being that their rejection of HR undermined the very environment he was trying to build. His quiet dedication to improving their work lives went unappreciated, highlighting how even well-intentioned HR professionals can become scapegoats when company culture resists positive change.”—Tracy Avin, founder, TroopHR

For more HR leaders’ reflections on The Office, keep reading here.—KP

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) was busy last week.

Two days after it sent a letter to 20 law firms requesting documentation of their DEI initiatives, the EEOC on Wednesday provided new “DEI-related discrimination” guidance. However, one lawyer pointed out that the guidance does not change current civil rights laws, and cautioned employers against backing away from DEI too quickly, or too much.

Called “What you should know about DEI-related discrimination at work,” the guidance posits that workers may experience discrimination as the result of “unlawful” DEI initiatives and advises them if they think they’ve experienced “discrimination related to DEI.” It is largely a reminder that Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 protects against discrimination based on identifying factors including race, gender, and religious affiliation.

“The framing, and its lack of context and nuance, gives this document the impression that it’s not even-handed, and that it is trying to convey that DEI efforts are unlawful,” Katy Youker, director of the economic justice project for the nonprofit Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, told HR Brew, noting that it’s unclear whether the issuance is binding or enforceable.

For more on the implications of this issuance for HR leaders, keep reading here.—KP